A growing water crisis is unfolding across West Africa, putting millions of lives at risk. New research by WaterAid and Tree Aid shows that 122 million people in Ghana, Niger, and Nigeria are now exposed to unsafe drinking water, a rise of 20 million in just five years. The findings trace this rapid deterioration directly to deforestation and the loss of vegetation cover that sustain freshwater systems.
The study, titled “From Roots to Rivers: How Deforestation Impacts Freshwater Access,” highlights a clear and measurable relationship between forest loss and the decline in both the quantity and quality of surface water across the three countries. Forests and vegetation are central to protecting freshwater resources by stabilizing soils, filtering pollutants, and regulating rainfall. Their destruction, the report warns, is disrupting these natural systems and threatening the reliability of water supplies used for drinking, food production, and health.
In Ghana, Niger, and Nigeria, communities are already experiencing the effects. The report shows that in Niger and Nigeria, every 1,000 hectares of forest loss corresponds to an average of 9.25 hectares of surface water loss. Breaking this down, the figure stands at 6.9 hectares in Nigeria and 11.6 hectares in Niger. This pattern confirms a direct and alarming link between forest degradation and declining water sources.
The scale of the problem is most visible in Niger, where 99.5% of available surface freshwater is now considered at risk of sedimentation and poor quality. In Nigeria, about 85.6 million people live in areas classified as highly vulnerable to surface water loss due to deforestation.
In Ghana, the situation is defined more by water contamination than disappearance, with the study identifying a direct connection between forest loss and the deterioration of surface water quality.
Between 2013 and 2025, Ghana lost about 298,000 hectares of vegetation, at an average annual rate of 24,800 hectares, roughly the size of the city of Edinburgh each year. Nigeria’s vegetation loss over the same period reached 324,000 hectares, equivalent to losing an area the size of Birmingham annually. Niger, on the other hand, recorded a modest gain, successfully increasing vegetation cover by 101,000 hectares.
Researchers note that while Niger’s gains are encouraging, they are not yet sufficient to offset the wider regional decline. The combined impact of forest loss across the three countries has left large sections of the population dependent on increasingly unreliable and unsafe water sources.
In total, more than 122 million people are estimated to be at risk of unsafe surface water, affecting not only households but also agriculture and livestock production, which depend on the same dwindling freshwater reserves.
The deforestation in Ghana continues to be driven by agricultural expansion, logging, mining, and bushfires. These pressures, combined with population growth and changing rainfall patterns, are degrading the ecosystems that feed rivers, streams, and reservoirs. The result is increased sedimentation and contamination of water bodies that serve rural and urban communities alike.
The report emphasizes that water security in West Africa cannot be separated from forest management. It argues that addressing water challenges will require protecting existing forests, restoring degraded landscapes, and integrating watershed management into national water and environmental policies.
Unless vegetation loss is slowed and restoration scaled up, the number of people exposed to unsafe water will continue to rise, deepening a crisis that already affects more than 122 million people across the subregion.
