Water Crisis in Makoko: An Overview

Chapter 1: Introduction

1.0 Chapter overview

This chapter introduces the research study and develops the research questions seeking answers, it proposes the aims and objectives of the study, with a brief overview of water service delivery model, and the structure of the thesis, issues addressed and not addressed within this study. It also gives a brief background of the study area and its specific challenges. Makoko, a marginal suburb in the southern coastal Nigeria, faces one of the water crisis globally despite most dwellings and neighbourhood resting in Lagos lagoon, waterways, and water edge.

1.1 Background studies

Researchers argue that the water available on planet earth is about 97.5% saltwater and not suitable for drinking; but neither is the remaining 3% freshwater suitable for drinking, at least not without proper water treatment (Jain and Singh, 2010; Postel, 2014; Mekonnen, and Hoekstra, 2016; Wright, 2014). The inequitable access and supply of water has been attributed to various factors including the unbalanced distribution of water around the earth; although uncontrolled exploitation of water resources has been cited as being instrumental to water challenge in certain situations (Montginoul et al, 2016). From the socioeconomic and political viewpoints, water challenges can be argued to be a consequence of lacking economic resources or governmental will to proffer the necessary water technology or inability to afford the available water or a combination of all (Schwartz et al, 2018). While this is true for some scenarios of water inadequacy, it does not hold in situations where the environmental factors of weather and climate impact on availability of water resources (Jain and Singh, 2010). The latter exemplifies the case in deserts where shortage is still experienced regardless of the available technology or the economic abilities of the populace. Similarly, the growing global population has occasioned the overburdening of resources with lesser amount being available for use due to never-ending developmental activities (Schwartz et al, 2018). This impacted on water, energy and other resources as well, and is evident from the various data detailing pressures being faced around the world today (Postel, 2000; Zyoud et.al 2016)

In developing countries, water challenge remains a stark reality just as energy sufficiency. Here, the relevance of energy is underscored by the fact that the entire process of water supply requires being driven by energy at critical points. Specifically, energy is required for water pumping in borehole systems and other water related systems. Collaborative efforts continue to be made to address the issue of water with focus on the management of existing resources and exploration of newer sources. As such, out of the quest for easily accessible, sustainable and cheap water supply, the need to explore other unconventional sources of water was born (Katz, 2016). This involves the deployment of novel technologies that have to be accepted by people to ensure they are utilised (Schafer et al, 2014; Ray and Jain, 2011). Although, research abounds on ground and surface water resources, investigations on atmospheric water resources remains relatively few thereby making it an untapped resource that could hold the future of water supply for regions with few or no options (Magrini et al, 2015; Gido et al, 2016; Magrini et al, 2017). This is even more relevant considering the present pressing context of dwindling resources, increasing water demand, environmental degradation, climate change, and concerns of sustainable resource utilization (UNESCO, 2012). For instance, ground and surface water resources are reducing, contamination is rampant, and the push for prudent consumption is rife. Although other studies (Chukwuma et al, 2013; Lade and Oloke, 2015) have suggested the harvesting of rainwater for domestic and agricultural purposes, no specific research has been completed on condensation for water generation. Key conditions cited as essential for condensation include high relative humidity and temperature (Eludoyin et al., 2014), and these are found in Nigeria all year round. High relative humidity value signifies a high amount of moisture with respect to the volume of air-water mixture being considered (Adedayo, 2016) just as higher temperature infers the presence of more moisture in humid air. Of particular relevance to the preceding is the context of southern coastal part of Nigeria where humidity and temperature values are high (Chukwuma et al, 2013), and possibly the amount of harvestable moisture. However, water challenges abound in those areas (Lade and Oloke, 2015), thus presenting a paradox of lacking while in abundance. Consequently, generating water from atmospheric moisture harvesting could be a cost-effective solution to the water challenge in humid locations like Makoko.

This research is directed at exploring the applicability of condensation as a possible source of water for Makoko, using atmospheric moisture harvesting technology. Although, the community is situated on a body of water, access to drinking water is seriously hampered by a combination of various political, socio-economic, and geographic factors (Simon et al, 2013). This underscores the relevance of the unconventional water source being investigated in the research considering the possibilities of ease of access, low cost and sustained availability. There is limited information on tapping of water from atmosphere within Nigeria, though it is common to find creative local youths who find ways to build and create small scale innovative technology one of which is an atmospheric water generator. Against the background of energy requirement for the operation of the proposed technology, the need for a functional source of energy becomes underscored. Power supply in developing countries remains inadequate, and more so is the non-existence of a formal electricity connection in the community under study (Wolde-Rufael, 2006; Fadare, and Oduwaye, 2009). A renewable energy source particularly solar will thus be explored based on the availability of long hours of sunlight in the region. This implies a bilateral approach whereby both water and power challenges are addressed within the same research. Findings from this study are expected to make vital contributions to theoretical knowledge for academicians, and be included among the body of evidence available to policy makers and community development experts around the world.

1.2 Problem statement

Efforts towards effective water delivery have been made in many developing communities via several partnerships between non-governmental organizations, government and private stakeholders; these drew on the strength of the diverse make-up of the collaboration and achieved successes (Gerlach and Franceys, 2006). However, these successes were short-lived as limitation of resources meant that some of the schemes could not be continued or maintained by the domestic public sector especially as scaling up is required to match the growing needs of the population (Schwartz et al, 2018). Many community-led water programs suffered the same fate especially in poor communities. Lacking data and analysis were cited as the missing link between such schemes and the needs of the community, thereby leading to misconception about the actual state of the communities and failure of the implemented schemes (Franceys and Gerlach, 2005; Weitz and Franceys, 2002). Furthermore, failures have also been observed to stem from misconceptions from members of the community as a result of suspicion of the program planners’ intentions, yet other factors are of a socio-economic nature where the status of residents is often unaccounted for, misunderstood (Solo et al.1993) or unplanned, as is the case with Makoko (Ajibade and McBean, 2014). As noted by Adank and Tuffuor (2013), broad categories of service delivery models include public and private sector utilities, self-supply and community-based management. They stated further that water services could be made available via different service delivery models, which differ in the type of facilities, the management approach, and the service level being offered. Although, community development approach has been suggested as suitable for community water supply management, previous work has proven otherwise (Schwartz et al, 2018). For instance, when the approach was employed in the rural water supply projects in sub Saharan Africa, operational failures recorded were as high as 60% with lack of ownership, accountability, affordability and poor acceptability being the most prominent factors. In addition, the public utilities might not be applicable in Makoko considering the non-recognition of the community by the government. Similarly, the low economic power of Makoko dwellers portends a business risk for private sector; hence, their investment is limited to supplying water on tankers at irregular intervals. As such, while the government would not provide public water service in Makoko, the private investors too would probably not go as far as operating a full time water utility considering the likely inability of Makoko residents to pay.

The foregoing shows that a suitable water delivery model for Makoko must be responsive to the present needs of the residents and the context of Makoko as a community. In addition, this will be expected to address the key factors that often occasion the failure of community water delivery schemes. For instance, this includes ownership, accountability, affordability, and acceptability of the system making up the model. In this study, a novel water generating technology is proposed as a water source for family unit. Owing to the family-based size of the proposed technology, it is proposed that the technology will be sufficient enough to supply water for a family unit and if this study is feasible, an upscaling of the technology will be recommended. The proposed technology will be owned and managed by a family unit; this will ensure accountability and proper maintenance for continued use. Acceptability and affordability of the technology will be achieved by optimization of its operation and modification of pre-existing technology to be useable for the proposed purpose. Emphasis will be placed on deriving better values from the technology than what is obtainable via the usual informal water delivery. Exemplary of such values are water quality, quantity, reliability of supply, cost and ease of access. Based on observed operational parameters of the technology, a formal framework of water delivery will then be developed for Makoko.

1.2.1 Research question

According to some authors (Montginoul et al, 2016; Katsanou and Karapanagioti, 2017), water obtained from the ground and surface sources can be conveniently modified for drinking and domestic purposes with minimal effort; whereas, water from the atmosphere has been described as requiring considerable effort of improvements to meet drinking standards (Sharan et al, 2017). It has been described as being akin to distilled water which lacks minerals some of which are essential dietary requirements and are not easy to add back in. Notwithstanding the issues raised by various researchers, harvesting moisture from the atmosphere has been proposed as a possible source of water by other scientists (Magrini et al, 2015; Gido et al, 2016; Mangrini et al, 2017) who successfully completed experiments on the process and made useful discoveries. In the experiments, the climatic conditions of the location were hugely drawn upon; as such, factors like temperature and relative humidity were highlighted as key determinants of the process. This translates to consideration of climatic factors while considering atmospheric moisture harvesting as a possible water source. Previously, studies on atmospheric moisture harvesting technologies demonstrated that humid locations are best for optimum yield (Magrini et al, 2015). Other authors (Dalai et al, 2017; Gido et al, 2016) suggested that areas with high ambient temperature are ideal for the best water yields; both of these conditions are obtainable in Makoko. However, yields alone might not assure the use of such technology, as many other factors would play influencing roles. For instance, the perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness have been shown to influence the acceptability of a novel technology (Venkatesh and Davis, 2000). Other authors (Gupta, Fischer and Frewer, 2012; Venkatesh and Davis, 2000) noted that cost and the availability of other familiar alternatives impact greatly on the acceptance of a given technology. At present, the main source of water in Makoko is purchase from vendors who bring water to the residents in trucks or canoes at irregular intervals. Given that Makoko residents have become acquainted with the present means of getting water, getting them to accept a novel water technology would imply clearly demonstrated assurance of getting values beyond the water solutions to which they currently have access. This is against the background of non-existing public water service network (and no possibilities of any in future), non-recognition of the settlement by the government (which actually refers to it as unplanned and illegal) and the economic class of the residents. Many questions will thus be evoked when the possibility of adopting a water generating technology in Makoko is juxtaposed with the water challenge, current water sources, and the socio-economic circumstance of the community.

The main contention is to investigate the feasibility of using a proposed water technology to the Makoko Community and attempt to their attitude towards this technology. Such questions will bother on feasibility, relevance, added value and acceptance; they include:

Is atmospheric moisture harvesting for water generation feasible in Makoko?

What comparative advantage does a water generating technology have over the erstwhile patronised water sources in Makoko?

