Spatial disparities in household solid waste disposal across tenure and urban–rural gradients: A countrywide spatial multivariate clustering analysis applied in Eswatini

Abstract

In many low- and middle-income countries, uneven service coverage across urban–rural gradients and tenure regimes produces highly heterogeneous household waste disposal behaviors, with important implications for public health, air quality, and environmental integrity. Using Eswatini’s 2017 National Population and Housing Census—the first national census in the country to include household waste disposal variables and the first opportunity for a georeferenced, countrywide, household-level assessment—we analyzed 2326 enumeration areas (EAs) and 6 disposal modalities: regular collection, irregular collection, public pit dumping, backyard pits, open burning, and undesignated dumping. We applied spatially explicit multivariate clustering to identify distinct disposal profiles and then evaluated geographic patterning using spatial autocorrelation and hotspot mapping. Five clusters were distinguished, revealing a pronounced urban–rural divide and strong tenure effects. Urban and company-town settings exhibited the highest reliance on regular collection (mean ≈52%) yet retained substantial open burning (≈43%), indicating persistent behavioral and/or service-quality gaps even where collection exists. Rural EAs, particularly on customary Eswatini Nation Land (both rural development areas (RDA) and non-RDA), were characterized by dominant backyard pit use (≈81%) alongside elevated public pit dumping (≈61%) and undesignated dumping (≈24%). Spatial statistics further showed concentrated rural hotspots of informal disposal practices, with notable clustering in parts of Lubombo and Shiselweni. These results support targeted, cluster-specific practical and policy interventions that combine rural service expansion, demand-side behavior change to reduce open burning, and governance arrangements that explicitly engage traditional authorities in planning, siting, and compliance.