1. 
   
   Water Scarcity In The Horn Of Africa And Its Deadly Consequences
   
2. Storage Of Rainstorm Runoff Alone Could Significantly Increase Availability
   
   ABSTRACT:
   
   In general, the Horn of Africa countries (Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia & Somalia) are arid or semi-arid with limited precipitation. Rainfall is extremely erratic and occurs in a few months of the year and within those months, it usually occurs in days causing devastating floods that are usually followed by drought (abundance versus scarcity).
   
   For the rest of the year, the Region is dry and there are few perennial rivers when evapotranspiration is 2000 mm/year…annual rainfall ranges from 220mm in Djibouti to 848mm in Ethiopian highlands.
   
   Additionally, available surveys show that the Region's water quality is poor due to human misuse and animal wastes. Conductivity, fluorides, salinity, dissolved solids etc. are high (conductivity upto 11,000 mS/cm) and the few bacteriological total coliform screens available are >200/100ml mostly due to animal pollution (world standard zero) making present drinking water from lakes, wells, man-made catchments and springs unfit for direct human consumption.
   
   Today, access to clean water in the Region is one of the lowest in the world, below 30% for urban areas and for rural communities which make over 60%, access spirals to fractions when access to sanitation is extremely low.
   
   Consequently, many waterborne diseases are rife, endemic and epidemic in the Region raising the morbidity/mortality of the people and hundreds of thousands mostly children die yearly.
   
   Water scarcity therefore, is a major deterrent to sustainable socio-economic development; and meeting the Millennium Development Goals, (MDGs, whether on poverty, health, environment or hunger require action on water! WorldWater Magazine Feb. 2005), expressed in the International campaign, will certainly remain elusive unless "a benevolent world community" comes to the rescue!
   
   
   INTRODUCTION
   
   The Horn of Africa countries of Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia are arid or semi-arid with limited rainfall, yet large amounts of water annually flood out to the sea. While some of this floodwater is necessary to flush salt and other harmful products out of the system, in many cases, floodwater is not fully utilized. This phenomenon is characterized in the Region where annual precipitation occurs only in few months of the year and within those months, it occurs in no more than an aggregate of few weeks. For the rest of the year, the Region is dry and there are few perennial rivers while evapotranspiration is estimated at 2000 mm per year.
   
   Despite the sporadic and temporal distribution of precipitation of the Region, one way water supply can be controlled to match demand is through storage. This is true whether the demand is for natural processes or human need. In natural systems, precipitation may be intercepted by vegetation and temporarily stored on plant surfaces and on the soil surface….aridity of the Region does not favor this…when water infiltrates the ground, it is stored in the soil and may percolate to groundwater storage. On land, surface water is stored in watercourses and other water bodies.
   
   However, with present technology, today man can create and enhance water storage by such activities as water conservation, tillage, constructing of dams and dikes to impound water and artificially recharge groundwater. And regardless of method or type of storage, the purpose is to capture excess rainwater and avail it at times of need.
   
   And considering the large amounts of rainstorm runoff that flood out to the sea yearly, utilizing simple water storage technologies alone could significantly reduce water scarcity in the Region. And doing that could at least partially help the Region meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the target set by the UN, that call among other things, halving the number of people without safe water and halving those without sanitation by 2015.
   
   WATER RESOURCES AVAILABILITY IN THE REGION
   
   In general, the Horn is considered freshwater scarce (<1000m3>
   
   According to Earth Trends, Environmental Information/World Resources Institute, Djibouti's per capita (IRWR, 2001) is 460M3; Eritrea's per capita (IRWR, 2001) is 701M3; Ethiopia's per capita (IRWR), 2001) is 1,666M3 and Somalia's per capita is (IRWR, 2001) is 628 M3.
   

