Household Choice of Water Supply and Sanitation Systems: Contemporary Ghanaian Analysis

Abstract

One of the most important preconditions for sustainable development is access to clean drinking water. In addition, sanitation has been the cause of many other development challenges as poor sanitation impacts public health, education and the environment. In consequence, there have been numerous interventions and efforts by various governments over years to improve water supply sources and sanitation facilities in Ghana. Nevertheless, there is more to learn regarding the determinants of the choice of water supply and sanitation facilities in Ghana. Using a logistic regression model with the help of data from the 2008 Ghana Demographic Health Survey, this study aimed at ascertaining the determinants of the choice of water supply sources and sanitation facilities on the demand side. The results from the regression established that household size, time to get to sanitation facility, sex, age, type of person, income, and type of residence were significant variables that determined the choice of household source of water supply. In the case of the determinants of sanitation choice, educational level of household head, household size, and time to get to facility, type of person using facility, number of households sharing the facility, income, and the type of residence were the significant variables. The results have confirmed particularly that time to get to water supply source and sanitation facility significantly reduces the probability of choosing such facilities. Small household sizes (at most 3) will also significantly choose both improved source of water supply and improved sanitation facility. Various policy implications of the findings have been given accordingly, some of which are; designing and implementing a wide network University of Ghana http://ugspace.ug.edu.gh iii of improved water supply systems to achieve an appreciable level of safe water for use by households, targeting environmental policy first of all at the provision of improved water sources in the rural areas and in addition government should give much attention to providing improved sanitation in the entire country at large. Furthermore, financial institutions that give out credit should be encouraged to target poor households and make credit available and accessible to enable such households source them to run and sustain their own businesses.