African Governments Failing in Provision of Water and Sanitation, Majority of Citizens Say

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Dispatch No. 349 | 19 March 2020 African governments failing in provision of water and sanitation, majority of citizens say

Afrobarometer Dispatch No. 349 | Brian Howard and Kangwook Han

Summary More than half of Africans say their governments are failing them when it comes to one of their top priorities – the provision of clean water and sanitation services, a new Afrobarometer analysis shows. Half of survey respondents say they went without enough clean water for home use during the previous year – a particular concern considering the importance of proper hygiene for preventing the spread of coronavirus and other infectious diseases. These findings from national surveys in 34 African countries, released in advance of World Water Day (March 22), show that there has been little progress in recent years toward the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) No. 6, “Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.” While experiences vary widely across countries, on average more than half of Africans have to leave their compounds to access water, and only one-fourth have access to sewage infrastructure. Rural residents continue to suffer major disadvantages in access to water and sanitation. One in five Africans who tried to obtain utility services from government during the previous year report they had to pay a bribe. In 20 out of 34 countries, majorities say their government is doing a poor job of providing water and sanitation services.

Afrobarometer survey Afrobarometer is a pan-African, nonpartisan survey research network that provides reliable data on Africans’ experiences and evaluations of quality of life, governance, and democracy. Seven rounds of surveys were completed in up to 38 countries between 1999 and 2018. Round 8 surveys are planned in at least 35 countries in 2019/2020. Interested readers may follow our releases, including our Pan-Africa Profiles series of Round 7 cross-country analyses, at #VoicesAfrica and sign up for our distribution list at www.afrobarometer.org. Afrobarometer conducts face-to-face interviews in the language of the respondent’s choice with nationally representative samples that yield country-level results with margins of error of +/-2 to +/-3 percentage points at a 95% confidence level. This Pan-Africa Profile draws on data from 45,823 interviews completed in 34 countries between September 2016 and September 2018 (see Appendix Table A.1 for a list of countries and fieldwork dates). The countries covered are home to almost 80% of the continent’s population. The data are weighted to ensure nationally representative samples. When reporting multi-

country findings such as regional or Africa-wide averages, each country is weighted equally (rather than in proportion to population size).

Key findings

▪ On average across 34 African countries, about half (49%) of citizens went without enough clean water for home use during the year preceding the survey, including 38% who suffered this form of lived poverty1 “several times,” “many times,” or “always” (see Figure 1 in the “Charts” section below). Repeated shortages of clean water (at least “several times”) decreased slightly between surveys in 2011/2013 (39%) and 2014/2015 (35%) but increased again by 2016/2018, wiping out the earlier gains. o More than three-fourths of Gabonese (77%) and Guineans (76%) experienced a shortage of clean water, compared to fewer than one in four respondents in Mauritius (11%), Ghana (22%), and Morocco (23%) (Figure 2). o The situation has worsened significantly over the past six years in 12 of 31 countries surveyed throughout the period, with the most severe declines recorded in Nigeria, Tanzania, and Burkina Faso, where the proportion of citizens who “never” went without enough clean water shrank by 17, 12, and 10 percentage points, respectively. Improvements were registered in eight countries, led by Guinea (+17 points), Tunisia (12 points), and Malawi (11 points) (Figure 3). ▪ While SDG6 targets call for “universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all” by 2030, only a slim majority (54%) of Africans live in areas served by a piped-water system.2 This ranges from just 8% of Liberians to more than nine out of 10 Tunisians (91%), São Toméans (91%), and Mauritians (100%) (Figure 4). o Only a quarter (26%) of Africans live in zones with sewage systems, an enormous challenge for achieving the SDG6 targets of providing

1 Afrobarometer’s Lived Poverty Index (LPI) measures respondents’ levels of material deprivation by asking how often they or their families went without basic necessities (enough food, enough water, medical care, enough cooking fuel, and a cash income) during the preceding year. For more on lived poverty, see Mattes, Dulani, & Gyimah-Boadi (2016). 2 During survey fieldwork, enumerators capture data on the availability of basic services and infrastructure, including piped-water and sanitation systems, in each community they visit.

