DETERMINANTS OF HOUSEHOLD WATER DEMAND

(CASE OF HAGERESELAM TOWN)

MICROLINK INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY COLLEGE

POST GRADUATE PROGRAM (MBA)
SECTION “C”
GROUP MEMBERS
1. ASMELASH GIDEY
2. BIRHANU ABAY
3. DESTA TADESE
4. GIZACHEW G/HER
5. G/YESUS G/TENSEA
6. TEKLEBRHAN WELAY

Submitted to: Mulu Aderie (PHD)

Jan.2020

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 ACRONYM

GDP-Gross Domestic Product

IWRA-International Water Resources Association

MDG-Millennium Development Goal

MOWR-Ministry of Water Resources

HWSSS-Hagereselam Water Supply and Sewage Service

NAS-National Academy of Science

UNICEF-United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund

WHO-World Health Organization

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 TABLE OF CONTENT

Page no.

Acknowledgement………………………………………………………………………..I

Table of content…………………………………………………………………………..ii

List of tables……………………………………………………………………………...iii

Acronym………………………………………………………………………………..IV

CHAPTER ONE

1. INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………5

1.1 Background of the study……………………………………………5

1.2 Statement of the problem……………………………………………6

1.3 Objectives of the study………………………………………………8

1.4 Research Design…………………………………………………….8

1.5 Methodology

1.5.1 Data source…………………………………………………8

1.5.2 Data analysis………………………………………………..9

1.6 Significance of the study………………………………………..9

1.7 Scope of the study………………………………………………9

1.8 Limitations of the study………………………………………9

1.7 Organization of the study………………………………………9

CHAPTER TWO

2. LITERATURE REVIEW…………………………………………………11

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 2.1 Theoretical literature review………………………………………11

2.1.1 Definition of water…………………………………………11

2.1.2 The water supply system…………………………………...12

2.1.3 Water demand and its management…………………………13

2.1.4 Water pricing system…………………………………………14

2.1.5 Costs of supplying water and financing………………………16

2.1.6 Sources of water for human consumption……………………16

2.1.7 The water distribution system, tariff and metering……………17

2.2 Empirical literature review

2.2.1 Factors affecting household water demand……………………19

2.2.1.1 Physical and demographic factors…………………………19

2.2.1.2 Socio economic factors……………………………………20

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 CHAPTER ONE

1. Introduction

1.1Background of the study

Safe drinking water is an essential component of primary health care and has a vital role in
poverty alleviation. There is a positive correlation between increased national income and the
proportion of people with access to improved water supply. According to World Bank (1994) a
0.3% increase of investment in household access to safe drinking water generates 1% increase in
GDP. Unreliable supply and shortage of water affects life of human beings in various ways.
According to WHO (2010) progress report on sanitation and drinking of six billion people on
earth, 884million did not get their drinking water from safe sources and almost all of them live in
developing regions. For instance in sub- sharan Africa only 60% of the total population in the
sub-continent is using improved sources of drinking water. Ethiopia like any other developing
countries has many constraints to make potable water easily accessible. Only 38% of the total
population and 26% of the rural population have access to safe and clean water (WHO and
UNICEF, 2010).

In Ethiopia, when we trace back to its establishment, the supply of pure water through pipe was
started during the era of Aste Menelik .In Mekelle, which is the capital city of Tigray region, the
supply of pure water through pipe was started in 1949. Hagereselam is a town in northern
Ethiopia located on the Mekelle-Abi Adi regional road which is 50 km far from Mekelle,it is
located at an elevetion of 2618 meters above sea level. The town is the administrative center of
the degua tembien wereda. The daily weather condition ranges from 18 c to 25c. the annual
amount of rainfall ranges from 600-800 mm. the main river is Gereb Giba. In the town, the
supply of pure water through pipe was started in 2000 (Smidt W (2007).Encyclopidia, Vol
3’:696.cite journal requires ljournal). The total population of the town in 2010 was 8775. Since
the population of the city is expanding from time to time, it demands the supply of more pure

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water. To cope with such an expanding demand the town established an institution called
Hagereselam Water Supply and Sewage Service.