To what extent is it likely that the proposed water technology will be accepted and/or used by Makoko residents?

What critical determinants will drive the acceptance or rejection of the proposed water generating technology in Makoko?

Does the proposed technology signify an end to the water challenge in Makoko?

1.3 Aims and Objectives

As noted by Bossman et al., (2017), while the earth’s hydrological cycle changes owing to the impact of anthropogenic activities which in turn drive the current climate change, key elements of weather and climate remain within predictable limits; these represent potent tools that can be utilised to make informed decisions as to obtaining water from the atmosphere (Sharan et al, 2017). Favourable values (measured or assumed through observation) of such climatic factors imply the possibilities of harnessing atmospheric moisture harvesting technology in a given location (Wahlgren, 2001). These can be held in part as valid explanation for proposing the moisture harvesting technology for water generation in Makoko. Earlier works on atmospheric moisture harvesting include the work of Magrini et al (2015), Sharan et al (2017), Gido et al (2016), Milani et al (2014) and Mangrini et al (2017). However, no previous study has proposed atmospheric moisture harvesting as a possible better alternative to the existing options of getting water in Makoko. This research attempts to investigate the feasibility of using an atmospheric moisture harvesting technology for water generation in Makoko. To accomplish this aim, this research will attempt to achieve the following objectives:

To critically investigate the available water service delivery system in Makoko community.

To identify the most critical factors influencing the choice of water source among Makoko residents.

To evaluate the suitability of the water harvesting technology in Makoko considering the influencing climatic factors, techno-economic concerns and social considerations (of acceptance and perception).

To design a conceptual water service delivery model for Makoko Community.

1.4 Methodological approach

The methodology consists of five integrated activities in a mixed methods approach synthesizing a Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) tool, a Techno-Economic Modelling, a Theoretical & Experimental Application, Renewable Energy Modelling and a Socio-Ecological Analysis. The combination of qualitative and quantitative data generated from literature review, experimental application, survey questionnaire, and interview are designed to give a broad insight into the water challenges of what has been considered a slum settlement for over 200 years. In addition, unavailability of literature as at the time of commencing this PhD research prompted the synergy of methodologies adopted to provide a more holistic perspective into the case study. The data generated in the research is then used to draw relevant inference as concern the objectives of the research.

1.5 Value of the research

Will complete this section after completing the methodology and findings for a better view

1.6 Organization of the thesis

A short overview is provided at the beginning of each chapter; similarly, a conclusive remark ends every chapter as well. There is an introductory literature review contained within each chapter, however, a schematic representation below shows the overall structure of this thesis. This thesis is sub-divided into 6; the chapter 1 is an introductory section capturing the background of the research (water scarcity, availability, and access, as well as its challenges at wider and Makoko perspective), problem statement and research question, aim and objective of the research. The section also covers a brief overview of the methodological approach followed, value of the research, thesis structure, and chapter summary. Chapter 2 is a review of literature on water service delivery that includes barriers (socio-economic, financing, and political) and alternative sources (boreholes, desalination, reverse osmosis, solar water stills), Lagos state and planning, and Makoko geographical features. Additionally, the chapter take into account the concept of slum, water accessibility in slums, and Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). The third chapter is a research methodology encompassing activities such as multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA), Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), techno-economic analysis (hybrid energy modelling and experimental analysis), and focus group discussion and questionnaire survey in addition to data analysis method. (Structure of the thesis to be completed once restructuring of the thesis is done; recommended to be done last before or after rewriting the abstract).

Chapter 2: Literature review

2.0 Chapter Overview

This chapter gives a background literature review on water. It addresses the importance and roles water service and water delivery service plays within local communities, barriers to water service delivery, alternatives sources for water supply and dehumidification: application and contemporary technology and barriers in context of developing countries. The chapter challenges include the dimensions of water delivery systems (indicators, framework, and service level) as well as alternative water sources and shortages in different regions across the global (Amman, Gaza, Cape Town, and Kibera).

2.1 Role of Water to Human Lives

Water is a key requirement for life and access to clean water is a fundamental right for every human being according to Resolution 64/292 of the UN General Assembly (UNGA, 2010). This fact is supported by the pattern of settlements and human habitation for centuries. In underdeveloped and developing countries, lack of immediate access to water resources, and the poor quality of the existing water supplies, puts the health and wellbeing of many communities at considerable disadvantage (World Bank, 2017). The situation is a bit different in developed nations where access to good quality water supply is already guaranteed and the concern is more about a sustainable utilization and management of the available water resources. Necessity of water as part of human dietary intake, its role in domestic activities like cleaning, washing and its relevance as a resource in the broader economic context makes it a good of significant relevance (Howard and Bartram, 2005). Records of high incidence of water-borne diseases and sanitary-related conditions exemplify the direct effects of these inadequacies in water supply in the areas concerned (Moe and Rheingans, 2006), this is particularly common in areas where contaminated or inadequately treated water is consumed. Although this is more relevant in the less developed and developing climes, similar episodes (of water-borne infections) have been recorded in advanced nations during occasional breaches in water treatment processes. Exemplary of this is the episode of the 1998 Sidney water crisis (Carson and White, 1998). In fact, the link between water and health has been highlighted through the diagnosis of water borne infections, many of which are of public health concerns. It is therefore clear that water plays a vital role in the sustenance of life just as it poses a huge threat to health if not properly treated. Several authors describe many problems that arise from a water supply that is inadequate in terms of its quantity and quality (World Bank, 2017; UNGA, 2010; Chapagain and Orr, 2008; Howard and Bartram, 2005). For instance, continuous use of freshwater resources at a rate that exceeds the natural ability of the resources to replenish itself has been cited as one of the key reasons for water challenges in regions like Central Asia, India, China, Middle East, Africa, and Mexico (Chapagain and Orr, 2008). In arid and dry regions, due to little or no rainfall per annum, the diminished level of groundwater sources and excessive use of water has brought about changes in the availability and quality of water; although, the overall volume of water most often remains constant (Odlare, 2014). The above occasioned the call for paradigm shift from the traditional based approach of ‘use-dump’ to a 21st century approach of ‘use-recycle-dump’ with considerable emphasis on sustainability and quality; also, in line with these is the prospect for water from unconventional sources. These have direct implications for water service provision.

2.2 Water Service

Water service involves a broad set of organised procedures involved in water collection from the source, treatment and supply to the final consumer (Carlitz, 2017). Common forms of water service include public, private and community operated water services (Adank and Tuffuor, 2013). The public water services are utility services owned and operated by the government. Meanwhile, the community operated are operated by the community and are often products of collaborative effort between community, local government and non-governmental bodies (Whaley and Cleaver, 2017). Both private and community water services play the roles of augmenting the public water services especially in areas not served by public utilities. Ideally, water service responds to the factors that drive its operation; as such, a change in the factors implies modification of relevant aspect of the service (Carlitz, 2017). As an illustrative example, a change in the quantity of water demanded or a change in the cost of water treatment materials means that the service will adjust accordingly by supplying more water or increasing the service charge as appropriate to accommodate the change. However, in reality the degree of responsiveness of water service is largely determined by the wider context within which the service operates (Schwartz et al, 2018); for instance, the presence or lack of regulatory structures to check the activities of water service providers. This is mirrored in the context of Makoko where the community cannot influence key aspects of the water service rather the community accepts what it gets. This represents a point of discrepancy between water service in the more advanced climes and the developing world. In the developing nations, access to municipal water services excludes assurance of consistent supply just as it does not ensure good quality. Rather, emphasis is placed on accessibility (Kumar and Managi, 2010). According to Abubakar (2016), this overstates the extent of success, paints a deceptive image of performance while obscuring other factors hindering further progress. As argued by Lin (2005), the coverage of water service is often used to describe access to water while service quality is given little or no attention; the same trend is observed in academic references (Kumar and Managi, 2010). These imply that the commonly quoted figures of having attained some given goals of water accessibility in developing countries could even be inaccurate; though, this does not invalidate the fact that some progresses have actually been made (Abubakar, 2016). From the foregoing, it is clear that while water services are being provided in developing countries, much remains to be done in many aspects of the delivery. This is even more relevant in areas like Makoko where there is no access to public water services (which is often regulated) and private services provide water supply.

2.3 Water Service Delivery

Water service delivery denotes the manner of providing water service. It encompasses guaranteeing water availability as well as making decisions about water quality, cost, and quantity to be provided for consumers (Abubakar, 2016). Water service delivery entails capital investment and development of facilities, maintenance, and management of system, tariff setting, and billing (Hoedeman et al, 2005). As previously pointed out, forms of water services include private, public and community operated services. Water delivery in all the services form takes different formats; while the public utility makes use of pipe networks delivering water directly into households, the community operated services often makes use of centrally located facilities where water is obtained by end users (Whaley and Cleaver, 2017). Private water service providers often take the form of vending water in tankers or from tanks; water is either collected by the users or taken to households where end users store the water in facilities designated for the purpose. Generally, in water service in developing countries, the public utility delivery is preferred compared to the private service delivery owing to the heavy infrastructure outlay, and the need to evade exploitative billing (Schwartz et al, 2018). As argued by Thoenen (2007), public operated utility ensures non-discriminatory service and enables market regulation that ensures adequate delivery. Thus, water is made available via government monopolies (Hoedeman et al, 2005). However, this is slightly different from what obtains in some developed nations where water services are provided by private sectors operating government owned facilities (Curran et al, 2018). Conversely, this does not apply in certain locations because access to public utility is lacking; as such, water service is delivered by the private sectors. In others, water is obtained via self-help efforts in form of hand-dug wells or bore holes (Adank and Tuffuor, 2013), though this is subject to obtaining digging permits in developed countries. However, apart from other reasons cited earlier on, there is greater confidence in public water service owing to its more organised and transparent structure coupled with its holistic approach (Carlitz, 2017). For instance, the process of water abstraction, treatment and distribution is carried out by the same body to which regulatory bodies have unlimited access; similarly, vested interest of excess profit at the expense of quality service remains irrelevant. This aligns with the position of Garcia (2005) who stated that water should be viewed and handled as a good that can be traded in the economic sense for a non-negative price; in the same vein, UNDESA (2010) referred to it as a human right to which all should have access without any hindrance of affordability. Nevertheless, many challenges bedevil water services and delivery; some of these are discussed next.

