In recent years, Ussa has faced various challenges in water supply which has been a major concern to law makers and the government of Taraba state. This study therefore is aimed at examining the various problems and prospect of water supply in Ussa Local Government. The specific objectives were to identify the existing sources of water supply in Ussa Local Government of Taraba state, to examine the problems and prospect associated with each source in the study area, and to proffer alternative measure to appropriate quarters. Data were collected from 150 respondent of the study area. The data were analyzed using frequency tables and simple percentage statistics. The results revealed that 87.1% of the respondents agreed that there is water shortage in the area which as a result has led to increase charges by the suppliers, 51.3% said the water was good. More than 60% of the respondent claimed that the population of the study area usually consumes the water directly without any method of purification, and that the water is mostly used for domestic purposes. The study also reveals that 68.1% problem of water supply problem is seasonality and distance to source. Finally, the research shows that there are 28 boreholes existing in the study area while only 15 of the boreholes are functioning at the time when the research was conducted. The study recommends government at all levels to increase investment in providing water to the residents of the study area.
2. Challenges of Water Supply and its Effect on Economic Production: A Case Study of Ussa Local Government Area, Taraba State Nigeria
Shenpam et al. 123
STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
As essential as water is to life, it is still in inadequate supply
in Ussa Local Government Area. This inadequacy has
persisted for many years now, yet there have not been
enough researches especially on Ussa Local Government
Area to document the impact of this on the residents of the
Local Government Area.
This research is therefore aimed at examining the
challenges of inadequate water supply in Ussa Local
Government Area of Taraba state and recommend
appropriate ways of alleviating them.
STUDY AREA
Ussa is a Local Government Area in Taraba State, Nigeria.
Its headquarter is in the town of Lissam at lats 7Β°11β²00β³N
and 10Β°02β²00β³E (See figure 1) Ussa borders with the
Republic of Cameroon in the south; the Donga River forms
its northern boundary. The Local Government also borders
with Takum. It has area coverage of 1,495 kmΒ² and a
population of 92,017 at the 2006 census. (National
Population Commission, 2006). Kuteb people are the
dominant population located in USSA.
Geology of the study area
Ussa Local Government land forms like rocks, hills and
mountains give the area distinctive features. This region is
thinly populated with large vast of uncultivated land. A
marked contrast to the floodplains is the undulating
lowland of the southern plains. This is broken intermittently
by high rising hills such as the Rufu, Fikyu and Kpambo
hills which are found on sandstones. Standing above
350m contour, the hills are developed on both sedimentary
and crystalline rocks (Gimba 2011).
Usually, hills on sedimentary formations tend to have flat
tops due most probably to lateritic capping. On the other
hand, the hills which are developed on crystalline rocks
consist of dome shaped inselbergs.
Relief of the study area
The area is underlined by sedimentary and basement
complex rocks. These are very ancient rocks which
originally made up of the complete structure. The area
consists of hard igneous rock mainly basalts and gneisses
with some metamorphic rocks. The rocks have high
minerals content and it is generally form of mselbergs,
which rise at times to several hundred meters above the
ground (Danjuma, 2014).
Climate of the study area- rainfall
Like most parts of northern Nigeria, Ussa Local
government has a wet and dry climate. The wet season
lasts on the average from April to October. Mean annual
rainfall is around 1300mm. The wettest months are August
and September.
The dry season lasts from November to March. The driest
months are December and January with relative humidity
dropping to about 15 percent. Mean annual temperature
around Ussa is about 280C with maximum temperatures
varying between 300C and 39.40C. The minimum
temperatures range between 150C to 230C. (Wikipeadia,
2016)
Temperatures are low throughout the year and the rainy
season lasts from February to November with a mean
annual rainfall of over 1850mm.
Soil of the study area
The types of soil in the study area are clay, loamy and
sandy soil. These types of soil support agricultural crops,
(physical observation by the researcher). The soils
developed on the above rocks are generally deep well
drained with texture surface horizons, due to the richness
of minerals in the area.
The people of Ussa local government area are
predominantly farmers. Therefore, in the area, about 90%
of the populations are engaged in agricultural activities
with the aim of producing many varieties of crops to meet
the need of the society.
The systems of agriculture practiced in the study area are
subsistence farming crop rotation and mechanized
agriculture. Both large scale farmers and small-scale
farmers do practice the systems mentioned above though
about 85% of the farmers engage in subsistence farming
while few farmers operate on commercial ventures.
The major crops grown in the study area include rice,
maize, yam, cassava, groundnut, pepper garden eggs etc.
The rearing of livestock like goats, sheep, dogs, cattle etc.
and agricultural activities in the study area has greatly
increased over the years. (Danjuma, 2014).
Vegetation of the study area
Ussa local government consists of mixed savanna and
forest types of vegetation, which are characterized with
thick grasses and scattered tall trees. The trees are
therefore deciduous in nature because during the wet
season they produce a lot of leaves and look greenish but
during the dry season they shed their leaves and look
reddish.
