oa Constraints of Efficient Waterborne Disease in Sudan with Special Emphasis on Malaria

The shortcomings in water quality and sanitation in Sudan are directly reflected in the incidence of waterborne diseases, which make up to 80 percent of reported diseases in the country. The incidence of disease is highly seasonal: the greatest problem usually occurred at the start of the wet season as the rains and runoff mobilize the faecal matter and pollutants that have accumulated during the dry season. Apart from the routine waterborne illness such as cholera, dysentery, hepatitis A and a range of parasitic infections like schistosomiasis, a number of tropical diseases including malaria, sleeping sickness, river blindness etc are prevailing in Sudan. This paper aims to identify the factors responsible for inefficient control of waterborne diseases in Sudan with special emphasis on malaria in Sudan ie factors other than diagnosis and medication. The methodology adopted was very simple and straightforward based on the fact that, irrespective of the improvement in diagnosis and treatment of waterborne diseases, 80 percent of reported diseases in Sudan were diseases transmitted by water. These factors were identified and analyzed using network analysis which is one of the most famous environmental impact assessment (EIA) methods. It uses a cause and effect relationship to link different factors and helps to identify primary, secondary, and tertiary impacts the inefficient control of malaria resulted from natural, as well as, man-made factors. Natural (environmental) factors include climate, topography, soil type, and vegetation. While the most important factors among the man-made group includes: ill-planning, irrelevant land use, conflicts and displacement, irrational expansion of settlements, poor environmental awareness, inefficient liquid waste management, leakage of domestic water supply networks and poor infrastructure etc. The main conclusion is that medical treatment is not the sole factor for the efficient control of the incidence of malaria disease in Sudan. Natural and man-made factors should be accompanied by the eradication or reducuction of the negative health impacts of the prevalence of malaria disease. Efficient control of malaria can be achieved through the improvement and regular maintenance of domestic water supply networks, by upgrading wastewater treatment plants, raising awareness, and adopting measures that reduce the accumulation of stagnant water.

Keywords: Waterborne diseases / Malaria / Environmental impact assessment / Wastewater treatment plants.