Water Poverty Indices of three rural communities in the southern Caribbean

The Caribbean region experiences significant water supply challenges, especially for 30% of the population who live in rural areas. Improved water resource management in this region would enhance water availability for its population, but this requires reliable quantitative data to guide relevant policy decisions. The Water Poverty Index (WPI) and its components can be valuable sources of such data but there has not been any recent calculation of this index for countries or communities in the Caribbean. In this study, the WPI was determined for three rural communities in the southern Caribbean: Carriacou, Grenada; Nariva, Trinidad and Tobago; and Speightstown, Barbados. Using data collected from 606 surveys of households as well as published statistics, the overall WPI scores were calculated to be 65/100 for Carriacou, 65/100 for Nariva and 70/100 for Speightstown, which all fell in the ‘medium-low’ and ‘low’ water poverty scale respectively. Resource and Use components had the lowest scores and thus require urgent attention. There were no statistically significant differences across the major components, which demonstrates the common water related challenges in these Small Island Developing States, despite geographical diversity. This research will aid in defining national water resource management policies in rural communities of the Caribbean.

Assessing Water Poverty of Livelihood Groups in Peri-Urban Areas around Dhaka under a Changing Environment

Water poverty, measured by the Water Poverty Index (WPI), is traditionally applied at country and community levels. This study presents a livelihood-inclusive approach for measuring WPI at the livelihood group level. The specific objectives are to evaluate present and future WPIs for different livelihood groups, such as large and small male farmers, female farmers, male and female industrial workers and economically inactive women. Primary data are collected from three peri-urban areas around Dhaka using a mixed approach, including a semi-structured questionnaire survey of 260 respondents. The WPIs are calculated by using a weighted multiplicative function, and the component weights are assigned by principal component analysis. The results show that the economically inactive women are presently the most water-poor group, with a WPI value of 41, whereas the small male farmers would be the most water-poor group in the future, with a WPI value of 34. Environmental changes, such as high temperature, variability in rainfall and surface water, lowering of groundwater level, rapid population growth and unplanned urbanization, are found to be responsible for the dynamism in WPIs for different livelihood groups. The Resource and Environment components should be paid immediate attention in order to protect peri-urban livelihood groups from future water poverty.

Assessment of Urban Domestic Water Demand and Supply in Edo North, Nigeria

An exponential increase in the global population has seriously put pressure on land and water resources. It is projected that 33% of the worldwide people will be highly water-stressed by the 2050s if effective strategies are not developed. The study assessed urban domestic water demand and supply in Edo North senatorial district in Edo State, Nigeria. This is with the view of exploring some critical water resource variables to determine water security, distribution, and accessibility of safe drinking water in Edo North in Edo State in Nigeria. Integrated Water Resource Management Tools (IWRT) such as Water Poverty Index (WPI) and Water Accessibility Indicator (WAI) was applied. The results show that Auchi is highly water-stressed at the Estako-west area with MPI and WAI values of 0.24 and 0.33. Conversely, Okpella and Agenebode in Eskako central have MPI and WAI values 0.34 and 0.31, and 0.31 and 0.32. Sabo Gida Ora and Isobe in Owan East and West have better safe drinking water coverage and accessibility with the indicator values of 0.54, 0.53 [WPI], and 0.61 and 0.59 [WAI]. It is generally observed that the supply of potable water in the Edo North is highly unsecured and unsustainable to meet the current and future demand. Valuable and economic time is wasted to gather water from an average closest distance of 1.3 km from home to some designated water taps. In conclusion, it is imperative to design a robust integrated water policy that should include Private-Public-Partnership (PPP) to invest in the provision of safe drinking water.

