Geo-mapping technology, cost-effective harnessing and efficient distribution as a solution to water scarcity and food insecurity

 

Groundwater is an essential part of the hydrological ecosystem as it forms the main source for consistent water flow through rivers, streams and lakes. Moreover, this water flow also forms the basis for habitation of most plants and animals in the natural environment (Gaye & Tindimugaya, 2018). In order to efficiently source, harness and distribute groundwater for human consumption in Africa, cost-effective solutions are key components that must be availed to countries experiencing water scarcity in Africa. Technology is vital at every step of the water harnessing process.

To begin with, geo-mapping tools must be used to map areas that have plentiful supplies of ground and most importantly, underground water reserves. Due to climate change and the resulting increase in global temperatures, surface flow of groundwater has significantly been depleted. This has been exacerbated by pollution, environmental degradation and over-dependence by the mass population African countries. Therefore, geological mapping is essential towards identifying underground water locations that can supplement the depleted levels of groundwater.

Most countries in Africa generate negligible output and GDP due to a number of economic and socio-political hurdles that the continent has struggled to overcome. Therefore, countries cannot afford to waste the little financial resources on aimless and inefficient sourcing of water reservoirs. As such, investment in geo-mapping technology is essential for particularly poor and rural communities, so as to enable borehole access to sufficient supplies of clean drinking water in a cost-effective manner (Yu et al., 2019). The Africa Groundwater Atlas releases a digital, GIS-enable hydrogeology maps that can help identify groundwater across 38 African countries. This move can be instrumental in pushing for the use of underground water reserves (UP Gro, 2020).

                                         Retrieved from: https://upgro.org/2019/09/24/download-digital-country-hydrogeology-maps-of-africa-from-the-africa-groundwater-atlas/

Further to identifying sources of underground water supply, technology also plays a vital role in expanding the utility of water through irrigation, generation of hydroelectric power and processing of raw foods in to finished consumables. Mabhaudhi, et al. (2018) conducted a research study on the feasibility of irrigation schemes in sustainably increasing food production in South Africa. The findings highlight that it allowed small-scale famers to shift towards climate-smart agriculture that allowed; rainwater harvesting, improved crop varieties through soil-water conservation and improved agronomic practices that strengthened water productivity in the region as well as food productivity (Mabhaudhi, et al., 2018).

Therefore, in order to produce food on a mass scale and reduce food insecurity in Africa, individual countries must embrace new alternative ways of irrigating farm fields so as to produce food on a wide scale and feed the fastest growing population in the world. Coal-powered energy is not only expensive but it further degrades the environment thereby depleting the limited amount of reliable water sources available. Instead of processing food using pollutant energy, clean and modernized methods of generating energy must be made accessible to rural populations in Africa (Nayebare et al., 2019). 

The main objective is to ensure that an adequate amount of water is available and supplied to all regions of Africa while preserving the hydrological ecosystem and adjusting for the changing nature of human activity (NATIONS, 1992). In order to ensure this adequate and equitable water supply, technology must be incorporated to develop water distribution infrastructure such as pipelines. Several countries in Africa have managed to source water reserves through boreholes. However, households still face the challenge of having to deliver this water from the borehole to the homestead.

 In conclusion, water scarcity is a major predicament facing Africa and most developing nations globally. Developing continents such as Africa face the incremental challenge posed by historically poor planning, infrastructure, resource management and ineffective prioritization of how to balance their factors of production. Utilization of the most cost efficient but modern geo-mapping tools to identify drilling locations that can provide clean water in plentiful supply, and further using technology to distribute this water, harness and use it as a factor of production for food and generation of income. As such, water scarcity and food insecurity are two issues that are intricately intertwined. It is impossible to solve one without simultaneously solving the other.