Water Scarcity in Africa

“In Africa, 40% of the population lacks access to clean drinking water,” laments the Senegalese president. At the beginning of 2026, drinking water supply in Africa presents a prime example of stark contrasts. While infrastructure is expanding at a rate not seen in decades, climate-related water scarcity and rapid urbanization are creating new, urgent supply gaps. Estimates for 2026 indicate that approximately 411 million Africans still lack access to clean drinking water. Over 80% of people without basic water access live in just eight countries: the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Madagascar, Angola, and Mozambique. Although water supply is statistically higher in cities (around 80%), quality and consistency are often inadequate. In rural areas, access to clean drinking water is around 53%. North Africa is experiencing severe water scarcity. Countries like Morocco and Egypt are increasingly relying on desalination and wastewater recycling, as their natural water resources have declined by 30% since the 1980s. In East Africa, a severe water shortage is looming in early 2026 due to a lack of rainfall at the end of 2025. In Kenya alone, over 2 million people are suffering from water scarcity. Southern Africa presents a double-edged sword. While some areas are suffering from drought, others (Mozambique, Malawi) are recovering from the floods at the beginning of 2026 that contaminated the drinking water sources for 1.3 million people. And in Central and West Africa, there is high physical water availability, but acute economic water scarcity. The water is present in the ground, but the infrastructure for supplying households with water is lacking. More than 70% of Africans have little or no access to basic sanitation, Bassirou Diomaye Faye denounced at the opening of the high-level preparatory meeting for the UN Water Conference. "This situation is morally unacceptable. As long as it persists, our collective responsibility remains unwavering," he declared. According to Faye, water crises exacerbate "food crises, weaken economies, displace people, and increase tensions." According to the UN, 2.2 billion people worldwide lack access to safe drinking water. And nearly 3.5 billion people lack adequate sanitation. Africa is particularly affected by this crisis, the Senegalese president emphasized. Consequently, "the cost of inaction is constantly rising." https://africanrelief.org/solutions-to-water-scarcity-in-africa/?hl=en-US#:~:text=The%20scale%20of%20the%20water,communities%20facing%20even%20greater%20challenges https://www.worldbank.org/en/region/afr/brief/afe-water?hl=en-US#:~:text=For%20drinking%20water%2C%2082%25%20of,lives%2C%20and%20reap%20economic%20rewards https://www.worldbank.org/en/region/afr/brief/afe-water?hl=en-US#:~:text=But%20the%20number%20of%20people,Supply%2C%20Sanitation%20and%20Hygiene%20data