It will hardly come as a surprise that there is a strong link between water infrastructure, poverty reduction and economic development. Yet provision of this fundamental resource has been slow in Africa, where more than 100 million people still rely on surface water to survive; about 300 million Africans do not have access to clean drinking water; and around 700 million live without access to good sanitation, according to the Infrastructure Consortium for Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa loses 5% of its GDP annually because of a lack of water, contaminated water or poor sanitation; each year, 40 billion hours of otherwise productive time is spent just collecting water.

Rain-fed agriculture is the dominant form of farming, yet erratic rainfall patterns and frequent droughts often lead to crop failures and food shortages. The provision of water infrastructure such as irrigation systems, dams and reservoirs can help mitigate the effects of climate change and ensure the sustainable production of food. Similarly, manufacturing, mining and tourism require large quantities of water for production and operations.

While some growth occurred between 2000 and 2015 after concerted prioritisation, according to a 2022 study on water infrastructure performance in sub-Saharan Africa – with an annual rate of change of 57.6% of the total population with access to basic drinking water services and 28.1% for basic sanitation – the issue of water insecurity is still an enormous challenge in the region.

If current trends continue, very few AU member states will achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals of universal access to safely managed drinking water, safely managed sanitation or basic hygiene services by 2030. Increasing population density, urbanisation and climate change are also expected to contribute to the infrastructure gap in coming years.

‘With the infrastructure gap already wide and expected to widen, good decision-making is required for good planning and implementation,’ says Chetan Mistry, strategy and marketing manager for Africa at global water-technology company Xylem. ‘To close the gap, investment in infrastructure needs to be made to keep up with the demands for water as well as socio-economic changes taking place in South Africa. The investment needs to be made in not only the infrastructure itself but technologies for network optimisation, as well as monitoring and controlling, so that there is better water planning and management, and the investments are made in the right places for the best possible outcomes. We know funding is one of the major issues to address infrastructure investment; therefore, more public-private partnerships or special vehicle funding needs to be accelerated so that investments can be made.’

Earlier this year, the continent received an investment boost with the formation of the Africa Water Infrastructure Development (AWID) platform, a collaboration between Metito Utilities, a global investor and operator of water, wastewater and alternative energy management solutions, and British International Investment, the UK’s development finance institution. The aim is to demonstrate a viable commercial model for water infrastructure and provision in Africa, helping to mobilise long-term investment. AWID proposes the integration of green technologies and alternative energy components in order to help to reduce the environmental footprint of water-infrastructure projects.

An operational bulk surface water-treatment plant in Kigali, Rwanda, is the first asset under the new platform. The 40 000 m³-a-day plant provides more than 25% of the city’s potable water supply, meeting the needs of 500 000 domestic, commercial and industrial consumers. The Kigali water-treatment plant is a public-private partnership, which is the first of its type under this business model in sub-Saharan Africa – outside of South Africa.

In 2022, one of South Africa’s major metros – Johannesburg – experienced water-supply difficulties due to ageing infrastructure and inconsistent power supply, underpinned by a lack of maintenance.

‘A key component is maintenance,’ says Mistry. ‘Enough investment to ensure the proper maintenance of our systems is critical and, again, technology can play a key role in this regard. There is so much technology and so many innovations available. The lack of understanding and adoption is causing us to fall behind. In many cases, especially where new investments are being made, it’s much easier to adopt new technology, as opposed to retrofitting solutions to older systems. Even with older systems, new innovations are available with legacy systems in mind.

‘For me, the biggest opportunity is in the digitalisation of water, where digital solutions are used to better understand our systems so that the best decisions can be made. These can be adopted in a staggered approach. For example, retrofitting pumps with software for monitoring and controlling, until we have a critical mass of data to fully optimise systems.’

Jonathan Schroder, associate engineer at infrastructure consulting firm AECOM, believes treating water as a commodity would lead to improved provision. ‘While having sufficient water for basic human needs is indeed a right for people and critical for both human dignity and flourishing, it also needs to be treated as both a precious resource and a commodity. An example of this is in Israel, where in the middle of a predominantly arid and semi-arid region, they have a water surplus. This is because water is seen as a commodity and its value is maximised. Water is reused – often multiple times – creating significant efficiency and revenue to afford the services and infrastructure. We have a legacy of a lack or imbalance in water-services provision to address, but the right to water-services needs to come with a responsibility to use it wisely and efficiently, and pay for the service as users. If the financial realities of water services are not addressed, the services will likely become unsustainable. Water services need to be viewed more like a business. Food is treated that way. Rain is a gift from heaven, but the harvesting and delivering takes effort and money.’

According to the AU High Level Panel on Innovation and Emerging Technologies, smart water-management systems can enable governments, industries and utilities in Africa to integrate digital technologies with traditional technologies to monitor water quality, water quantity, efficient irrigation, leak detection, pressure and flow, ecosystems, floods droughts and much more… The panel has urged countries to consider adopting smart technologies such as IoT, empowered by blockchain and AI technologies, to enable smart water-management systems. Sensors, monitors, geographic information systems, satellite mapping, and other data-sharing tools can be implemented to improve water-management frameworks. Although none of this does any good without basic infrastructure already in place, at the very least.

Galvanisation on the investment front does seem to be gaining traction, however. In March, the International High-Level Panel on Water Investments for Africa, released a report at the UN 2023 Water Conference in New York – the first UN conference on water issues since 1977. The report outlines actionable pathways for countries to mobilise at least US$30 billion annually by 2030 for implementing the Continental Africa Water Investment programme and closing the existing water investment gap in Africa, which is estimated at US$11 billion to US$20 billion per year.

‘As it stands, there is a risk that sub-Saharan Africa’s infrastructure gap will widen,’ says Mistry. ‘There has been some renewed focus on water in the recent past. As long as it does not remain a “talk shop”, but plans are driven together with experts in the industry, then there is hope to at least narrow the gap.’

By Robyn Maclarty
Images: Flickr/African Development Bank