As stated above, like other town in Ethiopia, Hagereselam is facing acute shortage of water
because the demand for water is by far larger than its supply. The demand side needs a proper
management to match with the supply. This calls for a demand analysis to identify factors
affecting household water demand in the town. This is helpful for supply augmentation of
expansion of the service among the society. And also given its upper position in the landscape,
the town suffers from endemic water shortages. A small reservoir was built at the southern side
of the town for sake of irrigation in addi Selam, but it has been silted up because of erosion
during road works.

1.2 Statement of the problem

Access to safe water and sanitation in Ethiopia is among the lowest in sub- sharan Africa and the
entire world. Even if access has increased substantially with funding from external aid, much still
remains to be done to achieve the MDG’s (Millennium development goals) of halving the share
of people without access to water and sanitation by 2015.In addition to this, effectively spending
the money and ensuring proper operation and maintenances of infrastructure built with these
funds remain a challenge (MOWR, 2004).

Since it is difficult to satisfy the needs of the society by supplying water to all, various methods
have been used by the government for reducing water consumption. Supply augmentation
requires several year of planning and large amount of capital investment before water is
available. In light of such challenge, the governments are opting for strategies that promote water
conservation, particularly with residential consumer (Basina et al, 2008).

In most developing countries like Ethiopia, the quality of data base on residential water
consumption often poses problem in demand estimation. As opposed to developed countries,
where all household obtain water through a pipe network, the market for household water
demand in many developing countries show much variation. Households may have connected to
pipe network and use water exclusively from private tap .But they may also combine piped water
with water from well, public tap or purchase water from venders. Little is known about
households’ behavior regarding factors driving their choice. As a result, policy decisions are not
very well informed (ibid).

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When the water supply one of the town in Ethiopia, Hagereselam, is considered, the old
boreholes need rehabilitation pumps and all the pipe lines want replacement. The construction of
additional boreholes is also required to fulfill the current demand. However, all these activities
need high capital outlays. The service beneficiaries are required to pay for the improved water
service .Thus to improve the water supply situation of the town, demand side information is
highly required.

Even though varieties of studies have been conducted in this area, the town of Hagereselam is
facing problem in demand management and expanding service levels .This study is destined to
analyze the major determinants of water demand in Hagereselam town by collecting information
from the users’ side and suppliers as well. A similar study conducted in this area by Fekadu
(2007), explains the major problem of water in the city by analyzing the supply side only .And
concludes that for equitable usage of water, the town of Hagereselam should improve the water
distribution means use and its water management policies. But an improvement in the water use
cannot came only due to better supply of water ,but also problems related with the demand side
should be analyzed to reach at better conclusion.

And also studies have been conducted outside Hagereselam in analyzing factors affecting
households’ water consumption. A study made by Mequanent (1998) shows that the demand for
water increases with population growth, urbanization and high accessibility to a taped water
supply. He did not observe socio economic characteristics like income, household size and
educational level of household head which are major determinants of the demand for water.

But information on the demand side such as household socio economic and demographic
characteristics as well as characteristics on the existing and new supplies of water are believed to
be vital. Like other cities and towns in Ethiopia Hagereselam is facing major problem of
neglecting the demand of majority of households in the town .Therefore the need to fill the gap
of information on demand side appear to be crucial.

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1.3 Objectives of the study

1.3.1 General objectives

The general objective of the study is to investigate the determinant of household water demand
in Hagereselam town.

1.3.2 Specific objectives

In analyzing such a broad objective, the specific objectives to be analyzed include;

 To examine factors which change the consumption pattern of residential water

in Hagereselam.
 To analyze major problems related to household water use in the town
 To examine the socio-economic characteristics of a household in relation to
the demand for water.