access to “adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all” and ending open defecation. Liberia (5%) is joined by Tanzania (6%), the Gambia (7%), and Malawi (8%) at the low end, while only Tunisia (75%) and Morocco (69%) boast sewerage access for more than two-thirds of their populations (Figure 5). o Rural residents and poor citizens are far less likely than their urban and better-off counterparts to benefit from water and sanitation infrastructure (Figure 6). o On average across 34 countries, neither water nor sanitation infrastructure appears to reaching larger proportions of the population than in Afrobarometer’s 2011/2013 surveys (Figure 7). ▪ More than half (52%) of Africans have to go outside their compound for clean water. This is true for more than eight out of 10 citizens in Uganda (87%), Niger (84%), Malawi (82%), and Tanzania (81%) (Figure 8). A water source inside the home or compound is enjoyed by just three out of 10 rural residents (31%) and citizens experiencing high lived poverty (28%) (Figure 9). ▪ Almost three-fourths (72%) of respondents report having a toilet or latrine inside their home or compound, while 22% have to go outside the compound and 7% say they have no access to a toilet or latrine (Figure 10). o In seven countries, a majority of the population have no toilet or latrine in their home or compound: Ghana (58%), Niger (57%), Uganda (56%), Benin (56%), Malawi (55%), Liberia (55%), and Namibia (54%). o In five countries, more than one in five citizens say they have no access to a toilet or latrine at all: Benin (26%), Niger (26%), Burkina Faso (23%), Namibia (21%), and São Tomé and Príncipe (21%). o While the continental average shows no improvement since the 2011/2013 surveys, five countries registered significant gains in the proportion of citizens with toilets/latrines in their homes or compounds (Niger, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, eSwatini, and Ghana) (Figure 11).

▪ Among respondents who tried to obtain water, sanitation, or electricity services from the government during the year preceding the survey, almost two-thirds (63%) say it was “difficult” or “very difficult” to get the services they needed. The proportions complaining of difficulty range from four in 10 in Tanzania and Mauritius (both 40%) to more than three-fourths in Madagascar (79%) and Gabon (78%) (Figure 12). Across 33 countries surveyed in both 2014/2015 and 2016/2018, the share of respondents reporting it was easy to obtain these services declined from 44% to 36%. ▪ On average, one in five respondents (20%) who tried to obtain utility services during the previous year say they had to pay a bribe or do a favour to get the needed services. Almost half (48%) of Liberians say they had to pay a bribe, followed by 39% of Cameroonians, while fewer than one in 20 report this experience in Mauritius (3%) and Botswana (4%) (Figure 13). ▪ On average across 34 countries, water/sanitation ties with infrastructure/transport/roads for third place among the most important national problems that Africans want their governments to address, trailing only unemployment and health (Figure 14). Six out of 10 Guineans (60%) cite water/sanitation among their three most important problems, followed by 47% of Tanzanians and 44% of Burkinabè (Figure 15). Countries where the share of respondents who prioritize water/sanitation as an urgent national problem increased the most are Guinea, Tanzania, Kenya, and Côte d'Ivoire (Figure 16). o When we map citizens’ “most important problems” onto the Sustainable Development Goals, SDG6 (“clean water and sanitation”) is the highest-priority goal for Guineans, the second-highest priority in Tanzania and Benin, and the third-highest in eight other countries. Water/sanitation is an especially high priority in poor countries.3 o Rural residents, less-educated citizens, and poor respondents are far more likely to prioritize water and sanitation than their urban, more-educated, and better-off counterparts (Figure 17). ▪ Given these manifold concerns, it’s no surprise that a majority (54%) of Africans say their government is doing “fairly badly” or “very badly” at providing water and sanitation services (Figure 18), although this reflects a modest improvement since 2011/2013 (from 56% to 53% across 31 countries surveyed in all of the past three rounds) (Figure 19). Gabonese (84%) and Guineans (82%) are most critical. Only nine countries register majority approval of government performance on water/sanitation, led by eSwatini (65%) and Botswana (63%) (Figure 20). o The greatest improvements in citizen assessments of government performance on water and sanitation occurred in Liberia, Lesotho, eSwatini, Senegal, Tunisia, and Tanzania (Figure 21), while Malawi, Guinea, South Africa, Sudan, and Sierra Leone registered the greatest declines (Figure 22). ▪ Rural residents’ disadvantage in water and sanitation services extends to all aspects of access and supply except for the likelihood of having to pay a bribe (Figure 23).

