1. The lack of drinking water in Africa

4. The access to drinking water Water resources are sources of water that are useful or potentially useful to humans. Uses of water include agricultural, industrial, household, recreational and environmental activities. Virtually all of these human uses require fresh water. The remaining unfrozen freshwater is mainly found as groundwater, with only a small fraction present above ground or in the air. Fresh water is a renewable resource, yet the world's supply of clean, fresh water is steadily decreasing. Water demand increases faster and faster in many parts of the world as the world population continues to rise. Awareness of the global importance of preserving water for ecosystem services has only recently emerged as, during the 20th century, more than half the world’s wetlands have been lost along with their valuable environmental services.

5. Where is water in Africa? There are many rivers in Africa, even if the most important is the Nile, situated in the North East. We also find the Zambeze, the Congo, the Niger and the Senegal, in their respective countries.

6. Access to drinking water water in Africa…

8. Fourteen countries of Africa already suffer from the lack of water, but this number will increase. In 2050, Africa will support two billion inhabitants, and it’s important to find a solution now how to feed this future population. Most of the water is used for human needs For this, we will have to manage the water resources the best as we can. In the future… ‘ Product more, with less water’ is one of the best ways to solve the problem. Less than 10% of the lands are used in Africa. By using all the rest with irrigation, we’ll be able to use and transport water easily all over Africa. New tecnics in agriculture, expensive but efficient, should also permit to restrict the consumption of water.

9. Drought in Africa Droughts are frequent and serious in Africa, especially in the region above the huge desert, the Sahara. The extreme fragility of African lands in front of the precipitations, and their lack of capacity to keep humidity create an arid climate. Africa has also much less precipitations than the other continents, which continue to decrease, which makes it worse. The drought makes the harvest bad, or slows them down, which raises up the lack of food in Africa. It also obviously creates the problem of drinking water there.

10. Illnesses, the worst consequence Nearly half of the population is affected by one of the six illnesses linked to water: cholera, Dracunculose (worm’s illness), paludism, the Nile’s virus and others. The lack of preparation, help and hygiene increases their propagation. The hygiene is also a big probleme there, which continues to worsen. This is one of the cause of these epidemics. For example, in South Africa, about 10 000 people are affected of the cholera, and each day, 650 of them die of diarrhea. Unfortunately, the majority of the deaths caused by paludism also happen in Africa. This illness slows down the development and needs huge financial helps.