3. Challenges of Water Supply and its Effect on Economic Production: A Case Study of Ussa Local Government Area, Taraba State Nigeria
Int. J. Geogr. Reg. Plan. 124
Fig. 1: Location Map of Ussa
Source: Taraba State Ministry of Land and Survey, Jalingo (2018)
METHODOLOGY
The research method that was used for this study is the
survey design. The survey design is a design in which data
collected from a large sample of the population are
representative of the entire population (Benjamin, 2015).
This design aims to enable the researcher collect opinions
of the people on the assessment of water and its effects
on economic production in Ussa Local Government Area.
Instrument for data collection
The research instrument used for the study is a 12 β item
researchers β developed questionnaire titled βChallenges
of water supply and its effects on economic production in
Ussa local government. It is divided into two sections, A
and B. Section A sought biographic data of respondents,
while section B comprised 12 items on the challenges of
water supply and its effects on economic production in
Ussa local government. The questions in section B will
seek to know the views of the respondents on the
challenges of water supply in the study area. The
instrument rating was based on a four β point modified
likert scale of Strongly Agree (SA), Agree (A), Disagree (D)
and Strongly Disagree (SD).
Sources of data
Data is information that has been translated into a form
that is more convenient to move or process. Relative to
5. Challenges of Water Supply and its Effect on Economic Production: A Case Study of Ussa Local Government Area, Taraba State Nigeria
Int. J. Geogr. Reg. Plan. 126
Table 2: Effects on Economic production
S/N ITEMS SA % A % D % SD % REMARK
1 The water in the area is naturally bad 100 66.67 20 13.33 15 20 13 3.33 SA
2 Most diseases in the area are caused
by unsafe water used by the people for
drinking.
40 26.67 20 13.33 85 56.67 5 3.33 D
3
4
5.
6.
7.
8.
Poor performance of crops in the area
are as a result of scarcity of water
People spend substantial amount of
their income on buying clean water
People spend time in search of drinking
water most especially during dry
season
People fear the area because of poor
quality of water
Trading is enhanced because of many
water sellers in the area
Availability of portable drinking water
can enhance business in the area.
10
21
75
24
30
85
6.67
14
50
16
20
56.66
35
40
35
30
10
15
23.33
26.66
23.33
20
6.67
10
15
63
30
58
90
31
10
42
20
38.66
60
20
90
26
10
38
20
19
60
17.3
6.66
25.3
13.3
12.6
SD
D
SA
D
SA
SA
This may be due to the fact that the people in the study
area are low income earners seeing that it is a rural area.
The people spend much time searching for drinking water
as indicated by 50% respondents. This is because of the
scarcity of water in Ussa Local Government.
People donβt fear the area because of the scarcity of water
and trading in the area is not enhanced by water selling.
This is represented by 38.66% and 60% respectively.
The economic activities in the area can be enhanced by
portable drinking water as represented by 56.66%. When
drinking water is available it can reduce expenditure and
promote the wellbeing of the people reducing the level of
diseases and illness being suffered by the people which
are caused by poor and untreated water supply.
DISCUSSION OF MAJOR FINDINGS
Sadly though, despite government huge expenditure in the
provision of affordable and portable water in our rural
communities, the study has revealed absence of
sustainability. The study has discovered the factors
responsible for the incommensurate rural water situation
in the study area. The factors are discussed as follows.
Lack of maintenance
Findings of the study show that most of the projects were
not functioning. Many of the pumping machines broke
down few days after commissioning and remained in that
condition since then.
Lack of community participation
Findings show that in almost all (94%) of the rural water
projects, the rural people were not consulted. This has
created a lot of problem as water projects were cited based
on political patronage and party affiliation. This top-down
approach has not gone down well with the people who
openly displayed their anger by vandalizing the project
after commissioning.
Lack of coordination and co-operation among the
stakeholders
The study revealed duplication of same project in 20
communities. These communities enjoy similar water
project provided by State Government, Federal
Government, International Agencies, Cooperate bodies
and community efforts. It turns out to be that some
communities are favoured with three to four water stations
while others have not at all. Still some other communities
that needed more water projects were neglected.
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Water is an essential resource for life and good health. A
lack of water to meet daily needs is a reality today for one
to three people around the world. Globally, the problem is
getting worse as cities and population grow and the needs
for water increase in agriculture, industry and households.
Water supply in rural areas depends mostly on
groundwater sources. In the areas of shallow water
deposits hand dug wells are sunk to supply the water need
by the local inhabitants. Aditi et al (2002) reported that
groundwater has emerged as the primary domestic water
source and poverty reduction tool in Ussa rural areas.
The interview results established that most of the
respondents obtained their water at less than 500m from
their residents. It was observed that distance covered to
get water in Ussa is greater than that of villages
surrounding.
The research findings through questionnaires
administration identified that in the sixteen rural villages
studied, most of the water sources are constructed and