Assessing Household Water Availability, Accessibility, and Harnessing Strategies for Sustainable Water Security in Kwahu East Plateau, Ghana

The study evaluated household water supply, access, and harnessing methods in Abetifi, Kwahu East, Ghana, within a quantitative research framework, involving 400 respondents selected through stratified random sampling. It discussed seasonal changes in water supply, the primary factors affecting household access, and the efficiency of adaptation measures. During the dry season, 85 per cent of households lacked water, 70 per cent had no piped water, and people walking 3.5 km daily spent 4.8 hours a day collecting water. Contrastingly, the wet season had a minimum of 25 per cent scarcity, a 1.2 km travel distance, and an average collection time of 2.5 hours. More than 55 per cent of households spent more than 5 Ghana cedis per day on water, and 60 per cent of households experienced frequent breakdowns of the borehole or standpipe. During the wet season (70%), water was collected from rainwater; during the dry season (70%), came from boreholes, with the help of household storage systems (60%). The results of remote-sensing analysis indicated that the mean value of the NDWI (-0.582) during the wet season was larger than the mean value during the dry season (-0.461), and the results of the LULC analysis (2000-2025) demonstrated that vegetation cover and growth reduced by half and built-up areas expanded, which identified the fact of increased anthropogenic pressure on water resources. The study's originality lies in combining household survey information, NDWI, and LULC analysis within the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework to assess the interaction among seasonality in climatic conditions, human adaptation, and plateau hydrology. The results provide data-driven, practical recommendations for developing climate-resilient community-based water systems in Ghana's highlands.