AfriAlliance Social Innovation Factsheet 1.5

On one hand, the extent of the water and sanitation challenges vary across the African continent depending on the levels of urbanisation, industrial activities and the effectiveness of waste management law and regulation [a]. As an example of human pressure, between 2005 and 2010, Africa’s urban population grew at a rate of 3.4 per cent mostly in peri-urban slum neighbourhoods [b]. Supplying safe drinking water and ensuring environmental hygiene has become a major challenge that could, for example, reduce morbidity from diarrhoea related diseases by 40 per cent in Africa. The burden of disease is also likely to increase as health-promoting ecosystem services are lost [c].