2.3.1 System and Model of Water Service Delivery

A water service delivery system (WSDS) is defined as an effective, convenient and consistent structure that addresses water demand, supply and access (Abubakar, 2016). As noted by Ghobadian et al. (1994) and Cavalieri and Pezzotta (2012), gaps occur in service delivery systems, and these gaps are often unique to the context in which the system functions. Every WSDS is based on a water service delivery model (WSDM) that forms its operational framework (Abubakar, 2016). Where a formal water service delivery system is absent, improvised delivery systems (informal) evolve to serve its purpose (Schwartz et al, 2018). Such an informal system continues to develop in response to the needs and demands that it address. Expectedly, introduction of a new delivery system would translate to the community adjusting to accommodate the new delivery system; this happens when similar ends can be attained via the new system. However, when demonstrably better ends are attainable via the new system, possibilities are that a paradigm shift will take place and the new system will overshadow the erstwhile utilized system (SNV, 2010). This exemplifies the anticipated reaction of Makoko community to the proposed water technology that is expected to proffer a better value than the current water delivery system; as this is often a recurring norm within communities in Nigeria. A practical WSDM considers various factors relevant for service delivery; these include the legal framework for service delivery, the physical infrastructures and applicable quality standards for the level of service provided (Abubakar, 2018). A model for water service delivery focuses on the entire system cycle and long-term service delivery that emphasizes attention on technology, capacity building, institutional support and fiscal planning required for providing and sustaining a certain level of access to water (Schwartz et al, 2018). Provisions of such model lack in some stand-alone water projects installed at community level where no specific underlying operational framework drives the maintenance. This is similar to what obtains in Makoko where no specific water service delivery model or system is in place and water is procured via irregular delivery systems.

Although, no single approach has been recommended as perfect for tackling water challenges, pre-existing standards for supply, roles, rights, responsibilities and the fiscal workings should be maintained within a framework of water service delivery; this should be a key focus for stakeholders involved (Moriarty et al, 2013; Babalobi, 2013). Meanwhile, WSDM has been criticized for its failure to properly outline clearly guidelines on adoption for particular geographical locations, populations, efficiency as well as the specific demands and supply to be addressed (Morgan, 2006). Similarly, Morgan (2006) noted the inapplicability of deploying the same WSDM in communities living in dissimilar conditions. For instance, technological design and influence of climatic and weather factors bring about operational variations just as non-technical factors like accessibility, quality and quantity of water produced, social acceptance and perception do. These affect the level of service provision for given locations. While similarities may occur in communities, no two communities are identical in reality (Makhari, 2016). The flexibility in the design of a WSDM ensures that it takes on many shapes depending on factors and parameters within its case context and these can be community-based management, self-supply, public or private sector. (Clark, 2011; Fernando and Garvey, 2013).

2.3.2: Barriers to water service delivery

Ensuring adequate water service delivery in developing countries remains a challenge owing to a myriad of factors that centre on socio economic, environmental, and political factors. These include:

2.3.2.1. Lack of resources

The lack of resource includes managerial, technical, and financial capabilities. Unavailability of resources hinders effective water service delivery in developing countries via limitation of investment in infrastructures and technical capacity (Schwartz et al, 2018); these translate to lack of maintenance and hamper the operation of urban water systems. The decade for clean drinking water (1981-1990) witnessed the provision of huge sums by global financial establishments to assist developing countries attains improvement objectives with regard to improving water supply (Jaglin, 2002). Subsequent to that and more recently, the Millenium Development Goals were agreed upon, a key aspect of which is (Target 10) focused on ensuring access to safe water; this was backed with aids to ensure complete implementation (Abubakar, 2016). Though the goal was accomplished, it was an outcome of collaborative pooling of resources from international institutions and the support of advanced nations whose financial and technical resources were hugely drawn upon. As a further illustration of this, the global funding gap between the actual investment to meet the Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG6) and the prerequisite yearly investments was estimated at about US$ 98 billion (World Bank, 2017). For instance, a projected annual sum of US$ 114 billion is necessary in worldwide total investment to realize targets SDG 6.1 and 6.2; whereas, the yearly investment through the duration of MDG totalled a slightly below US$ 16 billion (Schwartz et al, 2018). The goal, ensuring universal access to safe water sanitation by 2030, requires investment in infrastructure, encouraging hygiene, and providing sanitation facilities. The SDG sets to promote democratic and transparent water and sanitation governance system, integrated water governance, and climate change adaptation, working towards structures and approaches aimed to healthy living, and structuring access of water and sanitation services by poor and marginalised communities. It is well known that the mostly affected zones are the developing countries because available evidence (from epidemiological data of water-borne infections and socio-economic statistics) shows that the resources required to sustain water service are lacking (Whaley and Cleaver, 2017). In addition, it is not uncommon to encounter breakdown of infrastructure for water service provision in developing countries; this clearly reflects the lacking resources with respect to maintenance and operation of water service systems.

2.3.2.2. Population growth and urbanization

The burden of providing universal coverage of amenities has been exacerbated by an upturn in population (Schwartz et al, 2018). As a matter of fact, the real figures of individuals lacking access to water for sanitary purpose in, for instance, African Sub-Sahara has increased over the past two decades and half and this is bound to continue for the next decade and half (UNICEF and WHO, 2014). This implies a dynamic goal for water service provision. Besides, the non-stopping process of urban sprawl bears on water service coverage (Carlitz, 2017). For instance, when action plans are made targeting to cover a given population within a specific area, rapid urban expansion would mean the plans fall short of the reality on ground. Apart from the difficulty posed by the rate of urban expansion, the nature of the sprawl occasions the burden of service provision. According to the United Nations, the highest yearly rate of urbanization is in the African region of Sub-Sahara (UN-Habitat, 2008). Meanwhile, this growth takes place regardless of the inadequate direct foreign investment and low macroeconomic performance, which makes provision of the most fundamental utility or infrastructure infeasible for the urban development authorities (Cohen, 2006). According to the United Nations (2008), this rate of urbanization can be likened to the expansion rate of slums and consequential of it is the gross disproportion between the capacity of the available infrastructure and the required level of utility (Schwartz et al, 2018). A direct implication of the foregoing is that existing facilities for water delivery become stretched to their operational limits before provision (if any) is made for newer ones. This takes serious toll on the facilities and translates to early breakdown.

2.3.2.3. Water resource availability and climate change

The numerous demands for satisfactory services for current and upcoming generations, owing to the non-stopping population expansion and urbanization, increase the pressure on present water resources (Schwartz et al, 2018). According to UNESCO (2012), water services will continue to experience growing demand with a projected increase of 50% by 2025 in developing nations. Meanwhile, dearth of fresh water is expected to affect over 40% of nations globally by 2020 and this would affect mostly the low-income nations situated in Asia as well as Sub-Sahara African (UNESCO, 2012, p. 265) The current setbacks to adequate quality and quantity of water resources are worsened by the effects of climate change (Burn et al., 2012). Although, the impacts of climate change related effects on water services vary, they are usually interrelated; often, they affect the quality and predictability of water resource (Schwartz et al, 2018). Circumstances of likely impacts of climate change underscore the possibility of irregular and higher precipitation, which can occasion prolonged droughts and flood (Keath & Brown, 2008) and bear on hydrological systems. As argued by Levine, Yang and Goodrich (2016), sediment burden in water resources can be increased by flood while extended droughts can affect temperature, rates of evaporation and salinity thus affecting the quality of water resources. These highlight the ecological and hydrological risks threatening water service in developing countries. Water service becomes directly affected since the erstwhile processes being used for water treatment might likely be sufficient to meet up the established service standards; similarly, the quantity available for abstraction becomes less.

2.3.2.4. Ineffective billing, cost recovery (non-payment non-affordability) and sabotage.

Operating to ensure cost recovery enables water service providers to generate adequate funds to cater for expansion of water service and facilitates improved operation of water delivery systems (Schwartz et al, 2018). Similarly, setting water charges awaken the consciousness of users to the reality of scarcity of water resources and thus mirrors its value as an economic good (Wu, 2011). The need for this has been widely encouraged by global donor agencies and organizations in the water sector (Schwartz et al, 2018) who argue that billing serves as a demand management tool by nudging consumers to be mindful of their water usage (Griffin, 2000; Wu, 2011). In addition, Rusca and Schwartz (2018) observed that cost recovery addresses various concerns including resource management, social and environmental issues. All the above-mentioned benefits are accomplished via efficient metering and billing (Abubakar, 2016). In practice, application of cost recovery or tariffs is determined by the nature of the service delivery system (Carlitz, 2017). For instance, in the context of differentiated service provisioning, tariffs are imposed differently. Differentiated service is described as that which is based on different levels; service delivery is carried out using different approaches for different customers or clients (Schwartz et al, 2018). Exemplary of this is the direct delivery of water service to households in a community via network of pipes by a utility agency as compared to the same agency delivering water service to another community via a community-based approach. Such selective implementation means that customers are charged differently. In developing countries, however, ineffective metering and billing often result from various factors. These include disproportionate billing while supply is not consistent, lack of updated customer database, difficulty in bill payments, illegal pipe connections (often prevalent in informal settlements) and the activities of vandals who sabotage water service facilities to gain illegal access to water (Abubakar, 2016). These among other reasons have been cited by water service providers as serious challenges to service provision.

