Prevalence of protozoans in drinking and recreational water sources around the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nigeria

Protozoa parasites are eukaryotic organisms and are widely distributed in water environments. They cause food-borne diseases as well as survive in hostile environment for a long time. It is therefore worthy and necessary to understudy their occurrence and prevalence in drinking and recreational environmental water around the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, Nigeria. In this study, 120 water samples were collected from Kwalita, Toge, Sherete, Pyakasa, Usuma lower Dam in and around the FCT and analyzed by microscopy. From the results, 59 out of 120 water samples were positive for protozoa. Out of the positive samples, the following were recorded; 22 Amoebae (37.3%), 13 ciliates (22.0%), 19 flagellates (32.2) and 5 cryptosporidium (8.5%). Parasites such as found in this study have been reported to cause several illnesses in humans and animals. To minimize the associated health-risks, it is hereby recommended that routine screening for these parasites particularly at household level and provision of adequate and safe drinking water would help to control the parasites.