3 For more on citizens’ prioritization of the SDGs, see Coulibaly, Silwé, & Logan (2018), “Taking stock: Citizen priorities and assessments three years into the SDGs”)

Charts

Figure 1: Going without enough clean water | 34 countries | 2016/2018

10%

12% Always Many times Several times 51% Just once or twice 16% Never

11%

Respondents were asked: Over the past year, how often, if ever, have you or anyone in your family gone without enough clean water for home use?

Do your own analysis of Afrobarometer data – on any question, for any country and survey round. It is easy and free at www.afrobarometer.org/online-data-analysis.

Figure 2: Going without enough clean water | 34 countries | 2016/2018

Gabon 49% 19% 9% Guinea 50% 20% 6% Cameroon 40% 21% 10% Côte d'Ivoire 41% 19% 8% Togo 34% 20% 8% Zimbabwe 25% 19% 15% Sudan 20% 21% 16% Benin 32% 18% 7% Lesotho 33% 12% 11% eSwatini 30% 15% 9% Madagascar 32% 17% 5% Mozambique 15% 19% 19% Niger 27% 17% 8% Burkina Faso 25% 19% 9% Uganda 23% 16% 13% Senegal 20% 21% 10% Botswana 14% 19% 18% Sierra Leone 20% 17% 14% Tanzania 26% 17% 8% 34-country average 22% 16% 11% Zambia 15% 18% 16% Kenya 18% 17% 13% Liberia 20% 12% 15% Malawi 20% 16% 12% South Africa 18% 15% 13% Gambia 13% 15% 15% Mali 21% 14% 7% Cabo Verde 10% 17% 16% Nigeria 10% 14% 17% Tunisia 14% 15% 11% Namibia 10% 11% 14% São Tomé and Príncipe 5% 13% 12% Morocco 5% 9% 9% Ghana 5% 9% 8% Mauritius 2%4% 5% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Many times/Always Several times Once or twice

Respondents were asked: Over the past year, how often, if ever, have you or anyone in your family gone without enough clean water for home use?

Figure 3: Improving access to clean water (percentage points) | 31 countries | 2011-2018

Guinea 17 Tunisia 12 Malawi 11 Benin 9 Botswana 9 South Africa 6 Zimbabwe 4 Mozambique 4 Mali 3 Kenya 3 Côte d'Ivoire 2 eSwatini 2 Senegal 1 Sudan 0 -1 31-country average -2 Cameroon -2 Nigeria -2 Morocco -3 Lesotho -3 Togo -4 Uganda -5 Madagascar -5 Zambia -6 Namibia -7 Cabo Verde -7 Mauritius -7 Sierra Leone -9 Ghana -9 Liberia -10 Burkina Faso -12 Tanzania -17 Nigeria -20 -15 -10 -5 0 5 10 15 20

Figure shows the change (in percentage points) between survey rounds in 2011/2013 and 2016/2018 in the proportion of respondents who say they “never” went without enough clean water. Positive numbers indicate improvement.

