Seasonal Variation of Rainy and Dry Season Per Capita Water Consumption in Freetown City Sierra Leone

Ensuring a sustainable urban water supply for developing/low-income countries requires an understanding of the factors affecting water consumption and technical evidence of individual consumption which can be used to design an improved water demand projection. This paper compared dry and rainy season water sources available for consumption and the end-use volume by each person in the different income groups. The study used a questionnaire survey to gather household data for a total of 398 households, which was analysed to develop the relationship between per capita water consumption characteristics: Socio-economic status, demographics, water use behaviour around indoor and outdoor water use activities. In the per capita water consumption patterns of Freetown, a seasonal variation was found: In the rainy season, per capita water consumption was found to be about 7% higher than the consumption for the full sample, whilst in the dry season, per capita water consumption was almost 14% lower than the full survey. The statistical analysis of the data shows that the average per capita water consumption for both households increases with income for informal slum-, low-, middle- and high-income households without piped connection (73, 78, 94 and 112 L/capita/day) and with connection (91, 97, 113 and 133 L/capita/day), respectively. The collected data have been used to develop 20 statistical models using the multiple linear stepwise regression method for selecting the best predictor variable from the data set. It can be seen from the values that the strongest significant relationships of per capita consumption are with the number of occupants (R = -0.728) in the household and time spent to fetch water for use (R = -0.711). Furthermore, the results reveal that the highest fraction of end use is showering (18%), then bathing (16%), followed by toilet use (14%). This is not in agreement with many developing countries where toilet use represents the largest component of indoor end use.

Automated summary

Understanding the factors affecting water consumption and analyzing individual consumption patterns in different income groups is crucial for ensuring a sustainable urban water supply in developing/low-income countries. The study found seasonal variations in per capita water consumption in Freetown, with higher consumption in the rainy season and lower consumption in the dry season. Per capita water consumption was also found to increase with income levels, and factors such as household size and time spent fetching water were identified as significant predictors of consumption behavior. Additionally, the study revealed the distribution of end use activities, with showering being the highest fraction followed by bathing and toilet use.