Photograph: [Gregoire Merot/AP Photo]. Retrieved from aljazeera.com
Drop by disappearing drop, water is an ever more precious resource on Mayotte, the poorest place in the European Union.
Taps flow just one day out of three in this French territory off Africa’s eastern coast, thanks to a drawn-out drought compounded by years of underinvestment and mismanagement.
Diseases like cholera and typhoid are on the rebound, and the French army recently intervened to distribute water and quell tensions over supplies.
The crisis is a wake-up call to the French government about the challenges and cost of managing human-caused climate change across France’s far-flung territories.
Racha Mousdikoudine, a 38-year-old mother of two living in Labattoir, washes dishes with bottled water, when she can get it. When the water taps run, she says, “I have to choose between taking a shower or preserving my water supply.