1.4 Research Question

 What factors change the consumption pattern of residential water demand in

Hagereselam?
 What are the major problems related to household water use in the town?
 What are the socio-economic characteristics of a household in relation to the
demand for water?

1.5 Methodology

1.5.1 Data sources

The study will uses both primary and secondary data sources. Primary data will be collected
through a questionnaire to be distributed to the households in the town. A sample of 85
households will taken using simple random sampling technique. The secondary data will be
obtained from related literatures and annual reports of HWSSS.

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 1.5.2 Data analysis

The data obtained from different sources will analyzed in two ways. The first one is by using
tables and percentages. The second one is by using appropriate econometric model explaining
the relationship between water demand and factors affecting it.

1.6 Significance of the study

This study will try to identify the factors which affect household water demand in the town by
collecting information from the households themselves. Demand analysis is very crucial because
it tries to observe the problems from the users’ side. Besides, this paper will initiate other
researchers to contribute their turn on this issue.

1.7 Scope of the study

The study is limited to the Hagereselam town. The analysis will only based on questionnaire
result and background information is used to describe the town. Water consumption or demand
in industrial, institutional and commercial sector is beyond the scope of the study.

1.8 Limitation of the study

While conducting this researcher a number of obstacles may encounter. One is a financial
constraint occurring because the researcher is a student. The second one is a respondents may not
be volunteer to respond but we will try to convince them.

1.9 Organization of the study

The study will be organized into five chapters. The First chapter deals with the introduction part
which contains background of the study, statement of the problem, objective, significance,
limitation and scope of the study. The Second chapter will cover the review of literature
including theoretical and empirical reviews. The Third chapter will all about the methodologies
used in conducting the research. The Forth chapter will contain data analysis and discussion. The
last chapter will try to provide policy conclusion and recommendation.

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 CHAPTER TWO
2. Literature review

2.1 Theoretical literature review

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 2.1.1 Definition of water

Water can be deemed as an essential environmental resource. From an anthropogenic

perspective, its most important role lies in human sustenance. Human utilize water directly for
many purpose; municipal water supply, sanitation, irrigation, transportation, industrial water
supply, energy generation (hydroelectric) and recreation. Water plays an absolutely necessary
and irreplaceable role in many ecosystem services, such as habitat creation, nutrient cycling, the
hydrological cycle and climate regulation (Butler and Fayyaz, 2006).

Water has many unique characteristic that makes it difficult to trade on regular markets.
Exclusive property right cannot be assigned because of its physical attribute in particular its
highly fluid nature and role in the hydrological cycle. Secondly, water can be utilized as a non-
rival good, where ones use does not preclude another’s use of that resource. Thirdly, due to the
large amount of interdependency with uses of water such as hydroelectricity generation
impacting recreation, externalities can be associated. When externalities exist, the full cost of an
activity may not be visible or taken into account by the producer or consumer. Lastly economies
of scale in the supply of water lead to imperfect competition, where limited competition and
monopoly supplier can significantly influence the pricing of good. (Ibid)

Since the Dublin conference on water and environment, it is generally accepted among
water resource managers that water should be considered as an economic good. Even if the
terminology is the same it has different interpretations. Based on this there are two schools of
thought. The first school maintaining that water should be priced at its economic value. The
market will ensure that the water is allocated to its best uses. The second school interprets” water
as an economic good” to mean the process of integrated decision making on the allocation of
scare resource, which does not necessary involve finical transaction (IWRA,2002)

Water is not divisible into different types or kinds of water. It may be ground water at
some stage, at a later stage it will become surface water. But any use of water affects the entire
water cycle. Since water is a resource vital to life for which there is no substitute, for water no
choice exists between resources. The only choice to be made is how to allocate water and finding
the most efficient way of using it. Water, then, is fundamentally different from other economic
goods. If one needs energy, for instance, one can choose between solar, wind, hydropower,

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nuclear power etc. The market mechanism works almost naturally for such goods. With water
that is not the case. One can easily choose another type of goods without tapping the same source
(Ibid).