Figure 4: Piped-water system in the enumeration area | 34 countries | 2016/2018

100 9 9 10 14 14 16 18 20 23 24 24 30 80 41 43 37 42 44 47 52 53 50 59 58 61 60 60 64 66 69 60 73 75 75 76 77 100 79 91 91 90 86 40 83 83 78 77 76 76 69 59 58 57 55 54 51 48 47 46 20 41 41 39 39 39 36 34 30 27 25 25 24 23

0 8

Mali

Togo

Niger

Benin

Kenya

Sudan

Tunisia

Liberia

Nigeria

Ghana

Gabon

Malawi

Guinea

Zambia

Lesotho

Senegal

Uganda

eSwatini

Gambia

Namibia

Mauritius

Tanzania

Morocco

Botswana

Zimbabwe

Cameroon

South Africa South

Sierra Leone Sierra

Burkina Faso Burkina

Cabo VerdeCabo

Côte d'Ivoire Côte

Madagascar

Mozambique

34-country average 34-country São Tomé and PríncipeandTomé São

Yes No Can't determine

Afrobarometer interviewers were asked to observe: Are the following services present in the primary sampling unit/enumeration area: Piped-water system that most houses can access?

Figure 5: Sewage system in the enumeration area | 34 countries | 2016/2018

100

75 80 69 63

60 49 48 45 44 42 40 39 38 40 35 26 26 25 23 22 22 21 20 16 16 15 14 13 20 11 10 9 9 8 8 7 6 5 5

Mali

Togo

Niger

Benin

Kenya

Sudan

Tunisia

Liberia

Nigeria

Ghana

Gabon

Malawi

Guinea

Zambia

Lesotho

Senegal

Uganda

eSwatini

Gambia

Namibia

Mauritius

Tanzania

Morocco

Botswana

Zimbabwe

Cameroon

South Africa South

Sierra Leone Sierra

Burkina Faso Burkina

Cabo VerdeCabo

Côte d'Ivoire Côte

Madagascar

Mozambique 34-country average 34-country

São Tomé and PríncipeandTomé São Afrobarometer interviewers were asked to observe: Are the following services present in the primary sampling unit/enumeration area: Sewage system that most houses can access? (% of enumeration areas where services are available)

Figure 6: Piped-water and sewage system in the enumeration area | by urban-rural residency and lived poverty | 34 countries | 2016/2018

100%

80% 77% 80% 61% 54% 60% 50% 46% 45% 41% 40% 34% 31% 26% 19% 20% 16% 8%

0% Urban Rural No lived Low lived Moderate High lived 34-country poverty poverty lived poverty average poverty

Piped water Sewage system

Figure 7: Piped-water and sewage system in the enumeration area | 31 countries | 2011-2018

100%

80%

58% 61% 60% 52% Piped-water system 40% Sewage system 20% 26% 28% 27%

0% 2011/2013 2014/2015 2016/2018

Afrobarometer interviewers were asked to observe: Are the following services present in the primary sampling unit/enumeration area: Piped-water system that most houses can access? Sewage system that most houses can access? (% of enumeration areas where services are available) (Note: Since these data are reported at the enumeration area (EA) level, with samples of just 150-300 EAs, the margin of error is substantially larger than for questions posed to all respondents. This may help explain fluctuations in recorded service levels.)

Figure 8: Main source of water for household use | 34 countries | 2016/2018

Mauritius 89% 9%1% Tunisia 84% 8% 7% Morocco 78% 12% 9% Sudan 68% 10% 21% Senegal 62% 16% 21% Cabo Verde 56% 25% 18% South Africa 52% 25% 22% Namibia 39% 23% 38% Gabon 31% 30% 38% Botswana 30% 55% 14% Zimbabwe 24% 31% 45% 34-country average 24% 24% 52% Côte d'Ivoire 22% 30% 48% Benin 21% 12% 67% Cameroon 17% 22% 60% Gambia 16% 34% 50% eSwatini 16% 49% 35% Nigeria 15% 29% 56% Ghana 13% 16% 70% Zambia 11% 29% 60% Kenya 8% 37% 55% Niger 8% 9% 84% Togo 7% 24% 68% São Tomé and Príncipe 6% 32% 62% Burkina Faso 5% 18% 77% Mali 5% 29% 66% Mozambique 3% 31% 65% Malawi 3% 14% 82% Madagascar 3% 36% 59% Guinea 3% 22% 74% Tanzania 3% 16% 81% Sierra Leone 2% 18% 79% Liberia 2% 19% 79% Lesotho 2% 30% 69% Uganda 1%10% 87% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Inside the house Inside the compound Outside the compound

Respondents were asked: Please tell me whether each of the following are available inside your house, inside your compound, or outside your compound: Your main source of water for household use?

