Biting the bullet: the case of households’ resilience to water supply and sanitation deficit in Nigeria

Abstract

This study conceptually assesssed household resilience to water supply and sanitation deficit in Nigeria. It expressed water supply and sanitation situation in Nigeria in terms of historical background and organisation structure of water supply and sanitation and highlighted cases of water supply and sanitation across states and geopolitical zones to reflect the precarious water supply and sanitation condition in Nigeria. Coping strategies that households have adopted in addressing water supply and sanitation deficit were categorised into four: enhancing or supplementing available quantity of water and quality of sanitation facilities; accommodating unreliable water supply supplies and lack of sanitation facilities; improving water and sanitation quality; and collective action and voice. These coping strategies are determined by household socioeconomic status and location (urban or rural) and the extent of unreliability of supply service and their adoption places serious health, financial and social implications on the households. The study concluded that inadequate water supply and sanitation impose significant coping burdens on households, making the household resilience a case of biting the bullet and proffered recommendations that aimed at mitigating water supply and sanitation deficit in Nigeria and other countries with similar background.