In sum, the first interpretation of “water as an economic good” has led to considerable
misunderstanding. Many observers fear that the adoption of this principle would lead to
economic pricing of water, which would damage the interest of the poor and make irrigated
agriculture virtually unfeasible. As a result many disclaimers suggest that water is “social good
“and should be affordable to the poor. In the school of thought there is no confusion. Water
economics is understood to deal with how best to meet all human wants making the right choice
about the most sustained uses of water in broad social context. Considering water as an economic
good is about making integrated choices not about determining the right price of water.

2.1.2The water supply system

Water supply is a, process or an activity by which water is provided for some use example
to home, factory or business. The stringency of requirement that a supply of water must meet
depends on the use to be made of it. The more usual requirement ,however, are that water be free
enough of harmful bacteria ,chemicals and other contamination to be drinkable; free of substance
that make its taste or appearance unpleasant; and if the water is to be used for washing, free of
salts of calcium and magnesium that will interfere with the action of soap.(Colombia,
encyclopedia)

A complete water supply system is often known as a waterworks. Sometimes the term
is specifically applied to pumping station, treatment stations or storage facilities. Storage
facilities are providing to reserve extra water for use when demand is high and, when necessary,
to help maintain water pressure. Treatment stations are places in which water may be filtered to
remove suspended impurities or disinfected with chlorine, ozone, ultraviolet light or some other
agents that kills harmful bacteria and microorganisms. Salts of iodine and fluorine, which are
considered helpful in preventing goiter and tooth decay, are sometimes added to water in which
they are lacking. (Ibid)

2.1.3 Water demand and its management

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 A common characteristics of water demand in urban areas worldwide is its relentless
rise over many years and projections of continues growth over coming decades .The chief
influencing factor are population growth together with changes life style, demographic structure
and possible effects of climate change .Meeting this increasing demand from existing resource is
a struggle, particularly in water stressed or water scarce regions .Worldwide there is considerable
pressure from the general public and some government to minimize the impacts of new supply
project (e.g. building new reservoirs) implying emphasis should be shifted toward managing
water demand by best utilizing the water that is already available.(NAS,2009)

Water demand management involves the adoption of polices or investment by a water

utility to achieve efficient use by all members of the community. Demand management measure
can be short or long term depending on the needs of the community served by the water utility
.Strategic planning is a key aspect of a successful demand management strategy. It involves
understanding the constraints, analyzing how much water is used, when, by whom, for what
purpose and at what level of efficiency; determining the potential reduction in water use that can
occur through improvement to water using equipment and behavior(Ibid)

Water management program involves decision about how should be best allocation to receive
the greatest public return from score resources. The full value of water needs to be recognized to
allow informed decision for public policies related to water supply and quality. This is of
particular importance, because these policies can have significant economic consequence for
household communities and industry. If water is allocated to less valued uses, water quality will
decline, ground water basins are over exploited and floods and drought can destroy properly and
take sever toll on life.(Butler and Fayyz, 2006)

In short, demand management aims at achieving desirable demands and desirable uses. It
may include measures aimed at stimulating water demand in sectors where current use is
undesirably low. This is the same thing as making the right choice about water utilization.
Hence, “water as an economic good” is fully compatible with the concept of “demand
management” if well interpreted. (Ibid)

2.1.4 Water pricing system

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 In contrast to the point of view expressed by the first school, water pricing is not an
instrument for water allocation, but rather an instrument to achieve financial sustainability
.Only if the financial costs are recovered can an activity remains sustainable. This premise is
represented by the “free water dilemma”

If water for free, then the water provider does not receive sufficient payment for its service.
consequently ,the provider is not able to maintain the system adequately and ,hence ,the quality
of services will deteriorate .Eventually the system collapse ,people have to drink unsafe water or
pay excessive amount of money to water vender ,while wealthy and influential people receive
piped water directly in to their houses ,at subsidized rate .Thus the water –for –free policy often
results in power full and rich people getting water cheaply while for people by water at excessive
rates or drink unsafe water (IWRA,2002).

