Author(s): Samson Nambei Asoba, Masibulele Fiko, Beauty Makiwane and Nteboheng Patricia Mefi
Globally, the availability and accessibility of safe and clean water is essential for the life of humans, animals and vegetation on earth. In addition, water is related to proper sanitation. Consequently, water and sanitation challenges deserve closer analysis so that life on earth can be improved. The water and sanitation question in a South African municipality was considered in this enquiry. The study question was: what are the water and sanitation challenges faced by residents of a rural municipality in a selected municipality from the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. To address the research question, three focus group discussions were conducted. The focus groups involved community leaders and administrators of the municipality who were selected using a snowball sampling technique. It was found that the use of unprotected water sources (rivers, stream and wells) and poor sanitation practices (mainly bush toilets) was prevalent among residents. A number of respondents reported water scarcity and inaccessibility challenges which resulted in queues at water sources. In some instances, violence among residents in water queues was reported. The gender perspective of the problem was revealed, with many women having to face most of the challenges. This was not surprising since women are mainly involved in the cleaning and water-based chores of households in African communities. As a result of these water challenges, residents were vulnerable to contracting waterborne diseases. In addition, some residents held superstitious beliefs and witchcraft fears associated with the use of unmanaged open water sources. These findings are useful for policy makers, the government and environmental institutions to provide support to people in the municipality.