The recent achievement of the United Nations Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target, to reduce the number of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water by half, has struck a note of hope in the development world. The World Health Organization warns, however, that ‘only 61% of the people in sub-Saharan Africa have access to improved water supply sources compared with 90% or more in Latin America and the Caribbean, Northern Africa, and large parts of Asia. Over 40% of all people globally who lack access to drinking water live in sub-Saharan Africa.’