Water Scarcity

Water scarcity simply mean a water we need to drink, grow, or cook food, to take care of our daily life is not enough or even not available.

Human activities, which result in overexploitation and global warming, are the main culprit for the water scarcity in Africa. 

Overexploitation is the main contributor to physical water scarcity. A 2018 report published by the Institute for Security Studies stated that more than 60% of South Africa’s rivers are being overexploited and only one-third of the country’s main rivers are in good condition. Lake Chad – once deemed Africa’s largest freshwater body and important freshwater reservoir – is shrinking because of overexploitation of its water. 

According to a 2019 report, for this reason alone, the water body of the lake has diminished by 90% since the 1960s, with the surface area of the lake decreasing from 26,000 square kilometres in 1963 to less than 1,500 square kilometres in 2018.