Figure 9: Main source of water for household use | by urban-rural residency and lived poverty | 34 countries | 2016/2018

Urban 38% 30%

Rural 12% 19%

No lived poverty 54% 20%

Low lived poverty 27% 26%

Moderate lived poverty 15% 22%

High lived poverty 11% 17%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Inside the house Inside the compound

Respondents were asked: Please tell me whether each of the following are available inside your house, inside your compound, or outside your compound: Your main source of water for household use?

Figure 10: Location of toilet or latrine | 34 countries | 2016/2018

Morocco 93% 4%2%1% Mauritius 91% 3%5% Tunisia 90% 7%2%1% Sudan 85% 5%5%5% Senegal 71% 19% 8%2% Cabo Verde 68% 17% 4% 11% South Africa 50% 33% 16% 2% Gabon 37% 47% 15% 1% Botswana 34% 55% 7%4% Namibia 33% 13% 33% 21% Gambia 32% 61% 7%0% Zimbabwe 31% 48% 14% 7% 34-country average 30% 42% 22% 7% Nigeria 30% 50% 19% 1% Cameroon 27% 57% 15% 1% Côte d'Ivoire 27% 39% 34% 1% Benin 25% 19% 30% 26% Liberia 21% 24% 52% 3% Ghana 18% 24% 52% 6% Niger 17% 27% 30% 26% eSwatini 16% 60% 20% 4% São Tomé and Príncipe 15% 42% 22% 21% Togo 13% 50% 31% 5% Zambia 12% 76% 12%0% Sierra Leone 12% 51% 31% 7% Guinea 11% 55% 33% 1% Mali 11% 75% 12% 3% Kenya 10% 74% 13% 3% Burkina Faso 9% 42% 27% 23% Tanzania 7% 56% 37% 1% Mozambique 6% 67% 24% 1% Malawi 4% 41% 53% 2% Madagascar 4% 64% 17% 16% Lesotho 2% 71% 10% 16% Uganda 2% 42% 54% 2% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Inside the house Inside the compound Outside the compound No access to toilet/latrine

Respondents were asked: Please tell me whether each of the following are available inside your house, inside your compound, or outside your compound: A toilet or latrine?

Figure 11: Toilet inside house or compound: Countries with largest gains | 31 countries | 2011-2018

60%

Niger 47% 43% Burkina Faso 40% Nigeria 33% 32% 28% 31% Ghana 23% 26% 24% 22% 20% 20% eSwatini 19% 20% 15% 13%

0% 2011/2013 2014/2015 2016/2018

Figure shows countries registering the largest increases in the proportion of respondents with toilets or latrines inside the house or inside the compound.

Figure 12: Difficulty of obtaining water, sanitation, or electricity services | 34 countries | 2016/2018

Tanzania 60% 40% Mauritius 58% 40% Botswana 58% 42% Morocco 50% 49% São Tomé and Príncipe 45% 54% Burkina Faso 44% 56% Sudan 42% 58% Nigeria 41% 59% Mozambique 40% 19% 41% Niger 40% 59% Lesotho 40% 59% Namibia 39% 61% Kenya 39% 61% Senegal 38% 62% Cabo Verde 37% 63% South Africa 37% 63% 34-country average 36% 63% Sierra Leone 33% 65% Malawi 33% 67% Liberia 32% 68% Uganda 32% 68% Mali 32% 67% Togo 32% 68% Zambia 30% 69% Cameroon 29% 70% Benin 29% 70% Zimbabwe 28% 72% eSwatini 27% 71% Gambia 26% 72% Côte d'Ivoire 26% 73% Ghana 26% 72% Guinea 25% 75% Tunisia 25% 75% Gabon 22% 78% Madagascar 20% 79% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Easy/Very easy Don't know/Refused Difficult/Very difficult

Respondents were asked: In the past 12 months, have you tried to get water, sanitation, or electric services from government? (If yes:) How easy or difficult was it to obtain the services you needed?

