Two Women: One City

To illustrate the difference that access to fresh water can make in a family’s life, we’ve talked with two women who both live in the peri-urban community of Mutendere, Zambia. 

Charity Zyambo lives in an area that’s serviced by the utility company Lusaka Water Supply and Sanitation (LWSC). Esther Mwanza, on the other hand, relies on a distant source for all of her family’s water needs. The difference between Charity’s words and those of Esther, who lacks access to water supply and sanitation, demonstrates the stark differences in their day-to-day lives.

^{Esther’s Story}

Esther Mwanza is a 31-year-old, married woman from Mtendere in Lusaka, Zambia. She earns a living by selling small quantities of foodstuffs such as fresh vegetables and mealie meals at minimal prices outside her house.

Esther’s major challenge is the lack of water. Like her neighbors, Esther has to fetch water from a distant tap at which they are paying ZMW1 ($0.035) for every 20-liter container of water. She then must carry the container on her head all the way home, crossing busy roads that are often blocked with traffic. 

For her household, which has seven permanent residents, Esther and her husband can only afford to spend ZMW10 ($0.35) on water per day.

The 200 liters of water do not meet all the needs of the family. For example, despite having a flushable toilet, Esther’s family resorts to using a pit latrine, which does not require running water. Even though Esther is well aware of the dangers of using a pit latrine, the family cannot afford to pay for sufficient water to pour into a flushable toilet. The lack of water negatively affects the sanitation of the household and increases health risks that arise due to poor sanitation and hygiene practices.

When she cannot walk the long distance to her tap, Esther resorts to a different source of water for washing and cleaning, an old borehole where the cost is the same as her local tap. This water, however, is of poor quality. According to Esther, the water from the old borehole stains clothes when it is used for washing, and it changes colour when it is boiled.

Not only does untreated water from unsafe sources pose health risks, it increases the vulnerability of people to waterborne diseases. As she is busy with numerous tasks that keep her family going, Esther cannot constantly keep her eyes on her two children, who sometimes fetch water from the wrong container that contains water for washing or cleaning. As a result, incidents have occurred when the children have succumbed to waterborne diseases such as diarrhea because they drank water from an unsafe source. Another waterborne disease that hit Lusaka badly in the recent past is cholera. Diseases such as these are life-threatening, and they increase the financial burden on Esther and her husband. 
Esther does not intend to relocate from the area she lives in because she has considered it her home since birth. She still looks forward to a better life one day when her family and neighbours can access better water services.

^{‘“I am very happy with the services of Lusaka Water and Sanitation Company (LWSC)’’ – Charity Zyambo} 

^{Charity’s Story}

In order to earn a living, Charity engages in business, selling commodities that she can manage to resell. Additionally, she is a hairdresser and a masseuse who is married with one child. She lives in a rented house with her family, where they are paying a fixed charge of ZMW 100 ($3.70) per month for water. The owner of the house collects this amount from his three tenants to settle the LWSC bill for the metered water connection. Charity considers this to be a fair arrangement, especially since she and her neighbors never face interruptions in their water supply, even at a time when Zambia is faced with daily electric power cuts, which affect pumping stations.

Charity considers herself privileged to have a good and reliable water supply. According to her, life is made easy when a person can confidently turn on a tap or flush a toilet at any time and see water gushing out.

‘’I can’t complain about water,’’ says Charity, noting that the water makes her and her family members clean. They are able to take a bath at any time they wish, perform household chores, wash their clothes, and keep their house and surroundings clean. This enhances the good health of Charity’s family. 

Charity says she has no worries about caring for her unborn baby or washing clothes once the baby is born because she has readily available running water. She is grateful that the availability of water prevents her family from waterborne and water-related diseases.

Access to safe water enhances Charity’s sanitation and environment. Her message to LWSC is that they should keep up the good work they are doing and extend it to others who do not yet have access to water and sanitation.

^{Future Plans for Mutendere}

Lusaka Water and Sanitation Company (LWSC) has a mandate to provide water services in Mutendere. The utility is already in the process of improving water services in areas such as the one in which Esther resides. One of the projects the utility has embarked on is the drilling of boreholes to increase resilience, i.e., increase the water supply. The utility has simultaneously embarked on the installation of alternative sources of energy, necessitated by long-standing power cuts. The utility is now installing a hybrid power supply at pumping stations with both solar and electricity.

LWSC is one of the eight utilities across Africa that are in partnership with ROCKBlue. To support its partners in achieving their strategic goals, ROCKBlue supports each one by selecting annual objectives that they can jointly achieve. The objectives are outlined in a Performance Tracking Form (PTF), which assists the partner in tracking its monthly performance towards achieving its goals.

To support utilities such as LWSC in improving the lives and health of people like Esther Mwanza, ROCKBlue depends on the support it gets from its donors, who give generously of their time, expertise, and resources.

To make a difference in the lives of Esther and many other young women throughout the world, we encourage you to donate