2.3.2.5. Socio-political and economic factors.

According to Koehler (2018), viewpoints of decision-making individuals in governments are critical to sectorial goals in developing countries. Making progress in water service delivery starts with the perception of obligation by individuals in positions of actualising agreed plans (Viscusi and Gayer, 2015). To achieve changes, strategic alignment of goals is required for authorities given the mandate to deliver water services (Hood, 2011). Decision makers respond differently to political risks that interplay in delivering water services. Koehler (2018) explained using public choice theory to show that decision makers are subject to political pressures and drives, which affect their attitude to risk. As such, their resolve to improve service delivery or not could be largely dependent on the amount of socio-political risk perceived; for instance, losing an impending election or falling short of expectations (Eizenga, 2015). Similarly, duty-bearers bargain between delivering their mandate, avoiding political failures and their personal preferences (Gutierrez, 2007). These could be used to explain the widely observed fact that provision of some public services in developing countries is contingent upon political will of the incumbent government. In the same perspective, making of electoral promises to provide certain public services like water supply often translates to skewing of service provision towards certain communities of interest and not with respect to needs (Koehler, 2018). According to Carlitz (2017), at local level, political nepotism manifests more and allocation of new infrastructure for water is tilted to favour areas that showed greater degree of loyalty for a governing party. These highlight the role of socio-political impacts on water service delivery especially in the context of developing countries. Closely in line with this is the influence of economic power on water service delivery. In this setting, demand for water service is primarily interpreted in terms of ability to afford the service; as such, demands of less affluent communities remain disregarded (Rout, 2014). This is relevant to demand responsive approach, which is a prominent paradigm for water service delivery in contemporary times (Carlitz, 2017). Demand responsive approach portrays inclination to offer payment to access to water (Rout, 2014). In some climes, it implies a willingness to bear part of the cost for water service in conjunction with the government; and has been utilized to implement some water projects (Marks and Davis, 2012). However, the approach not been sustained in many communities owing to inability of communities (especially the poor ones) to sustain the implemented project (Carlitz, 2017).

2.3.3: Other dimensions of water service delivery: service level, framework, and indicators.

In 2012, it was declared that the United Nation’s MDG target for water had been met; yet, a key criticism of the assertion had been its failure to reflect sustainability as well as safety aspects of the target (Onda, et al., 2012). This implies less transparency and accountability for economic, health and human rights benefits of the water service (Meier et al., 2013; Moe and Rheingans, 2006; Rizak and Hrudey, 2008). Describing water services using various, individually more nuanced indicators may assist in overcoming these drawbacks and contribute to the delivery of water services, globally and in various countries regardless of their income class (Kayser et al., 2013). The demand for, and the supply of water are just as important as the technology and the water service delivery model (World Bank, 2017). The processes of water abstraction, treatment, distribution, and recycling are expected to be of a stipulated standard in order to inhibit and or tackle any contamination and pollution (Albuquerque, 2011). This is in line with the UN declaration (Meier et al., 2013) of clean water as a human right and also with parameters described as being of normative concern in comment 15 (2003) of the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (UNCESCR). To guide policymaking, build monitoring schemes, and maintain standards, indicators, and frameworks have been used (Kayser et al., 2013). These reflect benefits of various extents, promote accountability and give insights to the improvements being made (Gruskin and Fergusson, 2009; Kayser et al, 2013; Albuquerque, 2011). Frameworks for water services offer indicators set that can be deployed to analyse formal structures, monitor trends and assess progress (Ostrom, 2011); a framework identifies aspects and the relationships between those aspects requiring formal analysis (Kayser et al, 2013). Based on a framework of five indicators (coverage, quality, quantity, cost and continuity), Lloyd and Bartram (1991) proposed a guideline for water services to be evaluated. As a follow up on this, Bartram (1996) suggested that service level is determined by two factors – quality (safety) and continuity (sustainability) and are linked by the relation below:

Service level = quality × continuity

From the relation, it follows that inadequate quality or continuity will decrease the service level (Bartram, 1996). As such, comparisons can be made between water service providers and technologies; insights from this have been used to develop water service index which is described as an integration of quantifiable indicators of a water service into a single measure (Moriarty et al., 2011). Integration of the indicators values along similar scales to determine a single level of service results to a single composite metric (Bartram, 2008). Similarly, water service level was proposed by Howard and Bartram (2003) with focus on water source accessibility and water quantity. This was reflected in the finding that a decrease in water quantity consumed correlates with increase in distance to water (Gilman et al., 1993). Other indicators include the water service ladder introduced in 2008 by the joint monitoring programme (JMD) of the WHO and UNICEF to describe the distribution of water (based on the quality of the access) across communities (WHO/UNICEF, 2010). Piped water sources occupy the topmost rung while the middle and lowest rungs were occupied by improved and unimproved water sources respectively. The ladder metaphor was continued by the International Water and Sanitation Centre (IRC) (Moriarty et al., 2011); though, IRC developed a five-rung water service delivery ladder to range from high service to a no-service level based on four indicators: accessibility, quality, quantity and reliability (van Koppen, Burr and Fonseca, 2012). The development and adoption of the ladder was driven by the need to advocate about service delivery beyond hardware, influence policy debate, and to create tools for assessing service delivery (Kayser et al., 2013). Having been tested in various locations including Ghana (sub-Saharan Africa) Mozambique, Burkina Faso and Andhra Pradesh (India), the ladder had been shown to be useful in identifying both poor service delivery and high levels of non-functionality as well as costs in meeting up (or inability to meet up) targeted levels of service (Adank et al., 2013; Moriarty et al., 2011; van Kpoppen et al., 2012). Although, adaptability to national norms is a strength of the water service ladder, it also stands as a weakness since it makes comparisons difficult across countries (Kayser et al., 2013). In the context of developing countries, there are a number of persistent challenges to water service (World Bank, 2017). The dominant de-facto model of community management coupled with a demand-responsive approach towards water supply must be replaced with a decentralised management and based on service delivery approach (Schouten and Moriarty, 2003); this is argued to be the basis for universal access to water services in rural settings. Continued use of the existing conventional approaches occasion high failure rates of hardware and poor water service (Noll, et al., 2000). Moriarty et al (2013), suggested a shift in water service paradigm via professionalization of management, provision of direct financial support to community service providers and adoption of wider range of service delivery models (including decentralization). They argued further that water supply in developing countries has not necessarily been about service delivery, but more about providing hardware and its functionalities for first-time access to water (supply). In fact, the demand-responsive approach to water service in developing countries is at best out-dated considering the global benchmark of the acceptable level of water service (Noll, et al, 2000). Thus, with higher expectations and demand for a higher standard of service and quality, the traditional practice in water service approaches an end; this implies an inevitable embrace of newer concepts of water service delivery.

Today, provision of efficient water service would involve consideration of indicators that can be used for monitoring (Kayser et al., 2013). This is as implied by the concepts of water service ladder, water service level, and the human rights framework for water service (Meier et al, 2013) which underscore the importance of quality, quantity, accessibility, continuity and reliability (World Bank, 2017). These ensure that the service meets the level demanded by users and the authorities, conforms to relevant standards, and gives an assurance of sustainability.

2.4 Water stressed communities around the world

In various communities around the world, restricted access to water has prompted the use of various alternatives (Liu et al, 2017). These include many unconventional water sourcing and management techniques ranging from recycling of grey water to treatment of sea water to controlled consumption of available water resources (du Plessis, 2017). Although, many authors (Cassardo and Jones, 2011; Curry, 2010; Kibona et al, 2009) argue that the water available for every region is inadequate for their water needs, other authors (du Plessis, 2017; Pimmentel et al, 2010) contended this fact. They stated that the amount of water available on earth is sufficient to meet the needs of the population. However, concentration of a larger portion of the fresh water in particular regions like North America translates to deficits in other areas like North Africa and Middle-east (Cassardo and Jones, 2011). In addition to the preceding is the poor water resource and infrastructural management practices common in the developing regions; this impacts on water availability. These underscore the relevance of the many unconventional schemes that have been designed for procuring water. Around the world today, places facing serious water challenges include parts of the middle-east like Amman in Jordan, Gaza in Palestine (Schyns et al., 2015), parts of the east, north and south Africa as exemplified by water scarcities in Cape Town (Schmidtke et al., 2018; Harris et al., 2017), Kibera in Kenya (Wandiga et al., 2017; Meredith and McDonald, 2017), regions in south Asia like Delhi and Mumbai in India, Tokyo in Japan (Mekonnen and Hoekstra, 2016) and Rio in Brazil (Britto et al., 2016). Specific means adopted to tackle the issues of water within some of these aforementioned areas are discussed subsequently.

2.4.1 Amman, Jordan

Water scarcity in Amman has been attributed to the growing population due to economic growth and dwindling surface waters (Hussein, 2018; Hadadin et al., 2010). Other researchers (Schyns et al., 2015) argued that the influx of refugees has a huge impact on the water resources in Amman, and thus the recent water scarcity. Options that are being explored include desalination of sea water, conveyance of water from the nearby aquifer (DISI), reuse of grey water, and demand reduction (Hussein, 2018; Alnsour, 2016). These interventions have been successfully implemented; for instance, the newly opened (2017) desalination plant in Amman that has a production capacity of 500 cubic metres per hour has contributed to ease of water access in the community (Delgado-Torres et al., 2019). A critical factor in the implementation was the government involvement which meant the huge capital requirements were met.

2.5.2 Gaza, Palestine

The on-going conflict in the region occasioned the destruction of many water infrastructures, pollution of surface and ground water resources as well as preventing the possibilities of installing elaborate water structures anew (Efron et al., 2018); thus, Gaza suffers severe lack of access to water. Currently, the options for getting water include supply from underground aquifers which are heavily polluted with sewage, and purchase from vendors (at exorbitant rates) (Shatat et al., 2018). While these arrangements cannot be considered as suitable for longer-term use, they remain the best at the moment (Efron et al., 2018). This is because other alternatives like desalination and reverse osmosis used extensively in neighbouring Israel, though proposed, are yet to be implemented despite assured funding support from France and the Islamic Development bank (Attili, 2015). A number of individual efforts towards accessing water include household desalination units designed by some residents. However, significant positive results have not been reported from them (Efron et al, 2018).

2.5.3 Cape Town, South Africa

Extensive drought has been cited as being responsible for the water shortage in Cape Town (Luker and Harris, 2018). As the reduction in water storage was detected early, water demand management strategies were implemented to reduce water consumption (Muller, 2018). These include restriction of consumption per capita, automated shut offs subsequent to consumption beyond a given threshold, banning outdoor use and grey water use for toilet flushing. However, it could be argued that compliance with these regulatory and management strategies might not guarantee absence of future shortages since more severe drought could mean another bout of water shortage (Maxmen, 2018). This view was supported by Muller (2018) who suggested that newer water sources need to be explored to ensure future scarcities do not occur. In line with the preceding arguments and as a follow up to the demand management, desalination projects have been embarked upon by the government. Remarkable improvements have been noted from the strategies (Luker and Harris, 2018).

