GIS and modelling in the management of rural water supply

Until the 1970's the rural population of Bangladesh relied on surface water and traditional dug wells for their domestic water supply. Use of these unsafe sources led to large-scale outbreaks of cholera and diarrhoeal disease, particularly amongst young children. The GoB, UNICEF and others identified groundwater as a safe alternative and commenced a massive programme of installing hand tubewells (HTW). Later this was also taken up by the private sector. Estimates of the present number of HTW’s in use range between 3 and 10 million. The success of the switch to ‘safe’ sources of water supply led to dramatic reductions in both morbidity and mortality attributed to diarrhoeal diseases. As recently as 1998, UNICEF concluded that more 97% of the rural population had access to safe drinking water.