Abstract
BackgroundAccess to improved water and sanitation infrastructures are key determinants of health. The sub-Saharan African region in particular is lagging behind the ambitious goal of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to ensure universal access to improved and reliable water and sanitation for all (Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6). Large mining projects can promote economic growth and hence investments in water and sanitation infrastructures, but at the same time lead to rapid population growth and environmental degradation. In turn, these changes can pose risks and opportunities for child health (SDG 3). In this study we aim to quantify the impacts of mining projects on access to water and sanitation infrastructure as well as diarrhea and malnutrition among children using data from 131 Demographic and Health Surveys from sub-Saharan Africa.ResultsFrom a sample of around 1.2 million households, data within the proximity of 52 mine-panels were selected for longitudinal analyses, resulting in 41,896 households and 32,112 children. Improvements in access to modern water and sanitation infrastructures after mine opening were much larger in households near mining sites than in comparison areas located further away (adjusted relative risk ratio (aRRR) water: 18.60, 95 % confidence interval (CI): 13.08–26.46 and aRRR sanitation: 2.56, 95 % CI: 1.32–4.99). However, these associations were weaker among poorer households. In areas close to the mining sites, stunting and underweight prevalence decreased more strongly upon mine opening (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) stunting: 0.62, 95 % CI: 0.43–0.90; aOR underweight: 0.55, 95 % CI: 0.36–0.84). No differential changes were seen for wasting and diarrhea. Large impact heterogeneity was observed both within and across countries.ConclusionsOur results suggest that the opening of mines is associated with improvements in access to modern water and sanitation infrastructures (SDG 6) as well as in some health outcomes (SDG 3). However, the large impact heterogeneity suggests that the assessment and management of mining-related impacts on communities should have an increased equity-focus, in order to “leave no one behind” in the work towards the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Overall, the findings of this study underscore that the resource extraction sector has the potential to make positive and substantial contributions towards achieving the SDGs.
Highlights
Despite major improvements in the provision of clean drinking water and improved sanitation infrastructures in the last decades, substantial gaps in access persist [1]
Our results suggest that the opening of mines is associated with improvements in access to modern water and sanitation infrastructures (SDG 6) as well as in some health outcomes (SDG 3)
Health outcomes Based on literature on the impacts of water and sanitation infrastructures on child health, we focused on diarrhea and anthropometry as primary outcomes [25, 26]
Summary
Despite major improvements in the provision of clean drinking water and improved sanitation infrastructures in the last decades, substantial gaps in access persist [1]. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development ambitiously demands “universal access to improved and reliable water and sanitation for all” (Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6) by 2030 [2]. Such improvements do require substantial resources, which remain scarce in world regions that are currently far from achieving SDG 6 [3]. Large mining projects can promote economic growth and investments in water and sanitation infrastructures, but at the same time lead to rapid population growth and environmental degradation. These changes can pose risks and opportunities for child health (SDG 3). In this study we aim to quantify the impacts of mining projects on access to water and sanitation infrastructure as well as diarrhea and malnutrition among children using data from 131 Demographic and Health Surveys from sub-Saharan Africa
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