Figure 13: Paid a bribe to obtain water, sanitation, or electricity services in past year | 34 countries | 2016/2018

100

60 48 39 40 35 35 34 33 33 33 32 24 23 23 21 20 20 17 16 20 14 14 13 13 13 12 12 10 10 10 9 8 8 8 7 6 4 3

Mali

Togo

Niger

Benin

Kenya

Sudan

Tunisia

Liberia

Nigeria

Ghana

Gabon

Malawi

Guinea

Zambia

Lesotho

Senegal

Uganda

eSwatini

Gambia

Namibia

Mauritius

Tanzania

Morocco

Botswana

Zimbabwe

Cameroon

SouthAfrica

Sierra Leone

BurkinaFaso

CaboVerde

Côted'Ivoire

Madagascar

Mozambique 34-countryaverage

SãoTomé and Príncipe Respondents were asked: In the past 12 months, have you tried to get water, sanitation, or electric services from government? (If yes:) And how often, if ever, have you had to pay a bribe, give a gift, or do a favour to government officials in order to get the services you needed? (Among respondents who tried obtain services, % who say they paid a bribe “once or twice,” “a few times,” or “often”)

Figure 14: Most important problems | 34 countries | 2016/2018

Unemployment 40% Health 27% Infrastructure/transport/roads 24% Water and sanitation 24% Education 21% Management of the economy 21% Poverty/destitution 21% Food shortage/famine 18% Farming/agriculture 17% Other economic issues 16% Electricity 13% Crime and security 12% Corruption 12% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

Respondents were asked: In your opinion, what are the most important problems facing this country that government should address? (Note: Respondents could give up to three responses. Figure shows % of respondents who cite each problem as among their top three.)

Figure 15: Water and sanitation as a top-priority problem | 34 countries | 2016/2018

Guinea 60% Tanzania 47% Burkina Faso 44% Niger 39% Benin 36% Gambia 31% Uganda 30% Lesotho 30% Mozambique 30% Cameroon 29% Mali 27% Kenya 27% Côte d'Ivoire 27% Togo 25% Zambia 24% Malawi 24% São Tomé and Príncipe 24% Ghana 24% 34-country average 24% eSwatini 21% Sierra Leone 20% South Africa 18% Senegal 18% Gabon 17% Zimbabwe 15% Namibia 14% Botswana 14% Madagascar 12% Cabo Verde 12% Mauritius 9% Nigeria 8% Sudan 6% Morocco 6% Liberia 6% Tunisia 2% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Figure 16: Greatest increase in prioritization of water/sanitation as a national problem | 31 countries | 2011-2018

80%

61% 60% 60% Guinea 47% 47% Tanzania 40% 37% 30% Kenya 27% 21% Côte d'Ivoire 18% 20% 19% 17%

0% 2011/2013 2014/2015 2016/2018

Figure 17: Water/sanitation as a most important problem | by urban-rural residency, education, and lived poverty | 34 countries | 2016/2018

Rural 30% Urban 14%

No formal education 37% Primary 26% Secondary 19% Post-secondary 10%

High lived poverty 35% Moderate lived poverty 27% Low lived poverty 17% No lived poverty 11% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Figure 18: Government performance in providing water and sanitation services | 34 countries | 2016/2018

100%

80%

60% 54% 44% 40%

20%

0% Fairly well/Very well Fairly badly/Very badly

Respondents were asked: How well or badly would you say the current government is handling the following matters, or haven’t you heard enough to say: Providing water and sanitation services?

