Lebanon is often described as a water-rich country. With hundreds of natural springs feeding rivers, valleys, mountain basins, and dams, it is natural to expect reliable access to clean water. Yet for many households, purchasing water from private suppliers remains a normal part of daily life, even in regions surrounded by natural water sources.
This mismatch raised a simple but important question: If Lebanon has so many natural springs, why do so many towns still rely on purchased water?
What the Data Shows
The visualization compares two key measures across Lebanon’s governorates:
The number of natural springs (total, permanent, or seasonal)
The percentage of towns in each governorate that rely on purchased water
You can interact with the chart using filters to:
Explore specific governorates
Switch between total, permanent, or seasonal springs
Show or hide the purchased-water trend line
A Surprising Pattern
At first sight, we might expect places with many springs to rely less on purchased water. But the data reveals a different story.
Akkar and Mount Lebanon appear consistently water-rich across all spring types (total, permanent, and seasonal) yet roughly a quarter of their towns still rely on purchased water. This shows that even governorates with abundant natural sources do not always provide reliable public access.
Beqaa, despite having far fewer springs than Akkar and Mount Lebanon, records the highest reliance on purchased water, with more than a third of its towns depending on private suppliers. This makes Beqaa a clear example of how limited natural springs and weak distribution amplify each other.
Baalbek-Hermel, South Lebanon, and Nabatieh have moderate to low numbers of springs, yet many of their towns continue to use purchased water as well. Even where seasonal or permanent springs exist, public networks often cannot capture or distribute them effectively.
Interestingly, the North, which has the lowest number of springs in every category, relies less on purchased water than water-abundant governorates like Akkar and Mount Lebanon. This contrast reinforces the idea that the challenge is not simply about how much natural water a region has, but how well that water is managed, delivered, and made accessible to households.
The pattern is clear: Water availability and water access are not aligned.
In other words, Lebanon doesn’t have a water availability problem. It has a water accessibility problem.
Why This Gap Exists
The visualization points to a structural mismatch: the regions with the most springs are not always the regions with the best water service. Broader assessments of Lebanon’s water sector help explain why:
Many springs are located far from population centers
Distribution networks are fragmented or old
Seasonal springs are not always integrated into supply systems
Even permanent springs may not be connected to public pipelines
This means that households may live only a few kilometers from a natural spring yet still lack regular public water service, pushing them toward purchased water, especially in summer or during shortages.
Why This Matters
Understanding this mismatch reshapes the way we think about Lebanon’s water challenges:
The problem is not simply “water scarcity”
The problem is also about distribution, planning, and infrastructure
Investing in better transport systems, modernizing networks, and capturing more of the existing springs could significantly reduce households’ dependence on purchased water.
Conclusion
Lebanon is not a water-poor country! It is a country where natural abundance doesn’t translate into reliable access.
By exploring where springs are located versus where purchased water is still heavily relied upon, this visualization highlights a critical opportunity:
Lebanon doesn’t need more natural water. It needs better ways to deliver the water it already has.
Understanding this mismatch is only the first step. Lebanon needs a water system that can collect, distribute, and deliver its natural resources to the communities that depend on them. Improving planning, strengthening networks, and making better use of existing springs can significantly reduce the country’s reliance on purchased water.
So the real question going forward is this: how can Lebanon turn the water it already has into water people can actually count on?
African countries face a critical water situation, with millions lacking access to clean and safe water sources
According to the United Nations, about 40% of the world’s population lack access to the least basic water needs and with the global temperatures on the rise this number is expected to further increase. In line with its vision for the year 2030, the United Nations is developing a series of targets such as eliminating water sources pollution and increasing international cooperation, however until today not much has done to ensure that this goal will be met by year 2030.
African countries have the highest mortality rates related to unsafe water sanitation
As shown in the above heatmap, the highest mortality rates related to unsafe water in year 2019 belonged to countries from the African continent solely with Lesotho and Chad leading the way with 108.1 and 99.2 deaths coming from unsafe water sources respectively. In addition, as displayed in the above map, the African continent is clearly in a critical situation with less than half of the population receiving access to basic water services in most of its countries.
Increasing international cooperation can improve the African water situation
To address the critical water situation, a multifaceted solution involves improving water infrastructure, implementing sustainable water management practices, raise awareness and avoid water pollution. However, as known for its weak economic situation, most of the African countries are not currently capable to develop such infrastructural expansions, highlighting the need of an international cooperation to solve the critical water situation in Africa.
Integrated programs can scale and validate the proposed solutions to solve the current situation
Series of programs led and initiated by international partners can be used to assess the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed solutions, including the sustainable water usage and pollution control to restore the ecosystems in Africa and ensure that the whole population is receiving access to the least basic water services. In addition, the programs will ensure the global collaboration discussed above.
