Water Quality and Management Practices among Residents and Households in Kaptimbor Slum –Kabarnet Town, Baringo County, Kenya

Treating water at the household level has been shown to be one of the most effective and cost-effective means of preventing water-borne disease. Promoting household water treatment and safe storage (HWTS) ensures vulnerable populations to take charge of their own water security by providing them with the knowledge and tools required to treat their drinking water.

 The aim of the study was to assess household water quality management practices among residents and households of Kaptimbor slum in Kabarnet town. The specific objectives were; to establish community’s perspective and initiative towards improving water quality and to determine if there is biological contamination of household water. Interviews and administered questionnaires were used to collect data needed for the study. On socio-demographic characteristics of residents’ level of education, occupation, income, marital status, number of children, age range of children, and household water quality management practices: training on water safety practices, place of training, major source of drinking water for children, practices for water safety and reasons for not practicing water safety.  Water samples were collected and analysed for biological contamination. Data was coded and entered using SPSS. A correlation analysis was done between socio-demographic lifestyle behaviours, demographic lifestyle behaviors and community perspective directly affecting quality management practice and relationship and water quality management practice and also relationship between faecal contamination of water and household water quality management practices. Data were analysed and presented in tables, graphs and pie charts.  A total of 112 households participated in the study. 97.2% of the respondents were married, 58.6% had attained primary education while 51% indicated they were unemployed, 85.4% earned an income of less than USD 10 a month, 52% had less than five children. 65.2% had undergone some form of training on water safety. 42.7% of households practiced boiling, 8.1% chemical treatment, 0.8 % hand washing before handling drinking water.  Most households (90.7% in the slum used stored water collected from communal piped water points. The samples collected from the communal water points tested negative for coliform bacteria. At the household level, 11.2% samples of water had coliform bacteria contamination above 10 counts/100ml which is not fit for drinking while 18% of water samples tested positive for E. coli. There was a strong positive correlation between socio-demographic lifestyle behaviours and household water quality management practices variables whereby Pearson’s r was 0.778. There was a moderately strong positive and significant correlation between Community’s perspective and Household water quality management practices (r=0.601, p= 0.000).

The study concluded that the households in Kaptimbor with children aged under six years (pre-school going and below) had parents/guardians who were married, had primary level of education, were either unemployed or in business with an income of less than USD 10. Majority of parents/guardians had received training on water safety but few practiced water treatments. There was post-source contamination of water.

It was recommended that Parents/guardians should embrace initiatives of promoting household water treatment and safe storage in collaboration with the community. Health education should be provided to the community on the importance of treating water at point of use.