The water market would ensure efficient use by defining the optimum use and allocation
among competitive users, if it is perfectly competitive Indeed, in a market that operate under
competitive conditions, the price would be determined by the interaction of demand and supply
to reflect the actual marginal cost of water usage. This price would induce users to purchase the
optimal quality of water. In this context, no exogenous administrative intervention would be
necessary ,as the” invisible hand” would by itself , insure the efficient level of use induced by an
equilibrium price that reflect water cost, further more “invisible hand” would lead to defining the
appropriate investment in order to attain the efficient use of water in the future. However,
perfectly competitive market conditions for water don’t and probably cannot exist in the majority
cases (Desalegn, 2012)

In most cases, the supply of water is a monopoly whose characterize closely resembles
those of a “natural” monopoly specifically, the extremely high infrastructure cost for transporting
treating and delivering water make difficult the operation of multiple water supplies. The
economics characteristics of water sector in combination with the fundamental social perception
that water is socially sensitive good related to human existence and health, led to a strict
administrative framework for the operation of the water supply sector and hence of the water
market.(Ibid)

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 Water price is an important instrument to break the vicious circle of the free water
dilemma. To determine the price both costs and value of water should be considered. The cost
includes the full supply cost, the full economic cost and the full cost. The full supply cost
includes operational costs and cost of investment (capital charges). The full economic cost on the
other hand contains full supply cost, opportunity cost and economic externalities. The third one
which is the full cost comprises the full economic cost plus the environmental externalities
(Roger et al, 1997).

On the other hand, the valued to the user may be quantified by his/her willingness to pay
but there are additional benefits like benefit from return flows, and the benefit to meeting societal
objectives the later aspect is often neglected by the first school economists, since also here it
can’t always be quantified in monetary terms, but it is essential to the integrated decision
process. If we use the definition that economics is “ about applying reason to choice “ then full
cost and full value should be used for making allocation decision (Ibid).

It is obvious that a certain allocation of water is attractive when full values is higher
than full cost .In economic analysis determining these values and cost is required. Once the
decision has been taken to allocate the water then next is to decide on the financing of the
allocation. According to the first school, price should be the full economic cost or full cost .But
that is not necessary. In principle, if society finds the allocation a good idea, then society may
decide to finance the allocation completely.

In water pricing the following considerations are very important

-there should be full cost recovery and reservation for future investment.

-It is important to give due attention to equity consideration to prevent that the
weakest people carry too high burden.

-the price should be ‘reasonable’ allowing full cost recovery, but in line with the
ability to pay of consumers.

-those who can pay an economic price should pay a high price and by doing so,
cross subsidize the poor strata of the society.

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 2.1.5 Cost of supplying water and financing

The cost of supplying water consists to a very large extent of fixed cost (capital and
personnel costs) and only to a small extent of variable costs that depend on the amount of water
consumed (mainly energy and chemicals).The full cost of supplying water in urban areas in
developed countries is about us $1-2 per cubic meter depending on local costs and local water
consumption levels.(www.answers.com/topic/water-supply)

These costs are somewhat lower in developing countries. Throughout the world, only part
of these costs usually billed to consumers, the remainder being financed through direct or
indirect subsidies from local, regional or national government. Besides, subsides water supply
investment are financed through internally generated revenues as well as through debt. Debt
financing can take the form of credits from commercial banks, credits from international
financial institutions such as World Bank and regional development banks and bonds. (Ibid)