Figure 19: Trend in government performance in providing water and sanitation services | 31 countries | 2011-2018

100%

80%

56% 56% 60% 53% Fairly badly/ Very badly Fairly well/ 40% 44% Very well 40% 42%

20%

0% 2011/2013 2014/2015 2016/2018

Respondents were asked: How well or badly would you say the current government is handling the following matters, or haven’t you heard enough to say: Providing water and sanitation services?

Figure 20: Government performance in providing water and sanitation services | 34 countries | 2016/2018

eSwatini 65% 33% Botswana 63% 34% Mauritius 62% 35% Ghana 60% 34% São Tomé and Príncipe 59% 40% Senegal 58% 41% Namibia 57% 42% Gambia 55% 41% Liberia 52% 48% Mali 49% 50% Kenya 48% 49% Tanzania 48% 51% Uganda 46% 53% Cabo Verde 45% 53% Sierra Leone 45% 49% Morocco 45% 52% South Africa 44% 53% 34 country-average 44% 54% Mozambique 43% 49% Burkina Faso 41% 57% Nigeria 40% 59% Tunisia 40% 56% Malawi 40% 59% Niger 39% 60% Lesotho 38% 49% Zambia 38% 61% Benin 37% 62% Côte d'Ivoire 37% 61% Togo 37% 61% Madagascar 35% 64% Zimbabwe 33% 61% Cameroon 32% 64% Sudan 27% 71% Guinea 18% 82% Gabon 16% 84% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Fairly well/Very well Don't know/Refused Fairly badly/Very badly

Respondents were asked: How well or badly would you say the current government is handling the following matters, or haven’t you heard enough to say: Providing water and sanitation services?

Figure 21: Greatest improvement in perceived government performance in providing water and sanitation services | 31 countries | 2011-2018

80%

eSwatini 65% Senegal 60% 58% 51% Liberia 49% 52% 50% 48% Tanzania 42% 40% 38% 40% 36% 38% Tunisia 34% 32% 32% Lesotho 30% 26% 20% 21%

0% 2011/2013 2014/2015 2016/2018

Respondents were asked: How well or badly would you say the current government is handling the following matters, or haven’t you heard enough to say: Providing water and sanitation services? (% who say “fairly well” or “very well”)

Figure 22: Greatest decline in perceived government performance in providing water and sanitation services | 31 countries | 2011-2018

80%

60% 56% 53% 52% 51% Sierra Leone 49% 45% 44% 40% 43% South Africa 38% 40% Malawi 30% 27% 27% Sudan 20% 17% 18% Guinea

0% 2011/2013 2014/2015 2016/2018

Figure 23: Urban-rural differences on water/sanitation indicators | 34 countries | 2016/2018

Went without enough clean water at 53% least once 44% No piped-water system in enumeration 66% area 18%

No sewage system in enumeration area 91% 48%

Water source is outside compound 68% 32% Rural No toilet/latrine in compound 39% 15% Urban

Obtaining utilities is difficult/very difficult 67% 58%

Paid bribe for utility service 18% 21% Government handling water/sanitation 57% services very/fairly badly 49%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

References Coulibaly, M., Silwé, K. S., & Logan, C. (2018). Taking stock: Citizen priorities and assessments three years into the SDGs. Afrobarometer Policy Paper No. 51. Mattes, R., Dulani, B., & Gyimah-Boadi, E. (2016). Africa’s growth dividend? Lived poverty drops across much of the continent. Afrobarometer Policy Paper No. 29. United Nations. (2019). Sustainable Development Goals.

Previous Afrobarometer Round 7 Pan-Africa Profiles

✓ Policy Paper 62: Lived poverty on the rise: Decade of living-standard gains ends in Africa

✓ Dispatch 334: Prerequisite for progress: Accessible, reliable power still in short supply across Africa

✓ Policy Paper 61: Gains and gaps: Perceptions and experiences of gender in Africa

✓ Policy Paper 60: Change ahead: Experience and awareness of climate change in Africa

✓ Global Corruption Barometer – Africa 2019: Citizens’ views and experiences of corruption

✓ Policy Paper 58 : Africans want open elections – especially if they bring change

✓ Policy Paper 56: How free is too free? Across Africa, media freedom is on the defensive

✓ Policy Paper 55: Are Africans’ freedoms slipping away?