2.5.4 Kibera, Kenya

Water in Kibera is scarce, expensive and uncertain (Wandinga et al., 2017). Various interrelated factors are implicated in the difficult access to water in this community. According to Mudege and Zulu (2009), the factors are mainly consequent of drought and exclusion of the community due to the non-acceptance of the settlement as being legal. Other authors (Scott and de Guvello, 2016; Crow and Odaba, 2010) suggested that water cartels and the unregulated activities of water vendors are the responsible factors. For instance, water being supplied by the water board gets prevented from reaching the settlements via the activities of cartels that tap water illegally and sell to consumers at very high prices. Meanwhile, findings from other studies (Crow and Odaba, 2009; Munguti and McGranahan, 2002) show that non-payment for public water supply by Kibera residents drives the non-supply of water. Interventional strategies implemented include collaborative monitoring of water infrastructures to prevent sabotage and ensure the populace benefit from cheap water supply (Joshua et al, 2018). Other innovative solutions to ease the access to water include water ATMs (already in use in Mathare, Kenya) and overhead (20 feet above the ground) water pipe network (BBC, 2015). Water ATMs are water vending machines from which users obtain water through the use of prepaid smart cards. However, effectiveness of the interventions remains yet to manifest as the local cartels and water merchants continue to devise newer ways to benefit from the water situation in Kibera (Sarkar, 2019).

2.4.5: Water shortages in other areas across the world

Similar water shortages are experienced in regions of some advanced nations (Hurlimann et al, 2009). For instance, water shortages have been reported in western Canada and California and have been attributed to the effect of drought (Heinmiller, 2018). These have mostly been successfully managed through demand management which basically involves regulating the amount of water consumed per capita (Heinmiller, 2016). Applying these in the context of localities where governance in water service is not matured might remain a challenge. For instance, where adequate machineries are not in place to curb the activities of illegal activities like sabotage of water infrastructures, it might be impossible to enforce any regulation. In like manner, huge investments such as desalination plants are restricted to climes where the government is fully involved in water provision and regulation. These can be said to reflect in places like Kibera and Makoko where the governments’ involvement in water provision is minimal.

2.5 Alternative sources for water supply

2.5.1 Boreholes

These involves obtaining water from the ground reserves through a deep hole dug into the ground. Where the groundwater reserve is high, yields from boreholes will be high and could be of immense use (Ifabiyi et al., 2016; Roy et al., 2012); this applies in many parts of Lagos (Nigeria) where boreholes are the major source of water (Upton et al., 2017). In contrast to the preceding, Jasechko and Perrone (2017) argued that high groundwater reserve does not always guarantee water availability; the situation of many communities adjacent to mineral exploration sites or coastal locations was cited in the work. Thus, where the environment is subject to drought, pollution or extensive seepage from adjacent areas that are prone to pollution, water from boreholes could be inadequate and unfit for use. This is illustrated during extreme dry weather conditions when yields from boreholes become very low (Ifabiyi et al., 2016). Similarly, where the ground is subject to activities involving potential pollutant like crude oil, chemicals, leachate, sewage, water from boreholes in the area become unfit for consumption. In Kibera, indiscriminate dumping of refuse, lack of sewerage systems and the impact of drought meant that boreholes are unsuitable since toxic materials are bound to mix with the groundwater via seepage (Crow and Odaba, 2010); the same scenario has been reported in Gaza (Palestine) too. In the case of Makoko, the community is situated on water; hence, the question of borehole might not apply. Even if boring into the water bed is to be considered, heavy pollution of the water with directly deposited sewage could be expected.

2.5.2 Desalination

Desalination is the removal of the salt component of water that is otherwise salty (Amy et al., 2017); this improves the taste and make it fit for various uses. Usually, desalination is applied where there is restricted access to freshwater, and salty water is available in large quantities. In Israel, the Sorek Desalination Plant produces as much as 624,000 m3/day just as the Saudi Al-Khair Desalination Plant produces 1,036,000 m3/day (Hamilton, 2017). Granted that these plants generate water for large populations, they consume huge amount of energy; this evokes the concern of availability of energy to sustain the process (Amy et al., 2017). Similarly, other issues that border on economics and environmental considerations of the waste products of the process have been pointed out too (Frenkel, 2011). Considering the initial installation cost of desalination plants, it could be argued that it is better carried out by governments and authorities rather than individuals. And this might explain why its application has been limited to water production schemes organised by governments. Although, potable desalination units are being built by researchers (Yıldırım et al., 2014; Chafidz et al., 2014; Chafidz et a., 2016; El Kadi et al., 2019; Kabade et al., 2018), they have not been fully developed for applications in real life circumstance. Thus, their applicability in water-stressed communities remains subject to confirmation based on further findings. For communities like Makoko, even though located on a body of salty water, desalination might not be suitable considering the level of pollution of the water and the capital requirement which the government would not be expected to meet due to its status as an informal settlement.

2.5.3 Reverse Osmosis

This is the passage of water molecules via a semi-permeable membrane which excludes various contents in the water (Amy et al, 2017). Such contents include molecules, ions, dissolved as well as suspended species and particles which are selectively screened by the membrane; these are disposed of as waste. According to Morillo et al. (2014) despite the usefulness of reverse osmosis in production of potable water, the waste it generates remains an issue of concern. In contrast, Shanmuganathan et al. (2016) opined that waste from reverse osmosis is a less concern compared to water unavailability. Meanwhile, in Delhi where domestic reverse osmosis units are widely used for purifying water, waste water from the process has elicited some fears which are being tackled today (Mehta et al., 2014). Morillo et al (2014) submitted that reverse osmosis offers a promising future with respect to water provision; however, Mehta et al. (2014) contended it with the view that there has to be a source of water to be fed into the unit for purification. Thus, its use in places affected by drought remains limited. For a location like Makoko, reverse osmosis might appear to be a feasible means of providing potable water; however, the available water in Makoko is heavily polluted and might need more than a single treatment regime to attain the desired level of purity. Furthermore, some technical skills might be required for its operation and this could be unavailable in Makoko. Moreover, waste from the reverse osmosis could add to the already polluted water on which Makoko is located.

2.5.4 Solar stills

This is an arrangement for collecting clean water from unclean one via the process of distillation driven by the sun (Sathyamurthy et al., 2015). As the sun heats the unclean water, it evaporates and leaves other impurities behind; the vapor is condensed and distilled water is collected. In the work of Gupta et al. (2016), 2.9 – 3.5 liters of water was collected from solar stills within duration of 9 hours. Meanwhile, a higher yield of 12.48 liters per square meter per day was obtained from a hybrid solar still designed by Omaha (Nayi and Modi, 2018; Yadav and Sudhakar, 2015). According to Liu et al. (2017), the relatively lost cost of solar still makes it a feasible and environmentally friendly option for locations facing water challenges especially in the developing world; this was supported by Gupta et al. (2016). In contrast, Sathyamuthy et al. (2017) argued that the yield of water from solar stills makes it unsuitable in situations whereby large amount of water is required. For instance, where the per capita water requirement is about 50 liters per day, the water volume produced by solar still can hardly suffice for an individual. This translates to it being appropriate only as a backup to a main water supply or in circumstances where the volume of water required is just an amount to ensure survival for a given period, for instance, in military bases or stranded water crafts. As such, in locations like Makoko solar still can only cater for a small portion of the water needs and may not be adequate as the main means to meet the community needs for water.

2.6 Dehumidification: application and contemporary technology

Dehumidification is the process of making less humid by removal of water molecules (Sahlot and Riffat, 2016); it involves the removal of water vapour or moisture from air. Dehumidification can be naturally driven by wind movement or by the reduction of temperature. Artificially, this is achieved by the use of wind blowing or cooling devices like fans and air conditioners (Chen-kang and Yu-Wei, 2015). While the air from which moisture is removed remains physically same, the moisture extracted becomes liquid and is gotten rid of via provided channels. Devices that are specifically designed for reducing air humidity are referred to as dehumidifiers (Oueslati and Megriche, 2017). In practical terms, a dehumidifier abstracts water from air through the process of vapour condensation or absorption by desiccants. Therefore, dehumidification takes place when air is cooled and the water vapour in it precipitates out or when desiccants draw out moisture from the air (Shourideh et al., 2018). In the case of condensation, the process makes use of refrigerant driven by the compressor unit working alongside an evaporator and condenser unit; the set-up cools the air, enables the moisture to precipitate, and thus dehumidifies the air (Seenivasan et al., 2015). Water resulting from the dehumidification collects in a designated storage or is simply allowed to drain away as it is generated; this is dissimilar to when desiccant is used. The desiccant based dehumidifier uses a special humidity-absorbing material referred to as a desiccant, which is exposed to the air to be dehumidified (Su et al., 2018). The moisture-saturated desiccant is then renewed or recharged (via heating or other means) to get rid of the water in readiness for further operation (Wu et al., 2018). Dehumidifiers operating based on absorption are particularly appropriate for operations at low temperatures and high humidity and are usually deployed in different industrial sectors as low humidity levels of the order 35% can be achieved (Sahlot and Riffat, 2016). Although, most cooling condensation dehumidifiers operate almost like the air-conditioner, a key difference lies in the fate of the heat taken away from the air to drive the process of condensation. In the air conditioner, the heat is released to the outside; this is not the case in a dehumidifier where the heat is retained in the room where the dehumidifier is located (Seenivasan et al., 2015). For operational efficiency as a dehumidifier, an air conditioner unit needs to be adapted to drain out all condensed water in form of liquid. However, it must be noted that this does not place the air-conditioner at par with a single-purpose device specifically designed for optimum dehumidification (Oueslati and Megriche, 2017). Furthermore, thermostats fitted to air conditioners regulate temperature as opposed to humidistat which detects humidity and regulates dehumidifiers (Wu et al., 2018). Generally, dehumidifiers are used for comfort, health reasons or to get rid of bad smell in air via the reduction of atmospheric humidity level (Su et al., 2018). As the primary aim of using dehumidifiers is to reduce humidity, the water abstracted is usually discarded. However, the dire need for water has translated to considerations of making use of the by-product itself, and has even driven the quest for optimizing the dehumidification process for water production. This forms the basis of atmospheric water generators in use today.