2.1.6 Sources of water for human consumption

Although water covers about 70% of the earth, less than 1% is available as fresh water for
human use. The vast majority of the water is found in the ocean, too salty to drink and unfit for
many other applications. Of the fresh water available on earth about 2/3 rd is frozen in ice capes
and glaciered, which leaves only a small fraction accessible for human use. There are two major
sources of fresh water, surface and ground water. (NAS, 2009)

a) Surface water: - is a primary source for human which includes river, lake, stream and
fresh water wet land. Surface water is naturally replenished by perception and naturally
lost through discharge to the oceans, evaporation and sub-surface seepage. Although the
only natural input to any surface water system is perception within its water shed, the
total quality of water in that system at any given time is dependent on many other factors.
These factors include storage capacity in lakes, wetlands and artificial reservoirs. Human
activities have devastating impact on these factors. They increase storage capacity by
constructing reservoirs and decrease it by draining wet lands.

b) Ground water- It is the second largest sources of fresh water. This is water that lay
under the surface. It exists almost everywhere in the world. In some places, however

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people have to dig much deeper to access it than other places .In some places, it might be
accessible but it might not be healthy for human consumption, if it is not treated. The
level of ground water is supplied, in part, by precipitation when rain falls it sinks down in
to the ground.
It is often collected in aquifers, which are natural water storage compartment formed
between the rocks under the surface.

2.1.7 The water distribution system, tariff and metering

A. The water distribution system

Protecting and maintaining water distribution system is crucial to ensure high

quality drinking water. Distribution-system –consisting of pipe, pumps, storage tanks,
reservoirs –carrying water from centralized treatment plant to consumer tap.
Distributional systems represent the vast majority of physical infrastructure for water
supply and constitute the primary management challenge from both an operational and
public health stand point. Recent data on water borne disease suggest that the distribution
system remains a source of contamination.

B. The tariff system

Almost all services provided in the world charge tariff to recover part of their costs.
According to estimates by the World Bank the average (mean) global water tariff is us$
1.04, while it is only us $0.11 in the poorest developing countries. The lowest tariff in
developing countries are found in south Asia (mean of us $ 0.09/m3).while the highest
are found in Latin America (us $0.41/m3).

Water and sanitation tariffs, which are almost always billed together, can take
many different forms where meters are installed; tariffs are typically volumetric,
sometimes combined with small monthly fixed charge. In the absence of meters, flats or
fixed rates which are independent of actual consumption are being charged. In developed

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countries tariff are usually the same for different categories of users and for different
levels of consumption.

In developing countries, the situation is often characterized by cross subsidies

with the intent to make water more affordable for residential low-volume users that are
assumed to be poor.

For example, industrial and commercial users are often charged higher tariff than
public or residential users. Also, metered users are often charged higher tariff for higher
levels of consumption. However cross subsidies between residential users do not always
reach their objectives. Given the overall low level of water tariff in developing countries
even at higher levels of consumption, most consumption subsidies benefit the weather
segment of society. Also, high industrial and commercial tariff can provide an incentive
for these users to supply water from other sources than the utility and thus actually erode
the utility’s revenue base.

C. Water metering
Metering of water supply is usually motivated by one or several of four objectives.
First, it provides an incentive to conserve water which protects water resource. Second, it
can postpone costly system expansion and saves energy and chemical costs. Third, it
allows a utility to better locate distribution losses. Forth it allows charging for water
based on use, which is perceived by many as the fairest way to allocate the cost of water
supply to user metering is considered good practice in water supply and is widespread in
developed countries.

2.2 Empirical literature review

Household and daily per capital consumption of water is affected by various
factors, the effects of which vary widely from place and from community.

Many writers (Meseret, 2012, Teshome, 2007 and Aschalew, 2009) have tried to
identify the factors influencing the amount of household and daily per capital water

18
consumption. Although none of these writers could give a complete list, the most
frequent variables in all studies are house hold size, income, education, expenditure of a
household, and age and sex of the respond ants.
Analysis and evaluation of these factors will help to identify factors, which either
positively or negatively associates with the rate of capital house hold water consumption.
Thus in the succeeding paragraphs a brief review of available literature pertaining these
components will be provided.

