Access to water and sanitation is limited in Sierra Leone. Over 3.5 million people lack adequate access to clean water, which means they use less than five liters per day way short of the United Nations expectation that at the very minimum everyone needs at least twenty liters of clean water per day to lead a healthy and productive life. Majority of Sierra Leoneans are living on less than two dollars a day and does not have any access to basic sanitation. Very few urban residents in Sierra Leone have access to piped water connections and possess the ability to pay for additional supplies as needed, but hilly and mountainous terrains settlements in the capital city and rural residents have little or no access or do not have the ability to pay for such services. This is quite a contrast for individuals in Europe and the United States who utilize two hundred and four hundred liters per day respectively.
The Growing Water Crisis: Governance Issues Over Access to Water Resources and Sanitation in Sierra Leone Kenday S. Kamara, March 2009
