Abstract
The rapid urbanization facing developing countries is increasing pressure on public institutions to provide adequate supplies of clean water to populations. In most developing countries, the general public is not involved in strategies and policies regarding enhancement, conservation, and management of water supply systems. To assist governments and decision makers in providing potable water to meet the increasing demand due to the rapid urbanization, this study sought to characterize existing water supply systems and obtain public opinion for identifying a community water supply system model for households in a residential neighborhood in Lomé, Togo. Existing water supply systems in the study area consist of bucket-drawn water wells, mini water tower systems, rainwater harvesting, and public piped water. Daily domestic water consumption in the study area compared well with findings on water uses per capita from Sub-Saharan Africa, but was well below daily water usage in developed nations. Based on the surveys, participants thought highly of a large scale community water tower and expressed interest in maintaining it. Even though people rely on water sources deemed convenient for drinking, they also reported limited confidence in the quality of these sources.
Highlights
IntroductionWater is the most widely occurring substance on earth, only 2.5% is freshwater [2] with less than 1% being readily accessible for direct human uses [2]
Clean water is an essential element for human survival and wellbeing [1]
With 18% of the respondents identified as daily users of Poly Tank, the mini water tower systems (MWT) is the second most widely used water supply system in the community (Figure 2)
Summary
Water is the most widely occurring substance on earth, only 2.5% is freshwater [2] with less than 1% being readily accessible for direct human uses [2]. 20% of the world’s population does not have easy access to drinking water, and 40% lack proper sanitation facilities [3]. The majority of these people live in developing nations [4]. Togo is located in West Africa and has an area of 56,785 km (Figure 1). Togo is bordered by Burkina Faso to the north, Benin to the east and Ghana to the west. The southern border of Togo embraces the Gulf of Guinea, in the Atlantic Ocean, on which Lomé is located (Figure 1). The population of Lomé grew rapidly from 30,000 inhabitants in 1950 to
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