Power, Access, and the Politics of Water Scarcity: Socio-Economic Consequences of the Water Crisis in Tubah Sub-Division, Cameroon (2010–2024)

Despite abundant perennial springs, access to safe and reliable water in Tubah Sub-Division, Cameroon, has steadily declined, prompting this article to examine why scarcity persisted between 2010 and 2024. Framing water insecurity as a product of governance failure, infrastructure deficits, and unequal distribution rather than physical shortage alone, this qualitative historical study—drawing on archives, institutional documents, field observations, and oral testimonies from 32 participants—traces how the founding of the University of Bamenda in 2010 accelerated semi-urbanisation and reconfigured water access. Findings show that scarcity is a structurally produced condition shaped by demographic pressure, catchment degradation, infrastructural neglect, and weak inter-actor coordination. The crisis has generated uneven socio-economic consequences, including waterborne disease, lower agricultural productivity, higher household costs, disrupted schooling, and widened gender inequalities. The study concludes that sustainable development in Tubah requires integrated, community-centred water governance aligned with Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM).Meskipun memiliki sumber mata air abadi yang melimpah, akses air bersih di Sub-Divisi Tubah, Kamerun, terus menurun, sehingga artikel ini menganalisis penyebab melanggengnya krisis tersebut sepanjang periode 2010–2024. Dengan memetakan krisis air pada kegagalan tata kelola, defisit infrastruktur, dan ketimpangan distribusi ketimbang sekadar kelangkaan fisik, studi historis-kualitatif ini—menggunakan arsip, dokumen resmi, observasi, dan wawancara 32 partisipan—menelusuri dampak berdirinya University of Bamenda pada 2010 dalam mempercepat semi-urbanisasi dan merombak akses air. Temuan penelitian menunjukkan bahwa kelangkaan air merupakan kondisi terstruktur yang dipicu oleh tekanan demografi, kerusakan daerah tangkapan air, pembiaran infrastruktur, serta lemahnya koordinasi antaraktor. Krisis ini memicu dampak sosial-ekonomi yang timpang, meliputi penyebaran penyakit bawaan air, penurunan produktivitas pertanian, lonjakan pengeluaran rumah tangga, gangguan sekolah, hingga makin lebarnya ketimpangan gender. Studi ini menyimpulkan bahwa pembangunan berkelanjutan di Tubah memerlukan tata kelola air berbasis masyarakat yang terpadu dan selaras dengan prinsip Pengelolaan Sumber Daya Air Terpadu (Integrated Water Resources Management / IWRM).