AbstractsGeography &GIS

Abstract Use of Domestic Water Supplies and the Range of Available Water Sources: Are There Needs for Improved Water Sources in Bumilayinga, Tanzania?  Throughout history society ́s supply of domestic water has been a large concern for example placing limitation to development in many rural areas. In Tanzania, water plays a critical role in providing livelihood opportunities and sustaining the health and welfare of rural families. Bumilayinga, which is a rural village in the southern Tanzanian highlands, covers an area of 41 km2 and has over 1600 inhabitants. The majority of the people living in the area provide themselves through harvest production which means that access to water through floods, wells and pumps are important all year around in the area. However, access to water especially in the dry season is difficult. This is generally true considering that some 40% of the hand pumps in the village are not functioning and villagers walking every day to fetch water are spending many extra hours. As such, there is need to assess both dry season supply and demand of groundwater resources to determine the potential value added by drilling wells in the region. The focus of this study was, thus, to quantitatively investigate if the groundwater resource in Bumilayinga village is comparative to the water demand of inhabitants. Children and women bear the primary responsibility for water collection. In Bumilayinga 87% of the people coming to fetch water are children, this affect many children’s availability to go to school. According to the study the groundwater supply is likely enough to support the village and meet demand. The path to development is safe access to close water sources and many inhabitances are not aware of the benefit with a close water source. This study discusses the village potential to improve rural livelihoods and secure access to safe water supply.