Abstract
Namibia is a large country with a population slightly above 2 million of which 73% live in rural areas. It is the driest country in sub-Saharan Africa with unpredictable rainfall patterns which occur between October and May. The Cuvelai Etosha Basin is a rural setting in which most people depend on groundwater to circumvent water scarcity by the construction of hand-dug wells. Communities consume hand-dug well water throughout the year without; knowledge of its safety, and treatment prior to use. Hence, this study aimed at evaluating the seasonal safety and quality of hand-dug well water for human consumption. A 16S rRNA metagenomics study was conducted to explore the influence of season on the human pathogenic bacterial species richness, diversity, evenness and abundance in the hand-dug wells. Bacterial pathogens were identified and analysis revealed no significant difference in species richness and diversity, and a significant difference in species evenness and abundance between the wet and dry seasons. Hence, seasonality had an influence on human bacterial pathogens evenness and abundance but had no influence on species richness and diversity. In addition, the water in hand-dug wells of the Cuvelai Etosha Basin is not safe for consumption and domestic use unless sanitized. It is recommended that efforts should be made to treat the water prior to use, and hand-dug wells should be properly constructed to reduce contamination.
Highlights
Namibia is a large country found in southern Africa with a size of 823, 680 km2.1 The country has a population slightly above 2 million of which 73% live in rural areas and the rest in urban settings
P. mendocina, P. stutzeri, P. putida and P. oryzihabitans formed a cluster at 83% bootstrap while Dokdonella sp. and D. ginsengisoli formed a cluster at 86% bootstrap, and L. pneumophila, L. lytica and L. sainthelensi formed a cluster at 99% bootstrap
Human pathogenic bacterial species diversity and richness did not show a significant difference between the wet and dry season indicating that hand-dug well bacterial diversity and richness is independent of season
Summary
Namibia is a large country found in southern Africa with a size of 823, 680 km2.1 The country has a population slightly above 2 million of which 73% live in rural areas and the rest in urban settings. Namibia is one of the driest countries in southern Africa with unpredictable rainfall patterns which uniquely occur between October and May[2]. Mendelson et al.[1] revealed that Namibia has been characterized by an arid climate for millions of years leading to water scarcity in most parts of the country. The Namibian transboundary rivers namely Kunene, Zambezi, Kavango and Orange are perennial far from main centres of demand. This demands that communities rely on groundwater as a viable source for domestic water
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