2.6.1 Atmospheric Water Generators (AWG)

Atmospheric Water Generator abstracts water from surrounding moist air (Srivastava and Yadav, 2018). Often, it functions by condensing the moisture in the air via cooling below the dew point or use of desiccants. AWGs are optimised to produce water and also render it potable at the same time (Liu et al., 2017). They are invaluable in circumstances where clean drinking water is unavailable or hard to come by. As considerable amount of energy is required to support some aspect of atmospheric water generation, the process incurs some costs (Tripathi et al., 2016). Although, some AWG methods do not require any active modification of temperature or energy input, they tend to produce water at a lower rate (Khalil et al., 2016). Exemplary of these are prehistoric procedures of harvesting atmospheric moisture using surfaces on which dew and fog condense and are channelled for communal use. However, more effective AWG technologies, which yield more quantity of water at a lower energy cost, have been developed by researchers (Srivastava and Yadav, 2018). Many AWGs function in like manner to a dehumidifier in that a cooled element over which air is passed brings about water condensation (Liu et al., 2017). The cooling capacity of the device, volume of air passing over the element, humidity and ambient temperature all determine the rate at which water is produced (Shourideh et al., 2018). The air’s capacity to hold in water vapour is reduced by reduction in temperature of the air, hence the water vapour tends to condense as temperature falls (Liu et al., 2017); this is the principle on which most widely used AWG technology are based. Alternatively, via hygroscopic means water can be drawn from atmospheric air using desiccants in conjunction with pressure condensation (Sahlot and Riffat, 2016). The common principles are discussed subsequently.

2.6.1.1 Cooling condensation

In AWGs that operate based on cooling condensation, the refrigerant is circulated through a condenser and an evaporator, which reduces the temperature of the air around it (Shourideh et al., 2018). This reduces the air temperature to its dew point thereby leading to condensation. The extracted water is then passed into a storage unit fitted with filtration and purification system to ensure purity and lower bacteria risk owing to collection from ambient air (Su et al., 2017). This is similar to the operation of dehumidifier type air conditioners in which air-cooling and condensation bring about wastewater as a by-product; however, the wastewater from the air conditioner is not purified. As relative humidity and ambient temperature rise, AWGs become more effective. Research shows that AWGs do not work efficiently when relative humidity falls lower than 30% or at temperatures below 65oF (Liu et al., 2017). In addition, the capacity of the unit, local temperature, and humidity conditions as well as the energy cost to drive the machine determines its cost-effectiveness (Su et al., 2017). Novel technologies employ semi-conductor technology in which the material maintains hotness and coolness on opposite sides (Liu et al., 2017). Here, condensation is achieved by forcing air over the cooling element in the cool side thus lowering the air temperature. The power consumption of the set-up is often low due to the semi-solid state of the semiconducting material; hence, some of the novel configurations employ solar energy as a source of power (Su et al., 2017). Furthermore, the drinking water yield can be boosted in low humidity conditions by increasing the air humidity using evaporative cooler (Gido et al., 2016). An exemplary set-up of this involves the use of brackish water to produce drinking water while not depending on the ambient air humidity. According to Su et al. (2017), model systems integrating refrigeration, adsorption, and condensation are also being developed.

2.6.1.2 Desiccation based

In desiccation-based atmospheric water generator, the desiccant absorbs the ambient humidity (Kumar, 2017). A form of water generation using desiccants involves the use of concentrated brine solution to absorb moisture from the air (Su et al., 2017). Absorption of moisture by the brine decreases its concentration; the brine is then heated to collect the water vapour for condensation, purification, and consumption. The more concentrated brine left behind is then reused again to absorb more moisture (Su et al., 2017). A form of this technology has been adapted to being more environmentally sustainable via the utilization of passive solar energy and gravity (Xiong et al., 2009). Similarly, the technology has been tailored to be portable and generator-powered in other versions (Liu et al., 2017). Up to 4,500 litres of water per day have been reported to have been produced per day in larger versions at a relative cost of 5 gallons of water being produced for every gallon of fuel. These have been reportedly used by both the US army and the navy (Innovation awards, 2007). Other non-conventional fresh water production processes include desalination and recycling of grey water (Bakopoulou et al., 2010; Yechiel and Shevah, 2015). These processes involve considerable technological infrastructure, which in turn require being driven by energy (Ghaffour et al., 2015). Initial capital outlay for technology acquisition and existing supporting energy infrastructure are both implied; these are known to be essentially lacking in the developing countries. In the more economically advanced societies, some of these processes are being harnessed already. For instance, desalination has been in use for water production in Israel for some time (Yechiel and Shevah, 2015). Moreover, available literature shows that about 19-20 kWh of energy is consumed per cubic metre of water produced via desalination (Ghaffour et al, 2015), although other authors stated lower figures. These highlight some possible concerns with respect to harnessing novel technologies for water abstraction from non-conventional sources in developing countries. Some of the drawbacks to deploying dehumidification technologies in developing countries are briefly discussed in the next section.

2.6.2 Possible barriers to water generation from dehumidification in the context of developing countries

2.6.2.1: Technology cost and maintenance

While the principle of obtaining water from the atmosphere has been around for a long time as demonstrated by the prehistoric users of fog fences, modern technology designed for the purpose are relatively new (Wahlgren, 2000). In developing countries, technologies similar to AWGs are air conditioners used in households for cooling; these have been observed to be more commonly used by the middle to upper class members of the society who desire the comfort provided by the “luxury” (Oropeza-Perez and Østergaard, 2013). Among the reasons cited for this are the initial costs of the units as well as the energy cost of powering them. As AWGs are similar to air conditioners in components and operation, it would be safe to assume that their costs and energy consumption would also be alike. Thus, it becomes logical to assume that the cost of owning and using an AWG unit will be similar and the affordability will still fall within the same class of people who could afford air conditioners (Yechiel and Shevak, 2015). The need for water is regardless of social class and the demand for water will likely be higher than that for home cooling (Wahlgren, 2000). This is especially true as water yield from AWGs is not so high that large water quantities can be generated for keep. As such, AWGs will likely be operated for longer duration than air conditioners (which are sometimes turned off when the weather is favourable); this implies higher operation cost and maintenance needs (Shourideh et al., 2018). From this discourse, it can be inferred that the lower-class members of the society will be excluded from owning such technologies. This has a direct bearing on Makoko where the residents are mostly lower working-class people and might be unwilling to part with too much to own and maintain a water generating technology.

2.6.2.2 Energy or Power

The role of energy is often reflected while analysing the resource expenses involved in the production of water (Ghaffour et al., 2015). In water production processes unrelated to dehumidification, energy is consumed in huge amount. For instance, in Scotland, 445GWh of energy is used up annually for water production (treatment, distribution and discharge) (Scottish water, 2018) while about 10,000GWh is annually utilized in China for urban water delivery (Smith and Liu, 2017); the United States water utilities consume about 56,600GWh annually (Copeland and Carter, 2017). For AWGs, quoted energy consumption range from 0.21kWh to 0.35kWh per litre of water produced (Suryaningsih and Nurhilal, 2016). While the figures quoted for AWGs might not be too high, the condition of inadequate energy in developing countries might imply otherwise. This inadequacy translates to irregular power supply and thus utilization of energy for activities considered to be of priority. Although, private supplies in form of generators are used to power many devices, their usage is limited as they are less economical compared to electrical energy supplied by the grid (Kaygusuz, 2012). An implication of this for water generating technologies is that operation will be restricted to specific intervals when electrical energy from the grid is available. This defeats the very purpose of the water generator which is reliable water supply.

2.6.2.3 Other factors – political or public will, socioeconomic forces, resistance to change.

The existence of local alternatives of water supplies means that AWGs have rivals to contend with (Daigger, 2009). If the rivals are government provided water services, then a strong case of added value must be demonstrated for a given water generation technology to be accepted for use (Daigger, 2007). However, this can hardly be the case because availability of government provided service would have excluded the need for AWG in the first instance (OECD, 2004). In a setting where public water services are absent and private services provide water, water-generating technologies will be subject to comparison with current water service. This will be in terms of the various dimensions of water service (of cost, reliability, accessibility, quality, and quantity). Given that water technology would offer added values to water service, private services would also make improvements to be better positioned in the market; this drives stiff competition which might eventually put paid to the acceptance or market success of the technology (Brown and Farrelly, 2009). As observed by Wong (2006), comprehending the current socio-institutional influences in a given society is needed to promote a novel water technology. This is especially relevant considering the role of institutional inertia in the pace of change (Vlachos and Braga, 2001). In line with this, familiarity with current services could drive resistance to change that might in turn mean a reluctance to even try out a water technology which they may have to start to learn afresh. Here, optimization and continuous demonstration hold the key to ensure survival of the technology in the water market. On the other hand, installation of water generation could highlight the inefficiency of a governing authority in providing needed amenities (Koehler, 2018). This is especially relevant where the government is not a party to the provision of the water generating technology. Consequently, the installation might be faced with various barriers including planning restrictions or complete bans (Carlitz, 2017); extensive advocacy and lobbying are often used to secure approval in such situations. Drawing from the above discussion, operation cost (in terms of energy) as well as availability of power represents a bigger aspect of the challenges. As a possible way to tackle the aforementioned problems, the deployment of renewable energy source to power the water generators offers a possible solution. This is particularly relevant in locations where relevance renewable resources are in abundance. Exemplary of this is the use of solar energy to power AWG technology in the humid tropical region where humidity and temperature are both high.

