Water and Sanitation at Heart of Human Dignity and Development

By Valerian Kkonde

PEARL NEWS SERVICE

Talk that future wars will be fought over water and not boundaries, only stands to highlight the enormous importance of water to human existence as well as the increasing threat of its scarcity.

The threats become real every other day as people selfishly engage in environmental degradation on a full time basis.

This precarious situation and the need to urgently reverse the trend were ably highlighted at the Launch of Maama Water Africa Foundation (MWAF) program, on September 13, 2013 at Hotel Africana in Kampala, Uganda.

Presiding over the launch Dr. John W. Kimbowa told the gathering that the primary concern for Maama Water Africa Foundation is to encourage the African people to harvest rain water so that each family has enough water. But that the bigger challenge is finding ways and means of promoting technology that can cater for appropriate supply, storage and sanitation.

“According to the WHO and UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation, 37% of the developing world’s population- 2.5 billion people- lack proper water supply and sanitation facilities.

“And over 780 million people still use unsafe drinking water sources. In Uganda, half of the entire population- 17.5 million people- has no access to proper water supply and sanitation toilets or latrines.”

Dr. Kimbowa observed that as past president of Rotary club of Rubaga, and Rotary being involved in various projects of water supply to disadvantaged communities, he is a partner in Maama Water Africa Foundation’s endeavors.

“Needless to say women and children worldwide spend 200 million work hours collecting water,” Dr. Kimbowa pointed out in a bid to emphasize the urgency needed to make water readily available.

About sanitation coverage in Uganda, Kimbowa pointed out that it is still very low with only 42% of the rural population and about 26% of the urban population lacking adequate sanitation.

“Most household pit latrines are traditional, providing minimal protection and privacy. A number of cultural taboos including sharing of latrines with in laws or women failing to produce babies if they use a latrine have blocked the effective use of latrines in so many communities.”

In some peri urban areas the situation is even more grave whereby the people have resorted to faceless disposal in “mobile toilets’’ or polythene bags which are discharged in banana  plantations, drainage channels or rubbish bins.

Inadequate access to safe water and sanitation services, coupled with poor hygiene practices, kills and sickens thousands of children every day, and leads to impoverishment and diminished opportunities for thousands more. This trend, the doctor observed, can be reversed.

“We need to re-arrange our priorities, set a new agenda that will put Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Renewable Energy on top of the list.”

He promised that Maama Water Africa Foundation will advocate and engage continental, regional, national and local decision making processes for water provision and its management, sanitation and hygiene services for the African communities.

“MWAF will effectively represent the African communities’ views on water, sanitation and hygiene to all the appropriate forums.”

Commending the founder and Chairperson Board of Trustees, Dr. Maria Mutagamba for this initiative, Dr. Kimbowa referred to her as a person “with a passion for serving the under-privileged and her advocacy for water for all is a mission she has taken on because she wants each and everyone in Africa to have access to affordable, available and manageable water.”

                                         The traditional respect and care for water bodies  has to be revived

                                         if Uganda is to meaningfully address the water shortage stalking her

Maria Mutagamba is minister for Tourism Wild life and Antiquities. She observed that “majority of African countries continue to slide back into water stress and inadequate sanitation” but that she has the determination and will to serve the continent because she is well versed with the area of water and sanitation.

“Among the many approaches to solving this challenge, I want to dwell on mobilizing the community to identify the problem and an affordable solution, and to provide the alternative technology.

“I am also for teaching the community the basics of that technology and monitor results to training for sustainability and introduce improvements on applications.”

The former minister for Environment, Mutagamba was in 2012 given the title of Maama Water Africa in recognition of her services to the cause and in effect   asked her to continue mothering the African Water Sector. Earlier in 2011 she had been invited to join the UN by the GS Bank Moon to launch a global campaign to stop Open Defecation.

Bagenda Miwanda, the Coordinator, told PNS that the program is going to start in Wakiso district and that they are going to ensure that they do away with the stinking toilets, restore the environment, stress cleanliness and improve people’s lives.

“It is rather shocking for people to share the same source of water with animals. It is crucial that our people take water-harvesting seriously as it greatly solves most of these problems we are witnessing. All this calls for attitude change.”

Bagenda emphasized that harvesting of water will help keep the gardens productive all year round. And that turning feces into fertilizers will result into more food and more money.

The Nakasozi -headquartered Maama Water Africa Foundation, off Masaka highway, is aiming to bring on board the surrounding schools and communities so as to sustainably tackle the environmental challenges, water and sanitation. School toilets, Bagenda revealed, will be used for biogas thus reducing the expenses for fuel.