Moreover, the Region is prone to devastating droughts. That is usually followed by floods which often flush out junks of productive lands to the sea. Recurrent droughts often severely affect human and animal life that any sign of them are generally received with fear and worry. In fact, the Region experiences different types of water scarcities: (A) Natural due to its unfavorable climate (B) Democraphic scarcity due to its huge livestock populations which often pollute available resources... dirty water similar to one not available. exacerbating scarcity (C) Technical scarcity due to its low level of development. These problems are often compounded by lack of finacial resources, political turmoil and lack of trained manpower resources (the brain-drain problem). Consequently, water scarcity is a major deterrent to sustainable economic development in the whole Region

Because of lack of development, in the Horn where the majority of the people are agro-pastoralists or live in rural areas, access to water is limited to rainfall for both human and animal use and in most cases people have no access to safe water especially in dry seasons. When available, access is limited to only a small percent of the population mostly in urban areas. And for rural community, it is extremely low and non-existent. Access to sanitation is even worse.

In addition, due to the arid climatic condition, the Region is often hit by droughts and famine that are usually followed by torrential rain floods that devastate the Region. These problems are exacerbated by overgrazing, salinization and waterlogging all of which cause extensive soil damage. In addition, human activities have a damaging effect on the environment often worsening the situation exacerbating droughts and natural disasters.

In Somalia for instance, uncontrolled cutting of Acacia forest for the export of charcoal and firewood are badly damaging the rangelands….From 1997 to 2003, it is estimated that charcoal production has increased by 70%. Like in many parts of the Region, in the fertile lands of the south, soil erosion is extensive and has devastating impact on agricultural land. Erosion has also been accelerated due to land that has been left fallow. Persistent crop pests are common, affecting quantity and quality of the harvest. High incidence of malaria and tuberculosis, which are the two main human diseases…. occur during the wet season.

In rural Horn of Africa, domestic water supply is derived from surface dams, shallow wells and springs. However, to meet the demands, the Region needs to utilize water-harvesting technologies. This can be done by capturing more water above the ground during the wet season and allowing it to percolate down into aquifers or store in dams and reservoirs and then pump it out to provide water in the dry season. Seasonal torrential rainfall, in catchments, which are often filled by one run off, could further water availability.

In urban areas water availability is occasionally enhanced by rainwater collection from house roofs made of tiles, slates, corrugated/galvanized iron and aluminum sheeting. So, it may be helpful to arrange down-pipes that would flush foul which can be diverted from the clear water container and collected to run waste.

In addition, fortunately, UN studies on groundwater show that there is sufficient quantity of water to cover the domestic needs of the whole population…. but governments must establish strong water management and conservation practices to further water availability while avoiding misuse of water sources that are heavily devastated by human and animal pollution. So, rural Horn of Africa's community mostly depends on four sources of water. The shallow wells, the open water holes, pools that hold rainwater, …man-made water catchments and boreholes that serve most towns people. Most villages depend on rainwater storage tanks, sub-surface dams.

Today, livestock and agriculture, are the two major traditional socio-economic activities of the Region. In this Region where water is of vital importance, communities fight over access to land and water resources. However, development of water wells, dams and catchments is becoming increasingly common though provision of water sources must be carefully controlled because doing that may cause immense environmental degradation due to the potential influx of huge livestock that may expose topsoil making it susceptible to erosion after heavy rainfalls.

DROUGHT, WATER QUALITY AND THE HEALTH DIMENSION:
· Cloudless skies over the Horn of Africa are always a threat to the health and well-being of millions of people in the Region.
· Severe drought conditions plague the Horn:

But safe water and sanitation services are lacking in the Region due to inadequate assessment and underdevelopment of water resources, lack of technical and institutional infrastructure as well as lack of investment in water resource development …(UNEP).

In any country or Region, though provision of safe water and sanitation services are among the most important determinants of public health, records show that few percentage in the Horn of Africa Region have access to clean water and almost none have access to sanitation.
Today, use of contaminated water gives rise to waterborne diseases, creating epidemics. And diarrhea alone claims about 100,000…210,000 people mostly children….in 1998, 308,000 people died from wars in Africa; but more than 2 million died of diarrhea disease alone (a water-related disease).

Lack of basic health services education, food supplies, shelter, water and sanitation services are leading to prevalence of preventable infectious diseases in the Region.
Therefore, there is dire need to improve water quality, sanitation and personal hygiene which significantly can reduce the spread of many diseases.

