Evaluation of Water Quality, Sanitation and Hygiene Conditions in Post- Emergency Situation. The Case of Asayita International Refugee Camp, in Afar Regional State of Ethiopia.

Abstract

Asayita emergency Camp is located in a lowland area facing harsh climate conditions, inadequate water supply and sanitation facilities, regional conflicts are the most criticalchallenges. a significant gap exists in understanding the comprehensive water quality andsanitation conditions within these post-emergency camps need to be adequately assessed. Hence the objective of this study was to assess the level of access to water, water quality, hygiene, and sanitation services within the refugee camp, and analyze the socio-economicchallenges in meeting the WASH objectives. To achieve this objective, three hundred eighty- eight (388) households were surveyed within the camp through a questionnaires. This wasaccompanied with water sample analysis, field observation and secondary data. A total of fivewater samples were collected from different locations namely, from water borehole,watersupply reservoir, public water tabs points and household water storage. descriptive statisticswere used to describe data, while Pearson correlation and regression was used to determine theinfluences of the variables. The result shows that, the sanitation coverage of the a total of63.8% as good, whereas the sanitation coverage in the household 36.2% was in poor condition. The survey data shows about 93.8% of respondents of refugees has access to drinking watersupply.The analysis of water sample also shows that most of the parameters evaluatedcomplies with WHO drinking water standards. . Results showed there were significantrelationship in water collection and storage and drinking water where a significance level (p< 0.01) suggesting that better water collection and storage practices were associated withhigher standards of drinking water hygiene.On the other hand between the stored waterstorage and Hygiene practice shows significant level (p < 0.05) indicates that improvements inwater collection and storage are likely to enhance overall hygiene practices. This paperdocuments the gaps in provision in the key interrelated sectors of water supply quality andsanitation in Asayita camp. Where standards are not currently being met, or where there wasinsufficient information, the consequences were analyzed and documented so as to supportplanning of effective solutions that protect refugees' well-being. This study can be beneficialas insight for further assessing the situation to enhance the well-being of refugees in theworld in general and particularly in Afar region.