UNDP Malawi

LILONGWE 19 December 2006 - An estimated fifty percent of all people in developing countries are suffering at any given time from a health problem caused by a lack of water and sanitation, says the 2006 Human Development Report. According to the report entitled Beyond scarcity: Power, poverty and the global water crisis, the water crisis, coupled with poor sanitation, holds back economic growth with sub-Saharan countries losing up to five percent of GDP annually, far more than the region receives in aid.

In addition to the human cost, reaching other Millennium Development Goals, particularly relating to education, women’s equality or reducing poverty will be impeded if targets on access to water and sanitation are not met. In Malawi, poor hygiene, lack of sanitation and low quantity and quality of drinking water all contribute to Malawi’s poor health indicators for mothers and children, and impact negatively on the livelihood of women and children as they take on added responsibility for caring for the sick.

Considerable investment has been made in Malawi, but to achieve the Millennium Development Goal for water and sanitation will require US$ 8.28 million to serve 210,000 and 360,000 people respectively on an annual basis, according to the 2004 Malawi Demographic and Health Survey (MDHS). An estimated sixty-seven percent of the population have access to safe water while as low as twenty-seven percent in some areas have access to improved sanitation.

Hon. Sidik Mia displays the HDR at the launch event, today in Lilongwe. In the picture ((left to right) Robert Kampala, WaterAid Country Director, Grain Malunga, Principal Secretary Ministry of Irrigation and Water Development, Hon. Frank Mwenefumbo, Deputy Minister of Irrigation and Water Development, Hon. Goodal Gondwe, Minister of Finance, Hon. Marjorie Ngaunje, Minister of Health,, Michael Keating, UN Resident Coordinator/UNDP Resident Representative, Aida Girma, UNICEF Resident Representative, Tim Gilbo, Country Director World Bank and Mazlan Jusoh, Representative FAO.

“Having such a large population without access to proper water and sanitation services, apart from being socially unacceptable, poses a great impediment to the socio-economic development of the country, due to the impact this poses on health, education and agriculture, among others”, said Honourable Mohammed Sidik Mia, MP., Malawi’s Minister of Irrigation and Water Development.

Launching the report in Malawi, Honourable Mia said the country required not only increased investment but also effective legislation, coherent policy frameworks and multi-sector collaboration. Currently concerted efforts from United Nations through UNICEF, NGOs including WaterAid and donor communities aim to support the Ministry realise eighty percent of the population with access to safe water within 500 metres and at least seventy percent of improved sanitation in rural and peri-urban communities by 2011.

The Human Development Index ranks Malawi 166 out of 177 countries, estimating over sixty-five percent of its 12 million people live below the national poverty line. The country has made substantial gains in some social economic indicators including net primary school enrolment at ninety percent and one year olds immunized against measles and tuberculosis at eighty and ninety-seven percent respectively.

Other indicators, though, are distressing including maternal mortality at over 1,100 per 100,000 live births and slightly over sixty percent of births attended by skilled personnel.

Water and sanitation are key determining factors. The DHS estimates that up to twenty-five percent of schools have no protected water supply and on an average 150 pupils use one latrine. Fifty percent of the health facilities in rural areas do not have proper water supply and sanitation facilities.

Women and children, especially girls suffer the most in situations of inadequate access to water and sanitation. Girls will often stay away from school helping their mothers collect the family’s daily supply of water. With as many as half of children under five years suffering from diarrhoea, mothers cannot engage in productive activities as they tend to ill children. According to the HDR, achieving the water and sanitation MDG target would save about US$ 2 per capita-equivalent to about 12% of public health spending in sub-Saharan Africa.

In other areas, like Machinga in southern region, fetching water from the most convenient source – the Shire River – puts the lives of women and children at risk of crocodile attacks. In one area, locals estimate almost three deaths a month.

Boreholes and hand-dug wells in both rural and urban areas, are the conventional means of harvesting water and increasing access for communities in Malawi. The Malawi government has dug more boreholes in most parts of the country in the past decade through its Rural Water Integrated Project. However, investment and local capacity initiatives are needed to manage local water supply and reverse the current trend of about one third of the water points not operating at any given time.

Engaging local communities to manage their water supply and claim their right to clean water is proving successful in urban and rural areas. In a settlement in Lilongwe, WaterAid has set up associations to manage water points put up by the Water Board. In another rural area, while the organisation secures piping and other equipment, the communities take the responsibility of installing the pipes and managing the system.

In Lilongwe and Blantyre, the national and commercial capitals respectively the high rate of urbanisation is presenting a major challenge to local authorities in the provision of social amenities. Malawi is considered one the fastest urbanising countries in the world, and the United Nations estimates that by the 2030, almost thirty-two percent of the population will be urban. In Blantyre, Lilongwe, Mzuzu and Zomba an estimated 15% of Malawi’s population live under slum conditions in the cities of Blantyre, Lilongwe, Mzuzu and Zomba.

The report calls for increased investment in key services including water and sanitation to meet current and future demand and says, “if increased investment is critical, even more critical is the urgent need to find better mechanisms for providing the poor with water and sanitation.”

Eradicating extreme poverty and hunger is one of the Millennium Development Goals. In a country that has experienced multiple droughts, Malawi needs public policies that combine sustainability with equity in the development of water resources for agriculture. The Human Development Report advocates for governments to support the development and adoption of pro-poor irrigation technologies.

“Delivering clean water, removing waste water and providing sanitation are three of the most basic foundations for human progress,” says the 2006 HDR. But, 1.1 billion people do not have access to water, and 2.6 billion do not have access to sanitation. The poorer you are, the more you pay for clean water. In slums for example, people pay 5 to 10 times more than per people living in high-income areas.

Meeting the MDG target for water requires deliberate and concerted effort led by the Ministry to reverse the trends affecting health, productivity and further impoverishing the vulnerable people. Honourable Mia explained that the state of water resources and services also reflects the current state of affairs in Malawi. But he added, “We are already set on the path to immediately and effectively respond to the global call for action to reverse the trend. To achieve this however, would require the collective effort of us all, the sector institutions, the different stakeholders, donors, cooperating partners as well as all the citizens of Malawi.”

For information enquiries, contact Susan Muguro, susan.muguro@undp.org, or telephone +265 (0)9 967-991.

Editor’s Notes

ABOUT THIS REPORT: The Human Development Report continues to frame debates on some of the most pressing challenges facing humanity. It is an independent report commissioned by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Kevin Watkins is the Lead Author of the 2006 report, which includes special contributions from UK Chancellor Gordon Brown, Nigeria’s former Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, President Lula of Brazil, Former US President Jimmy Carter, and UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. The Report is translated into more than a dozen languages and launched in more than 100 countries annually. Further information can be found at http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006. The 2006 Human Development Report is published in English by Palgrave Macmillan.

ABOUT UNDP: UNDP is the UN's global network to help people meet their development needs and build a better life. We are on the ground in 166 countries, working as a trusted partner with governments, civil society and the private sector to help them build their own solutions to global and national development challenges. Further information can be found at www.undp.org