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Diarrhoea due to the consumption of unsafe drinking water is a major cause of death worldwide, despite many small and large-scale water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) intervention programs and policy processes. Many Sub-Saharan African communities have relied on WASH interventions by governmental and non-governmental organizations to reduce the burden of diarrhoeal diseases, however they often fail to be sustainable. Safe drinking water is achieved by protecting/treating water at all points along the drinking water supply chain (DWSC), from the source to the point-of-use. Gathering data on the sanitary environment and microbiological quality of water along the DWSC can support the design of water quality interventions. In addition, an examination of the knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) of local people on WASH topics could support the design of more socioculturally relevant interventions. The purpose of this research was to develop and pilot a simple yet economical and robust method to inform more socioculturally relevant water quality interventions in rural Sub-Saharan Africa, and to test whether variation in the risks existed at the neighbourhood-scale within three neighbourhoods of a single community in rural Kenya. The results of this study demonstrated that practices, which affect water quality in the DWSC, varied at the neighbourhood-scale. For example, source water quality was poor in the three study neighbourhoods, however the hazards and contaminating practices that posed a risk to water quality varied (i.e., bathing, toileting, laundry). Household water quality was also poor and at risk in all three neighbourhoods, however the practices that represented a risk to household water quality varied (e.g. storage conditions, sanitation practices). Female water collectors were knowledgeable on the causes of diarrhoea, however their preferred approaches toward WASH intervention approaches varied by neighbourhood. The collection and analysis of neighbourhood |
