Main Source of Water of Dwelling Units

Our survey of the District indicates that bore-hole /pump/tube well constitute the main source of water for households in the district. About 48 percent of households depend on this source for water. This is followed by unprotected wells (23.9%). The other significant sources include protected well (9.4%), pipe-borne outside dwelling (9.5%), dug out/pong/lake dam or canal (3.2%), and protected well (9.4%).

Bathing and toilet facilities used by household

The District survey further shows toilet and bathing facilities used by households in the district. Out of a total Household population of 5, 214 in the district, about 87 percent use bush or open field for toilet. This is relatively higher than the national (19.3%) and the regional (72.6%) percentages. Households who use KVIP and Pit latrine constitute 7.4 and 3.4 percent respectively. The other uncommon practices include bucket/pan (0.1%), WC (0.2%), public toilet (0.2%) and others (2.1%).

For the usage of bathing facilities in the district, about 42.4 percent of the total household population share separate bathroom in the same house. Households who own bathrooms for their exclusive use are 21.1 percent. About 7 and 17 percent of households use private open cubicle and shared cubicles respectively for bathing. About 10 percent of the total household population use open space around for bathing. Others households who rely on river/lake or dam and other sources constitute 0.7 and 0.0 respectively.

Method of Waste Disposal

Another issue worthy of note is the liquid waste disposal methods in the district. Disposal onto the street or outside is the commonest in the district (67.8%). This is followed by thrown onto compound method (20.5%). Other methods such as thrown onto gutter (5.4%) and others (0.5%) are relatively less practiced by households in the district. The waste disposal situation in the district raises serious environmental concerns. The current practice suggests non availability of waste collection bins and containers in the district. There is therefore an urgent need for the provision of this infrastructure to help the situation. The situation further calls for environmental education geared towards changing people’s attitude towards indiscriminate disposal of waste.