Domestic Water Demand in Rural Semiarid Northeastern Nigeria: Identification of Determinants and Implications for Policy

The basic premise in this paper is that the level of domestic water demand in arid and semiarid rural areas of developing countries is closely related to their culture, social organization and demographic structure. We also provide a methodological framework within which the implications of policies related to domestic water demand can be evaluated, before the policies themselves are implemented. We make use of primary data collected in Katarko, a rural village in northeastern Nigeria. Through regression models for the dry and rainy seasons we demonstrate that beyond socio-cultural and demographic factors, economic ones are also significant in determining domestic water demand. These findings underscore not only the importance of demand-side management in water-related projects, but also the need to incorporate economic principles in them. Making use of the identified determinants into water-demand projections further reveals how changes in these variables can affect future demand.