Abstract
Access to affordable infrastructure services is necessary for sustainable development and poverty eradication, and provides major benefits in the area of health, literacy, and equity. In this study, the qualitative method of participant-driven photo-eliciting (PDPE) was used to investigate the access of infrastructural services for female-headed household groups in the informal settlement of Vingunguti in Dar es Salaam. Almost all the informants called water scarcity a critical issue that heavily affected their livelihood due to limited services and poor quality. There was a vast seasonal variation in the quality and quantity of water: The rainy season led to flooding in the area, and the water was prone to contamination by waste and sewage from pit latrines and the sewage dam; the dry season, on the other hand, was characterized by shortage of water. In the discussion that followed, the informants blamed the outbreak of various diseases in the settlement on the limited quantity of water, and its contamination. Photo-eliciting also tended to feature more informed participants by encouraging the informants to talk more exhaustively than while answering interview questions.
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