✓ Dispatch 290: Better but not good enough? How Africans see the delivery of public services

✓ Dispatch 288: In search of opportunity: Young and educated Africans most likely to consider moving abroad

✓ Policy Paper 54: Democracy in Africa: Demand, supply, and the ‘dissatisfied democrat’

✓ Policy Paper 51: Taking stock: Citizen priorities and assessments three years into the SDGs

Appendix

Table A.1: Afrobarometer Round 7 fieldwork dates and previous survey rounds Months when Round 7 Country Previous survey rounds fieldwork was conducted Benin Dec 2016-Jan 2017 2005, 2008, 2011, 2014 Botswana June-July 2017 1999, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2014 Burkina Faso Oct 2017 2008, 2012, 2015 Cameroon May 2018 2013, 2015 Cape Verde Nov-Dec 2017 2002, 2005, 2008, 2011, 2014 Côte d'Ivoire Dec 2016-Jan 2017 2013, 2014 eSwatini (Swaziland) March 2018 2013, 2015 Gabon Nov 2017 2015 Gambia July-August 2018 N/A Ghana Sept 2017 1999, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2014 Guinea May 2017 2013, 2015 Kenya Sept-Oct 2016 2003, 2005, 2008, 2011, 2014 Lesotho Nov-Dec 2017 2000, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2014 Liberia June-July 2018 2008, 2012, 2015 Madagascar Jan-Feb 2018 2005, 2008, 2013, 2015 Malawi Dec 2016-Jan 2017 1999, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2014 Mali Feb 2017 2001, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2013, 2014 Mauritius Oct-Nov 2017 2012, 2014 Morocco May 2018 2013, 2015 Mozambique July-August 2018 2002, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2015 Namibia Nov 2017 1999, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2014 Niger April-May 2018 2013, 2015 Nigeria April-May 2017 2000, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2013, 2015 São Tomé and Principe July 2018 2015 Senegal Dec 2017 2002, 2005, 2008, 2013, 2014 Sierra Leone July 2018 2012, 2015 South Africa August-Sept 2018 2000, 2002, 2006, 2008, 2011, 2015 Sudan July-August 2018 2013, 2015 Tanzania April-June 2017 2001, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2014 Togo Nov 2017 2012, 2014 Tunisia April-May 2018 2013, 2015 Uganda Dec 2016-Jan 2017 2000, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2015 Zambia April 2017 1999, 2003, 2005, 2009, 2013, 2014 Zimbabwe Jan-Feb 2017 1999, 2004, 2005, 2009, 2012, 2014

Brian Howard is publications manager for Afrobarometer. Email: [email protected]. Kangwook Han is a research assistant for Afrobarometer and a PhD candidate at Michigan State University. Email: [email protected]. Afrobarometer, a non-profit corporation with headquarters in Ghana, is a pan-African, nonpartisan survey research network. Regional coordination of national partners in about 35 countries is provided by the Ghana Center for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR) in South Africa, and the Institute for Development Studies (IDS) at the University of Nairobi in Kenya. Michigan State University (MSU) and the University of Cape Town (UCT) provide technical support to the network. Financial support for Afrobarometer Round 7 was provided by Sweden, the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, the Open Society Foundations, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development via the U.S. Institute of Peace, the National Endowment for Democracy, and Transparency International. Donations help Afrobarometer give voice to African citizens. Please consider making a contribution (at www.afrobarometer.org) or contact Bruno van Dyk ([email protected]) to discuss institutional funding. For more information, please visit www.afrobarometer.org. Follow our releases on #VoicesAfrica.

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Afrobarometer Dispatch No. 349 | 19 March 2020