ASSESSMENT OF PIPE-BORNE WATER SUPPLY IN MALUMFASHI TOWN, KATSINA STATE AS A CHALLENGE TO RESEARCH AND INNOVATION FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN GLOBALIZING AFRICA
Haruna Saleh1 and Abdulmalik M. Sada2
1&2Department of Geography
Umaru Musa Yar`Adua University Katsina, Nigeria
harunasaleh@gmail.com, maiwadaabdulmalik@yahoo.com
Abstract: An assessment of Pipe-borne Water Supply was carried out in Malumfashi Town, Katsina. Method used for investigations includes population data of the town, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ward division criteria and 653 structured questionnaires survey distributed to the households among the four (4) sampling areas. Descriptive statistics and chi-square test at 0.001 significant levels were used to analyze the data. Results obtained indicate the sources of pipe-borne water supply to the study area came from Malumfashi Water Board and the supply was generally inadequate to meet the demand. Testing the relation of flow duration of tap-water at 0.001 significant levels with less and greater than 3 hours per day indicates significant spatial variations of pipe-borne water supply among the four sampling areas. Generally southern part (Ward A) receives more supply than the Northern part (Ward B). As a consequence of this you could see people of the urban area now resort to alternative sources of water supply such as hand-dug wells, water vendors among others. These predominantly unwholesome sources are variable sources of water borne-diseases. The study thus, recommends that Water Board should ensure pipe-borne water supply meets the demand and encourages private sector participation in water supply system. This would no doubt be a challenge to research and innovation for economic development in globalizing Africa.