On average, Kabul has been said by meteorologists to receive only 362 mm of rainfall annually, and some years this has dropped as low as 175 mm, such as in 2001.
According to the official and based on studies conducted in 2017, Kabul's groundwater potential has been estimated at 44 million cubic meters each year, enough for only 2 million inhabitants, while the population has surpassed 5 million.
"This year, water shortage is a huge challenge for Kabul residents. Together with my younger brothers, I have to carry water home from a public tap over a long distance for our daily use," Kabul resident Gul Rahman, 20, told Xinhua.
"The water shortage has also caused huge problems for children. They have to carry water from public taps to their homes on the mountainside daily. Carrying water takes a lot of energy and time for children and teenagers," he said.
Water scarcity emanating from a lack of precipitation in late 2017 and early this year has also affected the lives of 500,000 children in Afghanistan, UNICEF warned in late April.
The impact on children could be devastating in 22 of the country's 34 provinces. In 10 of the worst affected provinces across Afghanistan, where 20 to 30 percent of water sources are reportedly dry, 1 million people's lives are threatened, according to UNICEF.
In addition, in many areas, according to Muzafarkhil, the water in the wells is impure, as the wells are dug near septic tanks. "We are not only facing water problems in quantity but also in quality, as some people dig septic tanks on the sidewalks which infect drinking water and cause health problems for consumers when the pipes rupture," he said.
【国际英语资讯:Feature: War-weary Afghans further tormented by severe water shortage】相关文章:
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