page_title: Water supply and sanitation in Zambia
section_title: Access
hierarchical_section_title: Water supply and sanitation in Zambia / Access
caption_attribution_description: English: Graph showing the evolution in access to Improved Water Supply and Sanitation (WSS) in 7 Sub-Saharan African countries. Period: from 1990 until 2008. Based on data from the WHO/UNESCO Joint Monitoring Program.
context_page_description: Water supply and sanitation in Zambia is characterized by achievements and challenges. Among the achievements are the creation of regional commercial utilities for urban areas to replace fragmented service provision by local governments; the establishment of a regulatory agency that has substantially improved the availability of information on service provision in urban areas; the establishment of a devolution trust fund to focus donor support on poor peri-urban areas; and an increase in the access to water supply in rural areas.
  Among the challenges are a low rate of cost recovery despite tariff increases in urban areas; limited capacity in the sector; insufficient progress in increasing access to sanitation; a high level of non-revenue water in urban areas; a high rate of non-functioning rural water systems; and insufficient investment levels despite substantial foreign aid.
context_section_description: In 2015, 61% of the total population had access to an "at least basic water service", or 86% of the urban population and 44% of the rural population. However, around 6 million people in Zambia still lack access to "at least basic water". As for sanitation, in 2015, 31% of the total population had access to "at least basic sanitation" service. 49% of the urban population had access to basic sanitation and 19% of the rural population. There are still around 11 million people who lack access to at least basic sanitation. Moreover, in 2015, 15% of the population in Zambia, defecated in the open.
  In earlier years (2010), the figures were as follows: 61% of the population of Zambia had access to an improved source of water supply and 48% had access to adequate sanitation, according to UN data calculated on the basis of national surveys, including most recently the Demographic and Health Survey of 2007. Concerning water supply, there is a stark contrast between urban areas (87% access according to the UN, 78% access according to the regulator in 2010) and rural areas (46% access according to the UN).
  For sanitation, access rates in 2010 were only slightly higher for urban areas (57% according to national surveys, 54% according to the regulator in 2010) and rural areas (43% according to the UN). In urban areas, 41% have access to water connections in their house or yard and 49% rely on water kiosks and standpipes. The share of those with access to house connections has actually declined, while the share of those served by kiosks has increased. According to  National Water and Sanitation Council director Kelvin Chitumbo, Zambia has achieved the Millennium Development Goal for drinking water, but is off track to reach the goal for sanitation.
  Water kiosks, which were first introduced in Zambia in 2005, are operated by private individuals who have signed an agreement with water utilities and municipalities. The kiosk operators buy piped water in bulk and sell it at a slightly higher regulated price of about 1 US Cent per 20 litres to users who carry the water in jerry cans to their homes. The kiosk operators supplement their income by selling various other items of daily life. There were about 170 water kiosks in Zambia in 2008, providing water to 200,000 people. Another 100 kiosks were expected to be added in 2009.
  Concerning sanitation, 29% of the urban population are connected to sewers and 30% are served by septic tanks or improved household-level latrines. While these figures are low, they are actually higher than the average access in Sub-Saharan Africa.
  Lack of access to water and sanitation has significant negative social impacts, in particular on girls and women who are often in charge of collecting water for their villages and homes – sometimes walking extremely long distances to do so. After that girls are too tired to come back home and concentrate on education.
caption: Access to improved water supply and sanitation, in 7 Sub-Saharan countries, from 1990 until 2008.[6]
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