Assessment of Urban Domestic Water Demand and Supply in Edo North, Nigeria

An exponential increase in the global population has seriously put pressure on land and water resources. It is projected that 33% of the worldwide people will be highly water-stressed by the 2050s if effective strategies are not developed. The study assessed urban domestic water demand and supply in Edo North senatorial district in Edo State, Nigeria. This is with the view of exploring some critical water resource variables to determine water security, distribution, and accessibility of safe drinking water in Edo North in Edo State in Nigeria. Integrated Water Resource Management Tools (IWRT) such as Water Poverty Index (WPI) and Water Accessibility Indicator (WAI) was applied. The results show that Auchi is highly water-stressed at the Estako-west area with MPI and WAI values of 0.24 and 0.33. Conversely, Okpella and Agenebode in Eskako central have MPI and WAI values 0.34 and 0.31, and 0.31 and 0.32. Sabo Gida Ora and Isobe in Owan East and West have better safe drinking water coverage and accessibility with the indicator values of 0.54, 0.53 [WPI], and 0.61 and 0.59 [WAI]. It is generally observed that the supply of potable water in the Edo North is highly unsecured and unsustainable to meet the current and future demand. Valuable and economic time is wasted to gather water from an average closest distance of 1.3 km from home to some designated water taps. In conclusion, it is imperative to design a robust integrated water policy that should include Private-Public-Partnership (PPP) to invest in the provision of safe drinking water.

Spatial-Temporal Relationship between Water Resources and Economic Development in Rural China from a Poverty Perspective

Guaranteeing sustainable development is a pressing issue in China. To this end, balancing economic development and the protection of limited water resources enables healthy and orderly economic development. This study details the application of a water poverty index and sustainable livelihoods approach using 25 indicators to evaluate the water situation and the economic situation in rural China from 1997 to 2019. The analysis results suggest the need for location-specific policy interventions. In addition, we determined whether the water poverty and economic poverty or their spatial types featured the phenomenon of agglomeration. This study also proposes a harmonious development (HD) model and found a significant relationship between water poverty and economic poverty. Next, we adopted a spatial and temporal perspective to analyze the causes of variation in HD level using the modified Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) model and defined four HD levels using a classification method. The results revealed that the overall HD level was higher in the east than in the west. In conclusion, water poverty is associated with economic poverty; thus, there is a need for water and economic assistance strategies in pro-poor policies. The research findings also serve as a theoretical foundation for policies aimed at resolving conflicts between water use and economic development in rural China.

Spatial analysis of water stress and application of water poverty index in the Mahakali River Basin, Sudurpaschim Province, Nepal

Water Poverty Index (WPI) is an effective tool to assess water stress by linking physical approximations of water availability with socioeconomic drivers of poverty at household and community levels. It also helps in determining the priority needs for interventions and makes the better use of water resources without compromising the environmental integrity at the policy level. This study presents a comparative analysis of WPI to assess the water stress in two local units i.e., Mahakali Municipality-4 (Upstream) and Bhimdatt Municipality-13 (Downstream) of the Darchula and Kanchanpur districts, respectively along the Mahakali River Basin (MRB), Sudurpaschim Province, Nepal. Five components, i.e., resource availability, use of resources, capacity to utilize water sources, accessibility to water sources, and environment were applied to appraisal the water poverty. Under these components, 28 indicators were selected to visualize the water poverty condition. The information for acquiring these indicators was collected by making the field visit, semi-structured questionnaire survey, and secondary information from relevant sources. The results showed that the downstream segment has a higher WPI value (65.43) in comparison to the upstream segment (52.60) of the MRB, indicating relatively water-advantaged and stressed situations in down- and up-streams, respectively. Interestingly, despite having higher resource availability, the upstream region exhibited more stressed situations reflecting spatial heterogeneity in terms of capacity, environmental conditions, and infrastructure development to use the available water resources. Thus, in order to reduce the water stress conditions, priorities for intervention must be given to the water use capacity, especially in the upstream segment of the MRB. This study could be useful for academia and policymakers for the sustainable use of water resources in the MRB, Susurpaschim Province, Nepal.