2.2.1 Factors affecting household water consumption

2.2.1.1 Physical and demographic factors

One of the factors, which affect the use of water within each household, is the
physical distance of housing units from the water point. It is widely known that distance
involved in fetching water is inversely related to per capital consumption of water. Large
distance involves considerable energy and time expenditure, which limits the frequency
of fetching and the size of containers and hence reduces the per capital daily water
consumption. (Teshome, 2007)

A study made by Mesert in Simde district in Ethiopia suggest that the per capita
water use is negative and significantly determined by the distance of water source from
the households (i.e. keeping other factors constant, as the distance of water source from a
household increases, the per capita water use significantly decreases. This implies that
water facilities should be accessible to all segments of the population to better satisfy
daily water requirement of residents. It also shows that convience of location of water
source is a significant determinant of water use at household level. This means that
households located nearer to water source are likely to use more than others located
farther away.

In dealing with the demographic factors like age and sex, Dessalegn (2012)
suggest that a one unit increase in age (one year) the daily per capita consumption

19
 decreases. It terms of sex female headed households will have lower per capita daily
water consumption than the male headed households.
2.2.1.2 Socio_ economic factors
Among the enormous socio-economic factor that affect household waters
consumption pattern the most significant one’s are household size, household income,
and level of education, monthly expenditure of a household and profession of a
household head.

A. Household size and level of education

When there is an increase in household size, the probability of collecting more

water for large household size than individual household. As a result there is a positive
relationship between household size and total consumption. However the per capita water
consumption decreases with an increase in household size. When considering the supply
necessary to meet the needs of large family, there is a problem of access and adequacy
.This implies that there is a negative relationship between household size and per capita
daily water consumption.(mesert.2012).

Further investigation of data shows that as household size increases, the amount of
water used per day significantly decreases this suggest that, although larger households increase
the frequency of travel per day to water sources, they still are not able to increase the available
water at the house hold enough to satisfy the daily requirement of their individual hose hold
members. The significant decrease in per capita daily water use because of additional household
members might be explained by the fact that available water at house hold level is limited by the
factor such as distance and waiting time at the water source. Thus additional members share this
limited amount, clearly reducing per capital daily water use(Aschlew,2009)

As indicated by Teshome (2007), the educational level of a house head is

positively related wit h the per capita daily water consumption. Households with less educated
head consume less water than a house hold whose head is more educated. This is because the
higher the educational level of ahead of family, the higher the awareness about the benefits that
could be gained from water.

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 B. Household income and monthly expenditure

A study made by Teshome (2007), revealed that there is a positive relationship between
monthly income and per capital daily water consumption. This result confirms with economic
theory which states that an individual’s demand for a particular commodity depends on his/her
income and quantity demanded are positively related, except in the case of inferior goods. The
result of the survey shows that higher income groups have higher per capital daily water
consumption than lower income group.

According to Dessalegn (2012), monthly expenditure of a house hold was found to

have a positive relation with the per capita daily water consumption of house hold because
family members of better household are more likely to have frequent bath, showering, frequent
washes of cloth and more water for cooking as compared with worse off house hold taking in to
consideration the household life style and sanitation preference of better- off house hold.

C. Sources of water and housing characteristics

Factor like the size of the house and access to appliance like shower, both rooms,
washing machines also influence water demand. It is evidenced that house owner ship is likely to
increase household’s decision to have private piped connection as a primary source of water and
is likely to increase the daily per capital water consumption. Primary sources of water like
private pipe users have 9 liter more daily per capital water consumption than households who use
other sources of water (ibid).

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REFERENCE

Basania, M., ishamb, J.relly, B, (2008). The determinant of water connection and
water consumption; Empirical evidence from a Cambodian household survey.

Butler, D and fayyaz M.,Eds (2006); water demand management; IWA publishing,
lond-and white, S., ED, (1998); wise water management; A demand management.

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