All stakeholders should proceed immediately
As mentioned above, the United nation clearly stated that much has to be done to be in line with the SDG goals of year 2030. In this regard, we recommended to focus on clear policies that call for an immediate action plan to ensure those goals. But most importantly, we recommend all stakeholders to proceed immediately as the African continent is in a desperate water situation while mortality rates are going through the roof.
For more info, read the following articles: https://www.unep.org/explore-topics/sustainable-development-goals/why-do-sustainable-development-goals-matter/goal-6
Team: Jana Chazbeck, Olguinia El Ferzli, Josephine Kaadou, Haydar Hamdan and Rawane Ibrahim.
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We often tend to forget that the water cycle and the life cycle are one. Millions of women and children spend 3 – 6 hours collecting water from distant polluted sources daily and 2.1 billion people do not have access to clean and safe drinking water. We live in a world where half the hospital beds are employed by patients who suffer from diseases associated with lack of access to clean water where 3.4 million people die each year.
Access to clean water in Africa on Non-Profit Organizations that offer the country a well to be used by every institution that surrounds it. Therefore, “How Can We Make Water Available for All?” is a very important topic that is being addressed through the Sustainable Development Goals.
In the heat map below, we can see that Europe and Central Asia in addition to the Arab World have more access to the least basic drinking water services in comparison to Western and Central Africa.
It is also evident in the visual below that throughout the years, countries from all around the world increased their intake of their basic drinking water services except African countries who show a slight improvement.
It is important to note that for you to be able to visualize the changes throughout the years, you need to press on the button at the bottom of the visual!
However, with the slight improvements in a few countries, we can still find that other countries (such as the Central African Republic) are still experiencing a decrease on the matter.
It is said that “Thousands have lived without love, not one without water.” – W.H Auden
With all these problems being evident, one has to call for action. One of the solutions that have been implemented and has to remain active is increasing the public private partnerships investment in water and sanitation throughout the years (in $US).
This solution has helped increase the access of countries to clean water throughout the years and will continue to do so if implemented more often.
HOW CAN YOU HELP
You can help by donating to NGOs that offer help on the matter. Some examples on the NGOs include: Just a Drop and Planet Water Foundation. Donations can happen through
Water is a basic human need; without it, survival is not possible.
Every day, 2.1 billion people wake up with no access to clean water. In other words, millions of families around the world do not drink, cook, or shower with clean water.
Each year, 3.4 million people die from unsafe and contaminated water sources, especially in the Sub Saharan African region with the highest mortality rate average of 101 persons per 100,000 in Chad, followed by an average of 87 in Somalia.
Access to basic drinking water, safely managed drinking water, and basic handwashing facilities
On average today, only 65% of the African population have access to basic drinking water, 31% use safe managed drinking water services, and only 26% have basic handwashing facilities including soap and water.
Despite global Sustainable Development Goals and commitments made in 2015 to ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all, a progress was only witnessed in a few African nations over the past three to five years, according to the UN’s first-ever assessment of water security in Africa. Results show Egypt as one of the top five most water-secure countries in Africa, while Ethiopia, Somalia, Niger, and Chad appear to be the least water-secure countries in Africa.
It is also noticeable that the rural population is the one water deprived the most: only 39% of the sub-Saharan population has access to basic drinking water, in comparison to 80% from the urban population.
Effects on Women & Children
More than 70% of women in Africa are employed in agriculture including water collection. That means that instead of attending school, raising a family, or simply having a decent job, African women are obliged to spend from 3 to 6 hours walking to arrive to the closest source and collect water for their household. Women who are subjected to collecting water are more likely to:
Drop out of school
Suffer from infections and diseases
Die from contaminated water
Be sexually abused and much more.
Women are not the only ones who suffer, nearly 6,000 children die of water related diseases each day. This is why, it is time to end the water crisis.
A call for help
How can we make safe water available for all? This can be done by installing sustainable water points in the most impoverished areas of the world. Our focus should be first on rural villages in Africa, where the walk to collecting clean water is on average 3.7 miles.
Previous drilling solutions have proven beneficial to the needed regions: over 9 million people have now access to clean water, and a good example is a rural primary school in southern Kenya. This school used to spend its entire government budget purchasing water for students and teachers. This budget was intended to cover teacher salaries and purchase required books and supplies, but water was determined to be a much greater need. After drilling water wells and obtaining clean water onsite, the school witnessed a knowledgeable 30% increase in attendance, and budgets were re-allocated for teachers salaries and books. This plan is a proven solution that helps increase education opportunities for girls and women, improve health and sanitation, and have more opportunities for development. Therefore, we urge you to donate now on https://wholives.org/donate/ allowing WHOlives organization to install new water points each month. You can change lives!