2.7 Renewable energy: relevance in water generation

Renewable energy is energy obtained from sources that are refilled by nature based on geological timescale (Sørensen, 2017). Exemplary of such energy sources are wind, sunlight, tide, geothermal and waves (Ellabban et al., 2014). These sources are not limited to specific areas; rather they are available in different geographical locations. Renewables come handy in some key areas namely rural energy services, heating and electricity generation (Moriarty and Honnery, 2016). As argued by Ellabban et al. (2014), growing development and deployment of renewables have brought about economic benefits, reduction of pollution, mitigation of climate change, and energy security. In addition, notwithstanding the fact that many renewable energy projects are large scale, smaller scale models have been adapted to developing and rural locations where they have contributed to shifting the poor to new prosperity levels (Sørensen, 2017). International survey demonstrated a strong backing for renewables such as wind and solar energy (Kaya, 2006; Sahu, 2015; Sharma, 2011). This is expected to even get better as recent literature review showed that liability for penalties of greenhouse gas emission would further drive the deployment of technologies based on renewables (Panwar et al., 2011). Furthermore, global warming and climate change concerns along with soaring oil prices, and growing government support, continue to promote renewable energy obligations, marketing, and incentives (Bhattacharya et al., 2016). The international Energy Agency’s 2011 projection submitted that most of the global electricity in the next five decades might be produced from solar power generators thus cutting down greenhouse gas emissions (IEA, 2011). With respect to procuring water for domestic consumption, wind energy (which is a form of renewable) has been harnessed via wind pumps in the past and up till recent in some rural locations (Rehman and Sahnin, 2012; Ayodele et al., 2018). Similarly, renewables have been proposed as an energy source to power desalination units as a back-up energy source or in hybrid systems (Khan et al., 2018; Al-Karaghouli, and Kazmerski, 2013); for instance, the use of photovoltaic arrays in conjunction with electricity from the grid. Investigations by various authors (Aliyu et al, 2018; Abdelkareem et al., 2018: Talaat et al, 2018) have been used to demonstrate the workability of renewable powered water generating schemes. This serves to address two issues of concern that are particularly relevant in developing countries – water and energy. In the context of Makoko, the renewable energy resources present include wind, tide (due to proximity to the ocean) and sunlight. However, the technology to harness the wind and tide energy are not only too elaborate and capital intensive, the renewable resources may also not be available in adequate quantities. Since the government does not recognise the Makoko community as a planned settlement, any infrastructural investment will not be financially backed by the government authorities. In the same vein, the community is not directly located on the ocean and the impact of tide might be low; also, the presence of buildings imply that wind flow might be hindered thereby limiting the use to which the wind can be made (Manwell, McGowan and Rogers, 2010). Furthermore, the status of the settlement as an unplanned one means possible relocation; movement of elaborate wind or tidal energy infrastructures will prove serious challenges especially as the new location might not be suited for the use of the technologies due to the absence of the required resources. Meanwhile, Makoko is located in the tropical belt with abundant solar resources; even if relocation takes place, it will most likely be to another location within the same state or country. Therefore, abundant sunlight can be said to be the guaranteed resource with respect to Makoko. Owing to these, focus will be directed to solar energy in subsequent discussion on renewable energy.

2.7.1 Solar power

Solar energy originates from the sun in form of radiant heat and light (Panwar et al, 2011). Using emerging technologies based on photovoltaic, solar energy is being harnessed for heating and lighting purposes (Devabhaktuni et al, 2013). These include solar architecture, concentrator photovoltaics (CPV) and concentrated solar power (CSP). Broadly, the technologies are classified as active or passive based on how they operate with respect to absorption, transformation and distribution of solar energy. Materials used in making solar harnessing technologies have special properties that enhance absorption and collection of sunlight radiation (Dincer and Ezzat, 2018). According to Bell and Ramachers (2017), to utilize solar energy to generate electricity, the photoelectric effect is taken advantage of. Photoelectric effect is the release of electrons from a surface when impacted upon by radiation of the right wavelength (Dincer and Ezzat, 2018); thus, light energy is converted to electrical energy. This is the principle upon which the operation of a photocell that makes up photovoltaic units is based. A photocell is made up of a receptor surface, which absorbs sun’s radiation and releases electrons (which represent current flow); this forms the basis of the photovoltaic system (Bell and Ramachers, 2017). More recently, there has been a rise in concentrated solar power utilizing mirrors as well as monitoring systems to channel irradiation from a wide area to a stronger narrow beam (Panwar et al, 2011). The global longer-term benefits of cheap, renewable, and clean solar energy technologies have been stated by the International Energy Agency (IEA) (2011) with increase in energy security through dependence on local resources. The Agency projected that a larger proportion of global electricity will be generated by solar technologies in the nearest future (IEA, 2011). Although, the technology has been erroneously viewed by critics as affordable only in the rich advanced nations, it is actually an affordable and appropriate alternative for developing countries where electricity generation and transmission pose serious challenges (Copeland and Carter, 2017). For instance, a new market has been created for solar power in poor regions around the globe where the access to grid electricity is lacking; the people spend even more to get light than those in affluent regions owing their use of fuel-powered lanterns which are energy inefficient (ibid). In many developing nations, renewable energy projects have contributed to lowering the poverty level by generating cheap energy for lighting, heating, and businesses (Apergis and Payne, 2010). Emergent configuration of solar energy system includes floating solar arrays, which have been said to have considerable benefits compared to land-based units (Sahu et al, 2016; Cazzaniga et al., 2018). The water cools the panels and do not constitute aesthetic nuisance as they are often invisible to the public. Practical applications of the floating solar array have outputs ranging from 200kW in Berkshire in the U.K to 13.4MW in Japan (Sahu et al, 2013). Although some drawbacks in the use of floating solar array have been pointed out by some authors (Ferrer-Gisbert et al, 2013), it offers a possible solution especially where spaces to place solar panels are lacking.

2.7.2 Attitudes, Beliefs, and Opinions of Technology in Local Communities

The attitudes, belief, and opinions of people particularly living in local communities has an impact on how any new idea, concept or technology is adopted. Though this is not always so evident at first glance, it is however having an unfolding manifestation in different stages of the idea, concept, or technology lifecycle. It can manifest itself either at the initiation stages; define stages, execution stages or operation and maintenance stages of the said idea, concept, or technology. Depending on where the importance of the larger collective stakeholders is held, the opinions of the majority of the community are often swayed towards that direction. It was found that social demographic characteristics such as age and education does not often sway public options as much as the collective priorities of the collective population (Heck, N et.al, 2018). Gurau and Dana (2018) suggests a network of environmentally-drive community-based entrepreneurship which maps a link between the natural environment, entrepreneurship, and local community in a sense of commonly shared values and goals will better lead to a collective initiative, and understanding of the hidden mechanism and actions within that community in order to better understand the role of collective community in protecting and manging the natural environment, In local communities in developing regions, the water technology often has many challenges, which emerge at different stages of its lifecycle, also different communities respond differently to the same technology. Often times the challenges are not necessarily technical based challenges as they may occur at any stage of the lifecycle during use. These challenges can often times be better understood through attitudes, beliefs and opinions of the community towards that technology. Johnson et al. (2006) argued that in order to better understand these challenges facing local community-based water technology, a feasibility project which assesses and analyses certain variables such as economic, demographic, environmental, political and domestic markets should be investigated and to approach this market as a corporate responsibility and social investing in short term.

2.8 Slum and access to water

A slum is an informal settlement of people characterised by “lacking durable housing or easy to safe water” (Taubenböck and Kraff, 2014), deprived of descent living standards (dilapidated housing), lacking basic services (healthcare, water, sanitation, and security), public space, and infrastructure (roads, electricity, water delivery system, sewage, and communication systems) (Marx et al., 2013; Arimah, and Branch, 2011; Nuissl, and Heinrichs, 2013). UN-Habitat, described slums settlement as composition of households characterised by the following:

Insufficient living space (no more than three people can share same room)

Durable housing that can withstand natural and climatic conditions and disasters

No easy access to safe water mostly insufficient and unreliable at astronomical price

No security tenure in the housing

No access to sanitation facilities such as toilets and sewage system, and in areas that are available, are publicly shared by reasonably large number of people

Globally, the number of people living in areas considered slums remain an approximation, Mahabir et al. (2016) estimated to be 1billion, however, majority of slum dwellers are found in developing nations (Kibera in Nairobi, Kenya; Khayelitsha in Cape Town, South Africa; Dharavi in Mumbai, India; Orangi Town in Karachi, Pakistan). Current studies on slums synthesises the slum situation into three constructs: physical characteristics, socio-economic and policy issues, and modelling of slums. Emergence and growth of slums has been attributed to rapid rate of urbanization resulting in people settling around urban centres and governments unable to provide social and economic supportive structures to accommodate the growing population. According to Mahabir et al. (2016), the rate of urbanization in less developed nations, measured by income and economic status, has been considerably high (2% per year) compared to in developed nations (0.5%/year). Beall et al. (2010) indicated that in addition to rapid pace of urbanization (migration and high birth rate), prevalence of slums in developing nation is linked to high debt burden, urban growth inequality in income, and poor governance and policy setting. The ‘modernization’ theory, suggested by Glaeser (2011), Turner (1969), Fox (2014), and Frankenhoff (1967), holds that slums are a ‘transitory phenomenon’ in a fast growing economy where the dwellers eventually move out to permanent and formal settlement. However, due unemployment and high poverty levels in developing nations, slums do not seem to be a temporary phenomenon of migration to cities but rather many including their generations end up trapped in slums. As pointed out by Marx et al (2013), slums are not a new phenomenon but can be traced back to industrial revolution and urbanization. In New York City, the Hell’s Kitchen attracted a huge number of immigrants due to proximity to the growing Manhattan city and booming employment opportunities in the docks and railroads. In 18th and 19th Century, the Whitechapel area in East London, the UK, attracted huge migrants from poor rural areas (Marx et al., 2013, McIlhiney, 1988; Marriott, 2011). Today, slum settlement have disappeared in developed countries (the US and the UK) but exist in countries experiencing rapid or stagnant economies because mismatch of urban and rural productivity. Although, arguably, rising slums means living conditions in slums is preferable to those in rural areas (Glaeser, E., 2011; Marx et al., 2013). According to UN-Habitat, the slum dwellers will rise to approximately 2billion by 2030 and be 3billion by 2050 globally if the current trends are not mitigate. In Ghana, according to United Nations Statistics, 37.9% of the total urban population live in slums whereas in Nairobi, Kenya, approximately 2.5 million people, a representation of 56% of Nairobi population, are slum dwellers (World Bank, 2015). Statistics show 50% of urban population in Nigeria live in slums. According to World Migration report by International Organizations for Migration (IOM), Sub-Sahara Africa has the highest slum dwellers globally (61.7% of urban population living in slums; South Asia (35%); East Asia (29%), West Asia (25%); and Latin America (24%). Studies have linked several factors to emergence and growth of slums that include rural-urban migration, government poorly designed policies, and poor urban governance such outdated urban planning. In many of the less developed nations, lack of resources and soring levels poverty hinder formulation and implementation of proper planning regulations, slow development pace, uninvolving slums dwellers, and high cost of affordable housing (World Bank, 2005; Mahabir et al., 2016; Minnery et al., 2013; Friesen et al., 2018). A study into socio-economic dynamics in slums taking a case study of slums in Kisumu, Kenya, Simuyu (2014) mapped out a mixture of social, economic, tenancy, and cultural as factors influencing the sanitation problem. Simiyu et al. (2017) estimated the cost of sanitation to constitute approximately 54% of the rent payment and largely influenced by tenants’ preference, property owners, and facility sharing. Slum dwellers do not enjoy the contemporary ‘urban’ life of better living standards, access to basic amenities and services such as water and sanitation but rather queue, buy from local venders, fetch from nearby streams and wells, or lacking continuous access (Crow, and Odaba, 2010; Dagdeviren, and Robertson, 2009; Kimani-Murage, and Ngindu, 2007). Overcrowding, informal settlement, security of tenure, and unestablished property rights makes mapping out payment system for the services make almost impossible even in areas where such policies are in place (Werlin, 1999). However, some scholars argue that slum dwellers are willing to improve their living conditions but lack support and conviction from the governments lack (Mahabir et al., 2016; Kimani-Murage, and Ngindu, 2007).

