Domestic Water Consumption Pattern and its Driving Factors in Developing Countries: A Case Study of Adolor Community of Egor LGA, Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria

Authors: Rawlings, A. And Muochukwu, S.

DOI Info: http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12599579

ABSTRACT

This study evaluated the domestic water consumption pattern and its driving factors in the Adolor community of Egor LGA in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. Data on socio-demographic characteristics such as gender, age, education status, occupation status, monthly income, house type, and household size; household characteristics such as source of water, time to collect water from outside the premises, and pattern of water use were collected by using a questionnaire survey. The data were analyzed using frequency analysis and multivariate statistics (principal component analysis and multiple linear regression). Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to evaluate each variable's correlation with the quantity of domestic water consumption, and multiple linear regression was used to evaluate the predictors of domestic water consumption. Results of the frequency analysis indicated that at the household level, the water used for bathing, cloth washing, toilet flushing, car washing, cooking, dish washing, other domestic uses, and drinking constitutes about 27.39%, 20.42%, 14.19%, 11.27%, 7.96%, 6.56%, 6.17%, and 6.06, respectively, of total domestic water consumption. The result of the multiple linear regression analysis shows that the quantity of domestic water consumption can be predicted by 88.5% of the variables considered. The gender, education status, occupation status, and source of water were the most significant factors influencing the quantity of domestic water consumption components, accounting for 95.7%, 95.2%, 92.8%, and 90.7%, respectively, of the total variance explained. Hence, these factors should be considered in devising a water demand management strategy for the Adolor community to efficiently manage water demand and promote sustainable usage.

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