A/HRC/42/47/Add.1 collect water. In the plateau and the lowlands in the west, the population use springs, boreholes and rivers, which generally flow in deep gorges. 36. In urban areas of Lesotho, several projects have been implemented to increase the availability of water infrastructure. For instance, the construction of the Metolong Dam and the associated infrastructure to supply water for domestic and industrial use began in 2008 focusing on the supply of bulk water to town centres. As reported, over 500,000 people are benefiting from this programme. 18 Furthermore, the lowlands water supply scheme, currently in preparation, is designed to significantly improve water security for a large population in the lowlands through blended financing composed of grants and loans. While the project is certainly needed to improve water security for the population in densely populated areas, it is unclear what impact the obligation of the Government to pay for the loans will have on the financial sustainability of the water sector. 37. The Government has made continuous efforts to provide basic services in the rural areas and to address inequalities between urban and rural areas. However, challenges remain regarding the availability of water sources, particularly in the lowlands, where boreholes are the main source of water. The topography and geology, such as the rocky soil, pose a challenge when drilling boreholes. Furthermore, the lowered water levels derived from climate change pose a further challenge, the implication being that boreholes would need to be drilled deeper. The Special Rapporteur notes the lack of human capacity and financial resources of the Department of Water Affairs that is charged with drilling boreholes and digging wells. He also notes that improvements could be made if the district offices of the Department set the priorities to provide water services. Those priorities should not be based on a “first-come-first-served” basis and should not be subject to distortions, influenced by “political interests”. 2. Continuous availability 38. The Special Rapporteur observed several cases of discontinuous water services. In the past 10 years, Lesotho has experienced successive climate shocks, such as recurrent droughts and floods, which have negatively impacted communities and the livelihoods of the people, access to clean water being one of the more salient impacts. During his visit, there were several days when it rained, but the Special Rapporteur could also see a reduced amount of water in rivers, streams and springs. In particular, when he took the road towards Quthing, he could see that some parts of the Senqu river had dried up and the bottom of the river was visible in several spots. 39. The reliance on spring water and fresh water, coupled with the recurrent droughts, has had a significant impact on the availability of water. The lack of water availability during periods of drought has also forced Basotho living in rural areas to fetch water from unprotected sources, such as natural wells also used by animals. In some cases, both human and animals are competing for water from the same source. Residents in a village in the district of Thaba-Tseka relied on several water sources: rainwater if there is any rain, dug wells that were almost dried up, or a public tap which did not provide any water. As a daily chore, women wake up early to wait for their turn to collect unclean and unsafe water from the well. The Special Rapporteur visited the well around which the women were sitting and they explained that: “this is how we sit and wait for the water to fill up. We come here sometimes from 4 a.m. until noon”. 40. Scarcity of water sources means that girls and women, who are usually responsible for collecting water, have to travel a longer distance in search of it. Reduced water flow has led to prolonged waiting times at water points, which has exposed women, girls and boys to increased risk of gender-based violence, including assault and rape. According to a study carried out by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the proportion of households that had to walk more than 2 km to a water source more nearly tripled, from 5.8 per cent to 18 See World Bank, “Water for Lesotho’s lowlands: unveiling the Metolong Dam”, available from www.worldbank.org/en/news/feature/2015/12/18/water-for-lesothos-lowlands-unveiling-themetolong-dam. 9