1 Africa's Emerging Urban Water Challenges
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Public Disclosure Authorized June 2012 THE FUTURE OF WATER IN AFRICAN Public Disclosure Authorized CITIES: WHY WASTE WATER? Michael Jacobsen Michael Webster Kalanithy Vairavamoorthy (eds.) Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized THE FUTURE OF WATER IN AFRICAN CITIES: WHY WASTE WATER? Michael Jacobsen Michael Webster Kalanithy Vairavamoorthy (eds.) APPROVING MANAGER Julia Bucknall, Sector Manager, TWIWA Jonathan Kamkwalala, Sector Manager, AFTWR Alexander Bakalian, Acting Sector Manager, AFTUW CONTACT INFORMATION This paper is available online at http://www.worldbank.org/water. The authors can be contacted through the Water Help Desk at [email protected]. DISCLAIMER This volume is a product of the staff of The World Bank. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper do not necessarily reflect the views of the Executive Directors of The World Bank or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this work. The boundaries, colors, denominations, and other information shown on any map in this work do not imply any judgment on the part of The World Bank concerning the legal status of any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries. The material in this publication is copyrighted. Copying and/or transmitting portions or all of this work without permission may be a violation of applicable law. The World Bank encourages dissemination of its knowledge, this work may be reproduced, in whole or in part, for noncommercial purposes as long as full attribution to this work is given. Any queries on rights and licenses, including subsidiary rights, should be addressed to the Office of the Publisher, The World Bank, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA; fax: 202-522-2422; e-mail: [email protected]. © 2012 International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / International Development Association or The World Bank 1818 H Street NW Washington DC 20433 Telephone: 202-473-1000 Internet: www.worldbank.org i TABLE OF CONTENTS ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS ...................................................................................................... viii FOREWORD ................................................................................................................................................ xi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............................................................................................................................. xii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ............................................................................................................................ xv Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 1 1 Africa’s Emerging Urban Water Challenges.......................................................................................... 2 1.1 Africa’s rapid urbanization brings opportunities and threats ......................................................... 2 1.2 African cities struggle to provide access to water and sanitation to their current population ....... 6 1.3 Water demand increases even faster than population growth .................................................... 11 1.4 Water supply depends on the quantity and quality of water in the catchment ............................ 11 1.5 Poor drainage and flooding are a growing problem .................................................................... 14 1.6 These challenges are exacerbated by climate variability, flooding, and uncertainty about the future ........................................................................................................................................... 15 1.7 Secondary cities are equally at risk but even less equipped to manage complexity .................. 19 1.8 Solving the urban water challenge is essential to achieve growth and to reduce poverty ......... 20 1.9 Lack of data complicates finding solutions .................................................................................. 21 1.10 The current way in which we view urban water systems might hinder our ability to respond to future challenges......................................................................................................................... 22 2. An Integrated Perspective to Urban Water Management .................................................................. 23 1.1 IUWM has a history of knowledge and good practice ................................................................. 23 1.2 The urban water cycle is one system .......................................................................................... 24 1.3 The urban water cycle is closely linked to the watershed ........................................................... 25 1.4 Water should be managed across institutions ............................................................................ 25 1.5 All players should be part of the process .................................................................................... 28 1.6 Water should be fit for purpose ................................................................................................... 29 1.7 Diverse sources provide better water security ............................................................................ 30 1.8 Urban groundwater: sustaining water security and increasing water treatment potential .......... 31 1.9 Innovative technologies can play a role ...................................................................................... 33 1.10 Wastewater might be valuable .................................................................................................... 34 1.11 Adaptive systems work best to cope with uncertainty ................................................................ 36 Assessing Water Management Challenges and Capacities in African Cities ..................................... 38 1.12 Knowledge and attitudes to urban water management are more evolved than its practice in Africa ........................................................................................................................................... 38 1.13 Reducing complexity to two dimensions: IUWM capacities and challenges index. .................... 40 ii 1.14 You cannot manage what you do not measure: a city dashboard as a starting point for dialogue .................................................................................................................................................... 44 1.15 The spatial dimensions of a growing city matter to water management ..................................... 47 1.16 Urban water management will be impacted by climate change .................................................. 48 In-Depth Analysis of Water Management Challenges in Selected Cities ............................................ 51 1.17 Nairobi: dealing with the gap between supply and demand ....................................................... 51 1.18 Mbale: a time limited window of opportunity ............................................................................... 57 1.19 Arua: can decentralized solutions postpone a very large infrastructure project? ....................... 62 1.20 Douala: addressing sanitation, flooding, and waste management ............................................ 70 1.21 Participation of stakeholders in IUWM: experience from our case studies ................................. 72 Making IUWM Work in African Cities ...................................................................................................... 75 1.22 5.1 Increase use of IUWM in project planning and design in Africa ........................................... 75 1.23 5.2 Better understand institutional requirements and implications of IUWM .............................. 76 1.24 Implement pilot projects to demonstrate IUWM in practice ........................................................ 78 1.25 Promote a learning alliance for IUWM ........................................................................................ 78 1.26 Flowing water in fluid cities: IUWM in expanding African cities .................................................. 81 References ................................................................................................................................................. 82 Annex 1. Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Survey Methodology……….…………………………..93 Annex 2. Diagnostic of Water Management for 31 Cities in Africa……………………………………..103 Annex 3. Indicators for the 31 Cities Diagnostic…………………….…………………………………….117 Annex 4. Methodology for Urban Extent Maps……………………………………………………….……121 iii Tables Table 1.1. Slum population as a share of urban population in Africa and the world .................................... 4 Table 1.2. Urban population with access to water supply and sanitation 2000 and 2010 (in thousands) .... 7 Table 1.3. Annual average capital expenditure for African utilities ............................................................... 8 Table 1.4. Africa’s urban population, number of cities, and percent of urban population ........................... 19 Table 1.5. Estimated cost of droughts, floods, and water resource degradation in Kenya ........................ 21 Table 3.1. Cities, water, and climate change in 2050: an indicator approach to understanding the risk for 31 cities ......................................................................................................................................................