Sub-Saharan Africa

There are two incidents in early November at Abidjan’s main jail, La Maison d’arrêt et de correction d’Abidjan (MACA) , in which prisoners are killed. The first incident is sparked by a lengthy water shortage; prisoners reportedly had not had water for 5 days except for small rations of drinking water. At least 7 prisoners die and 30 are injured in the ensuing riots. U.N. human rights officials said they were investigating the riot and could not give a final…

On November 4, the army carries out “Operation Dignity” and mounts surprise attacks on Bouake, stronghold of opposition forces and the largest city in the north, shattering an 18-month ceasefire. The Government cuts off electricity and water supplies to the north the day before the attacks. They remain off for about a week.

Somali Al Shabaab insurgents poison a well and damage water infrastructure near the port city of Kismayo, Somalia. Insurgents are fighting against Kenyan peacekeeping troops participating in the African Union mission in Somalia.

Water infrastructure, including dams and the major Kunene-Cuvelai pipeline, is targeted during the conflicts in Namibia and Angola in the 1980s.

During the long-running conflict in the Congo, many water utility systems are attacked and destroyed. By 2006, the World Bank estimates that at least one-third of water utility installations have been looted and completely destroyed.

The water supply for the city of Kitshanga, Congo is cut off in clashes between DRC armed forces and the Alliance des Patriotes pour un Congo Libre et Souverain (APCLS). The violence kills tens of civilians, including a humanitarian worker, wounds hundreds of people, and displaces thousands.

Declining rainfall has led to growing fights between animal herders and farmers with competing needs. In August, 2007 people are forced to flee their homes by fighting in Zounweogo province.

At least 76 water systems have been damaged by the ongoing conflict in the Oromia region of Ethiopia. The larger conflict leading to these casualties is between different ethnic groups and has displaced hundreds of thousands of people.

War and soaring temperatures leave many rural communities in South Sudan with little or no local water sources. Women and children are subjected to violent attacks, rape, and murder when traveling to regional sources to collect water. Leaders report conflicts sparked by water shortages occurring between the many of the 60 different ethnic groups across the country.

Local authorities cite water shortages as a growing influence on the number child kidnappings in the Boma region of South Sudan. When there is a water shortage, shepherding communities spend more time on the move seeking water for their livestock, but, as a side business, they will also abduct children who can then be resold for profit.