1. And finally, even though provision of good human health, safe water, sanitation, hygiene and education must be considered as basic human right…. achieving such rights remain elusive for those at the Horn of Africa!
   
   SUGGESTIONS ON HOW TO OVERCOME WATER SCARCITY IN THE HORN
   
   Water Scarcity In The Horn Of Africa Can Be Overcome By:
   1. Developing comprehensive Regional master plans for sustainable water strategies for all basic human and livestock requirements
   2. Exploring ways to acquire simple, inexpensive and effective technologies for the exploitation of groundwater
   3. Establishing rainstorm runoff storage facilities such as dams, water catchments, reservoirs, while at the same time carefully preserving, national watersheds and the environment.
   4. Promoting self-help reliance schemes in water development and water conservation programs at local and national levels
   5. Protecting available water resources from animal and human pollution that wreak havoc to public health by polluting available supplies…20% of the children in the Region die before their 5th birthday and people suffer from parasitic infections from human and animal excreta wastes.
   6. Fully utilizing urban water-harvesting techniques
   7. Acquiring modern techniques to control livestock overpopulation
   8. Prioritizing formulation policies and measures to insure adequate and clean water sanitation practices including the safe disposal of wastes and garbage are achieve in the Region.
   9. Supplying good quality water to public and ward off waterborne diseases
   10. Establishing massive, national training programs for both rural and urban communities and educate people on water conservation techniques
   11. Raising community awareness of the role human, animal wastes and water scarcity play in the propagation of poor health. …. according to WHO, 80% of death and disease in Africa can be linked to water-related diseases.
   12. Encouraging gender participation in community leadership especially in the communal water and sanitation sectors
   13. Educating the public about the advantage of sound hygienic and sanitation practices so that they break away from their traditional habits.
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   References:
   1. N. B. Ayibotele 1992; The World’s Water: Assessing The Resource.
   2. Peter Geleick, “Dirty Water: Estimated Deaths from Water-Related Disease 2000-2020”, August 2002, unpublished.
   3. Abdi, A. J. “Cement Lined Tanks For Rainwater Harvesting In Somaliland”, paper presented at the 21st WEDC Conference, Kampala: July 1995 unpublished.
   4. Mohamed, Abdillahi, E. “Water As Cultural Issue & Source Of Conflict”, paper presented at seminar in Lund University, Sweden: Nov. 2000 unpublished.
   5. Noah Arre, “Safe Water is Safe Life, How Safe are Somalis in Water?” Paper presented at 8th Congress of Somali Studies and Governance, Hargeisa 2001; unpublished.
   6. Osman A. Farah, “Water Sources Management In Rural Somaliland,” paper presented at 25th WEDC Conference: Addis Ababa 1999, unpublished.
   7. African Ministerial Commitments On Implementation And Partnerships For Achieving The Water And Sanitation Targets, December 2003
   8. EC, Somalia Unit, 2001, Rural development & food security strategy for Southern Somalia
   9. Gomes, N. 2003: Water & Land Management In The Riverine Region of southern Somalia, preliminary study for FAO/IFRA, Nairobi.
   10. WHO/UNICEF meeting the MDGs water and sanitation target; a mid-term assessment 2004.
   11. UNICEF Ethiopia: Water and Sanitation, (WES) 2004-2006 target
   12. FAO/Land & Water Development Division: Review of Water Resources Statistics by Country
   13. Water Partners International, 2006
   14. Ethiopia Water Supply Sector Resource Flow Assessment: WSP July 2004
   15. Water Supply & Sanitation in Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers, Oct. 2003
   16. Eritrea: Improving Food Security; IFRC/RCS; December 2002
   17. EarthTrends Environmental Information/World Resources Institute…
   18. CARE 2002 Report: www.care.org/newsroom/specialreports/ hornafrica/ index.asp
   19. Safe the Children, June 2006
   20. Tom Gardner & Robert Engelman: “Sustaining Water, Easing Scarcity”, Population Action International: 1997