Africa tackles water crisis

Africa needs proper water management to escape poverty

By the BBC's Rachel Harvey

An African regional conference on water is due to begin in the Ghanaian capital Accra.

More than one billion people in the world do not have access to safe drinking water

Sponsored by the African Development Bank, the conference aims to come up with a vision of how to address the problem of providing clean water to all people across the continent at an affordable price.

Two million people, mostly in Africa, die needlessly each year, because water supplies are not being properly managed.

This is the stark message from a United Nations report which will be presented to the conference.

Sustainability

The report says that more than one billion people in the world do not have access to safe drinking water, and also says that half of the global population lacks adequate sanitation.

In Africa the problem is stifling development, and the challenge for the conference is to come up with ideas which involve all sectors of society - government, private companies and water management experts - but which do not cost a lot of money.

The emphasis is on sustainability rather than short-term fixes, and on co-operation rather than competition for scarce supplies.

And the stakes are high.

The UN has warned that unless Africa confronts the problem of proper water management, it will never escape the poverty trap.