Lives of 190 million children are at risk due to a triple threat of water-related crises – UNICEF

190 million children in 10 African countries are at the highest risk of being
impacted by three water-related threats – inadequate water, sanitation, and hygiene, related diseases, and climate hazards according to a new UNICEF analysis.

The triple threat was found to be most acute in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, and Somalia, making West and Central Africa one of the world's most water-insecure and climate-impacted regions, according to the analysis. Many of the worst-affected countries,
particularly in the Sahel, are also facing instability and armed conflict, further aggravating children’s access to clean water and sanitation.

'Africa is facing a water catastrophe. While climate and water-related shocks are escalating globally, nowhere else in the world do the risks compound as severely for children

“Devastating storms, floods, and historic droughts are already destroying facilities and homes, contaminating water resources, creating hunger crises, and spreading disease. But as challenging as the current conditions are, without urgent action, the future could be much more bleak", said UNICEF Director of Programmes Sanjay Wijesekera.

Across the 10 countries, nearly one-third of children do not have access to at least basic water at home, and two-thirds do not have basic sanitation services. A quarter of children have no choice but to practice open defecation. Hand hygiene is also limited, with three-quarters of children unable to wash their hands because of lack of water and soap at home. In Ghana, the three threats of a water-related crises pose a significant risk, particularly for children and
other vulnerable segments of the population. Here, an estimated 18% of households regularly practice open defecation with more (50% of households) doing so in the five northern regions.

While 12% of households in Ghana (25% in rural areas) do not have access to basic water services. The 10 hotspot countries (of which Ghana is not one) are also classified by OECD as fragile or extremely fragile, with the stresses of armed conflict, which in some countries, is threatening to reverse progress
toward safe water and sanitation. For example, Burkina Faso has seen a ramping up of attacks on water facilities as a tactic to displace communities. Fifty-eight water points were attacked in 2022, up from 21 in 2021, and three in 2020.

As a result, more than 830,000 people over half of whom are children lost
access to safe drinking water in the last year.

“To date, many families from neighbouring countries have sought refuge in Ghana. It is key therefore that we accelerate access to water, sanitation and hygiene services and ensure that they are climate and shock resilient and able to cope with the additional needs resulting from the possible influx due to the
security situation in the Sahel region,” said Ramesh Bhusal, Chief of WASH for UNICEF in Ghana.

UNICEF also found that the ten countries also rank within the top 25 per cent of 163 countries globally with the highest risk of exposure to climate and environmental threats. Higher temperatures are increasing 1.5 times faster than the global average in parts of West and Central Africa. Groundwater levels are dropping, requiring some communities to dig wells twice as deep as just a decade ago. At the same time, rainfall has become more erratic and intense, leading to floods that contaminate scarce water supplies.

The new analysis comes ahead of the UN 2023 Water Conference taking place in New York from 22-24 March. World leaders, relevant organizations and other participants will convene for the first time in 46 years to review progress toward ensuring access to water and sanitation for all. At the conference,
UNICEF is calling for:

Rapid scale-up of investment in the sector, including from global climate financing.

Strengthening climate resilience in the WASH sector and communities.

Prioritizing the most vulnerable communities in WASH programmes and policies.

Increasing effective and accountable systems, coordination, and capacities to provide water and sanitation services.

Implementing the UN-Water SDG6 Global Acceleration Framework and investing in the key accelerators.

"The loss of a child's life is shattering for families. But the pain is intensified when it is preventable and caused by the lack of basic necessities many take for granted like safe drinking water, toilets, and soap,

“Investing in climate-resilient water, sanitation, and hygiene services is not only a matter of protecting children's health today, but also ensuring a sustainable future for generations to come", said Wijesekera.

Notes to editors

Analysis can be found here and multimedia content here

 The 'triple threat' or 'triple burden' is defined in this brief as less than 50 per cent access to at least basic water or sanitation services; within the top 20 countries with the highest burden of deaths attributable to unsafe WASH among children under 5; and the top 25 per cent of countries facing the highest risk of climate and environmental hazards.

The analysis is based on a composite of data pulled from three sources:

WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme: Progress on household drinking water,
sanitation and hygiene 2000-2020: five years into the SDGs

WHO: Deaths by Cause, Age, Sex, by Country and by Region, 2000-2019

UNICEF: The Climate Crisis is a Child Rights Crisis: Introducing The Children's Climate Risk Index

Ghana has achieved remarkable results in SDG 6.1 with 88% household having access to basic water, albeit with significant regional variations. Out of eight regions where access to water is below 80%, five of them are in the Northern regions (3 of them bordering Burkina Faso) access ranging from 55% - 79%. Majority of the water sources in these areas are boreholes with hand
pumps, which are increasingly becoming difficult to operate due to depleting ground water.

In many areas, the groundwater is also challenged by high fluoride content, forcing people to rely on surface water.

Due to close ties between the communities of Ghana and Burkina Faso in boarder districts, any surge in the Sahel crisis put imminent risk of mass spill-over to Ghana. Considering these situations, Ghana is on the brink of facing a triple threat of water-related crises. To address these changes, focus in the following areas is required:

Finalize national water policy, disseminate, and promote its application.

Increase investment in water and sanitation in Northern regions in general, and more so in bordering communities and towns.

Strengthen coordination and service delivery capacities of institutions to provide sustainable WASH services including social behaviour change communication around safe handling and use of water and sanitation facilities.

Informed by risk mapping, develop, and disseminate the minimum standards for climate and shock resilient WASH infrastructure and services and provide orientation to related institutions and communities.