2.9: Water –Energy nexus

The interdependence of water and energy, the two most critical resources globally, commands greater attention today more than before because sustainable management of both resources requires detailed understanding of the link (Copeland and Carter, 2017). Although, a formal definition of the concept does not exist, it refers to the broad link between water consumption and production, and energy consumption and generation (Hamiche et al., 2016). The need for joint study of water and energy was highlighted by the Gleick (1994) in his life cycle analysis; the work was among the earliest to evaluate water-energy relationship. Similarly, the need for joint policies on water-energy and better comprehension of the nexus as well as its vulnerability to change was underscored in the 2014 report of the US department of Energy (DoE, 2014). The connection between energy and water covers various functions in the relevant industries; this range from consumption functions to production and transportation and encompass the flow of resources from the environment to the final consumers (Spang et al., 2014). For instance, retail electricity and water supply and other functions bordering on final consumers can be viewed as consumption, while wholesale water supply, large-scale treatment, and electricity generation can be classified as production (Hamiche et al., 2016). Transportation includes pumping, distribution, transfer, collection and transmission of water and energy (ibid). Pumping of water has been estimated to consume up to three quarters of global energy production, this is opposed to transportation in some aspects of energy industry (e.g. electricity) where negligible amount of water is used up during transmission (Copeland and Carter, 2017). The inextricable link between water and energy manifests globally and is further accentuated by the impact of climate change, increasing resource demand and drought. According to Hamiche et al, 2016, the water-energy nexus is multidimensional as it includes social, economic, environmental, technological, and political concerns, which are also interlinked; these are discussed briefly subsequently.

2.9.1: Social

Fundamental to the proper functioning of a society is the availability of water and energy (Hamiche et al, 2016). In particular, aspects of a society’s functioning, the social dimension of water-energy nexus is more pronounced (Malik, 2002). For instance, users of water for irrigation of farm lands consuming out of the water being used for hydro electricity generation translates to threat of water inadequacy for hydropower station (Spang et al, 2014). This is especially relevant during periods of drought and results to trade-offs which are influenced by public perceptions of the value of water and electricity (Hamiche et al, 2016). In the same vein, the social perception of the values of energy and water affects the inclination to conserve and or pay for these resources. Recently, the water recycling scheme in which treated effluent water is proposed for drinking in Queensland triggered opposition from end users (Li et al, 2017). Similarly, acceptance of technologies in both water and energy industries has a social dimension; for instance, environmental campaign groups protesting the decision to install a desalination facility based on the energy implication of the facility (Yechiel and Shevah, 2012).

2.9.2: Economic

From an economic point of view, the bothering aspects of the water-energy nexus include market, subsidies, tariffs, and the associated consumption profile (Malik, 2002). Various reforms in both industries modified the regulatory framework as well as the operational structures; these translated to the removal of monopolies and a shift from subsidies to full cost recovery among others (Abubakar, 2016). As a result, access was granted to many third-party service providers. This occasioned the proliferation of competition, improvement in energy generation process and considerable reduction in price (as a market strategy to outdo others). A direct consequence of this is an increase in available energy as well as the affordability to exploit water resources at a higher rate (Spang et al., 2014). In many developing countries, subsidies on energy continue to drive overexploitation and wastage of water resources (Hamiche et al., 2016). For instance, in India, huge subsidies on electricity price have been shown to promote uncontrolled exploration of groundwater resources. Thus, it can be assumed that an increase in energy price would mean a reduction in the rate of consumption and exploitation of water resources. The foregoing underscores the role of economic factors on the water-energy nexus; a change in any economic aspect of any of the two resources affects the other.

2.9.3: Environmental

All water and energy resources are obtained from the environment (Schwartz et al, 2018). As such, it forms an important background against which the broad water-energy nexus can be studied (Copeland and Carter, 2017). Foremost among the environmentally relevant concerns on the nexus is climate changes which is driven by various processes (Albrecht et al., 2018). Key among these processes is the burning of fossil fuel for the production of energy. Climate change also brought about concerns on future water and energy sufficiency as resources are expected to dwindle as the impact of climate change becomes more severe (Hamiche et al., 2016). This is even more disturbing considering the impacts of drought and the growing demand for water and energy, with which carbon emission comes (Bekchanov and Lamers, 2016). Meanwhile, policies like afforestation practices formulated to mitigate climate change might increase the water impacts on the energy industry. Although, both (water and energy) industries address the concerns in different ways including sourcing water from unconventional supplies, desalination and investments in water conservation technologies among others, the measures inevitably upturn energy consumption, carbon emission and add to the impacts of climate change (Hamiche et al., 2016). As water supplies dwindle, trade-offs and conflicts among users will continue to grow (Schwartz et al., 2018). Considering that all claims to water resource by the respective sectors (energy, agriculture, water) are genuine, the question of priority becomes the new concern. Exemplifying this is the Californian energy crisis of 2001 when trade-offs had to be made between environmental, water and electricity concerns (Copeland and Carter, 2017).

2.9.4: Technological

This aspect borders on the hardware deployed and their impact on the water-energy link. Some of the recent technological alternatives in the water industry meant higher energy use; for instance, desalination, rainwater storage, and water recycling are more energy intensive than the traditional water sourcing methods (Spang et al., 2014). While these reduce reliance on mains water supply, they affect greatly on energy consumption (Hamiche et al., 2016). In the energy-generating sector, the technologies deployed use up different quantity of water, be it for cooling or other needs (Copeland and Carter, 2017). However, recent development in renewable energy generation might result to new implications in energy generation especially as environmental concerns continue to grow (Hamiche et al., 2016). Although, mitigating environmental concerns linked with technology use might translate to unveiling newer concerns, technology remains crucial for the contemporary society and thus the challenges it brings will have to continuously be tackled as they emerge (Hamiche et al., 2016). Hence, the decision on what technology to utilize becomes more crucial in a bid to keep up with demand, and this prompts enquiries regarding the technology mix in both sectors.

2.9.5: Political

Politics exerts direct impact on the water-energy nexus by influencing the other relevant aspects discussed previously (Koehler, 2018). For instance, industrial reform policies with strong economic emphasis influence the water-energy link via the impact on markets as discussed earlier under economic factors. Meanwhile, tougher environmental regulations over quality of discharges contravene emission reduction targets as more energy is consumed in treatment processes to comply with the regulations (Albrecht et al., 2018). Similarly, inadequate enforcement or absence of appropriate energy and water policies may bring about resources overexploitation, more energy consumption, and poor-quality effluent discharge (Hamiche et al., 2016). These suggest that creation and application of the policies and regulations are carried out in isolation of each other and demonstrate that even though based on reasonable evidence, policies could be short-sighted thereby producing undesirable results (Copeland and Carter, 2017). As such, policy integration coupled with flexibility in water and energy sector could address the difficulties brought about by the link between the two resources.

2.10 Chapter summary

A quick revision of the Alternative sources for water supply in Chapter 2 highlights the types of sources for water supply available to local communities and socio-economic and political factors attached to them, however; the application of these sources within the Makoko context is met with barriers for unique reasons, particular to the Makoko location. There are highlighted below:

2.10.1 Boreholes: a significant depth is dug to access the water aquifers beneath the earth and this is inaccessible to the Makoko community as it is situated on the Lagos Lagoon. The unauthorised digging of boreholes in and around Lagos is suggested to have led to the cracking of walls and collapse of building structures, as this is linked to the shifting of the earth’s water tables from over use and poorly designed structures. Furthermore, the dredging of the water bodies in Lagos state has been prohibited in certain locations and is only allowed subject to government regulation and approval.

2.10.2 Desalination: Though this is, one of the most ideal solutions for contaminated and polluted water bodies, the costs associated with its investment is financially tedious and often requires a conglomerate of stakeholders and high-end investors, or the large government bodies to invest. It is also a high-energy consuming technology and requires substantial energy resources and access. These are already major challenges within the Makoko Community.

2.10.3 Reverse Osmosis: This is also a plausible solution to the Makoko Community, however due to the nature of contaminate in the water bodies it is predicted that more than one treatment technique will be further required to ascertain the quality of water for drinking. The source of water that will feed into this technology will invariably come from the Lagos Lagoon and, as mentioned before, it is highly contaminated. Asides from this, there will also be a requirement to create awareness and training for the use and maintenance of the technology.

2.10.4 Solar Stills: This is a plausible solution for use in the Makoko Community and can be harvested when required. The water yield and duration for extraction may be very limited to geographical location. The solar still has a passive method of operation and as yet, no verifiable evidence to state that it can purify polluted water. The main setback to its application is essentially the introduction, awareness creation, and training of Makoko Community residents on its use and application.

2.10.5: Rainwater Harvesting: This is a plausible solution as a cheap and reliable source, it is characterised by the availability of rainfall. In Makoko community, the availability of rainfall is heavy during periods known as rainy season and lasts approximately 4 months in a year, with an average annual rainfall of 1693mm. This method is also already in practice by some residents in Makoko, due only for communal water collection and not for drinking. The rainwater harvesting is also feasible in periods of low rainfall, though a setback for the Makoko community is the air quality which available literature states as very poor (See chapter) the air quality determines the acidity level of the rainfall and this can be detrimental to health if ingested.

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