Assessing and Providing Water for Small Communities in the Niger-Delta, Nigeria – A Water Supply Situational Study in Kpite-Tai in Ogoniland, Rivers State

摘要

A Development Needs Assessment study carried out in Ogoniland found availability of social infrastructures, including those of potable drinking water inadequate; barely a quarter sources water from functional community boreholes. The source of water for majority of the resident population are varied but susceptible to contamination; shallow hand-dug wells, ponds, isolated freshwater streams with few private boreholes. The Kpite-Tai community, one of several communities in Ogoniland exemplifies this lack and dependence on irregular source of water. A detailed development-driven study geared towards providing a sustainable water project for the population, using a group of communities was commissioned. The study mandate included among others: determining reliable estimate of community’s population, the population density of the area, availability and access to potable water infrastructure (source(s), accessibility, distance to water source, the quantity used by households, for what purposes/uses, and most recent water intervention in community and from which agency/organization). Both the qualitative and quantitative socio-economic data collection approaches were utilized involving rapid appraisal methodologies. The paper presents some aspects of the results of the study.