Megacities: A Population Problem

In this post I will look at the water and sanitation inequalities within some other potential megacities. The population of the 3 cities I will be discussing are as follows:

• Accra, Ghana – 2.573 million (2010 Census; CIA World Factbook)

• Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 4.364 million (2012 Census; United Republic of Tanzania, 2013)

• Nairobi, Kenya – 3.138 million (UNdata 2009)

The following graph from the United Nations Human Settlements (2003) highlights the inequality in Accra, Jakarta and Sao Paolo. It also implies that this is not only an African problem; this is more a megacity problem, in which cities struggle to meet the needs of an exponentially expanding population.

However, the Progressive Digital Media Water Treatment News (2014) announced that the Ghanaian parliament has agreed to invest $48.1 million to supply potable drinking water to 250,000 residents of Greater Accra. This Urban Water Project will aim to provide safe drinking water to increase the quantity of low-income households with links to Accra’s piped water system. Nonetheless, the problem of inequality still remains such that some people cannot afford access to water; Osumanu et al. (2010) reveal that the poverty in Greater Accra doubled from 5.2% in 1999 to 11.8% in 2006.

Collignon and Vézina (2000) illustrate that roughly 65% of the population in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, have water supply coverage via a standpipe which tend to give rise to long queues and lead to the purchase of unsafe water. Smiley (2013) further posits that whilst many households have access to water on paper, in reality, water is often riddled with salt and sewerage, leading to various health issues. Whilst projects such as the Dar es Salaam water and sanitation supply project (UN-HABITAT, 2004) exist, they tend to focus on water access and not water quality. 

In Nairobi, authorities have had a great deal of trouble providing water to the whole population, due to its sheer size. Thus, when deciding whom to provide water to, authorities tend to prioritise wealthier individuals, who can pay more. Rodriguez-Torres (2006) exemplifies the struggle of access to water for the poor in Nairobi in the following table.

In addition, Cruz et al. (2006) assert that Nairobi’s only river is contaminated with human waste, mainly sourced from slums. Unfortunately, unless a robust infrastructure system is implemented, the supply of water and sanitation services will only continue to deteriorate as the populations of these cities grow exponentially, approaching megacity status.