A safe, adequate water supply within easy reach is still a dream for many people living in rural Africa. This book examines why such a basic service is not yet universally available by studying in detail one particular region of rural Uganda. What is the experience of women and children who have responsibility for fetching enough water for drinking, washing, cooking and feeding livestock? Are the village water committees run effectively? Is the policy and service delivery framework at national, regional and community level working to support borehole repair and maintenance? Can technical solutions such as SODIS and rooftop rainwater harvesting be both effective and gain local acceptance? Can GIS engage local people in gathering and using relevant data? Water is Life also studies the hydro-geological realities that present challenges to groundwater supply, and considers how climate change is likely to affect water supplies.
The Water is Life: Amazzi Bulamu project is a five-year, interdisciplinary research collaboration between Irish and Ugandan higher education institutes and NGOs, centring on communities in the Makondo area of rural Uganda. By bringing together social, physical and environmental scientists to study these research questions, the project proposes solutions for community water supply that have eluded government initiatives and NGOs for decades.
This book is important reading for researchers, students, and policy makers in NGOs and government departments with a responsibility for water supply.

'A very rich and powerful book with great insights on sustainable rural water systems'
Rebecca Amukhoye, Country Director, Self Help Africa, Kenya

‘A book which brings together the findings of eight detailed PhD studies, all focused on aspects of water and sanitation in one small geographical area of Uganda would be expected to provide some valuable insights, and this book does not disappoint. The geographic focus of the studies is restricted, but it is in some sense representative of the experiences of rural life in many parts of Africa; it also allowed a greater depth of investigation than would have been offered by a similar number of studies scattered across multiple locations. I highly commend this publication to all who are interested in the realities of the rural poor in Africa, and the contributions of in-depth research to the water and sanitation issues which such households and communities face daily.’
Richard Carter, Chair, Rural Water Supply Network, and Visiting Professor, Cranfield University, UK

G. Honor Fagan G. Honor Fagan is Professor of Sociology, Maynooth University, Co. Kildare, Ireland

Suzanne Linnane Suzanne Linnane is Senior Lecturer, Centre for Freshwater and Environmental Studies, Dundalk Institute of Technology, Ireland

Kevin G. McGuigan Kevin G. McGuigan is Professor at the School of Medicine, Dublin

Albert Rugumayo Albert Rugumayo is Senior Lecturer, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda

Water Is Life

CHAPTER 6 - Water resources in Uganda

Rugumayo, Albert I.

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The use of social networks as a strategy to reduce water consumption

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