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Introduction: Drinking contaminated water is a significant cause of mortality and morbidity in Sub-Saharan Africa, where access to safe drinking water is limited. Although numerous studies have investigated the bacteriological quality of drinking water in Ethiopia, their findings have been inconsistent and varied, hindering the implementation of effective water quality monitoring. Moreover, there is a lack of nationwide assessment of the bacteriological quality of drinking water in Ethiopia. Therefore, this systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to determine the bacteriological quality of drinking water and its associated factors in Ethiopia., Methods: An international electronic database, including PubMed, Science Direct, Global Health, CINAHL, African Journals Online, HINARI, and Google Scholar was employed to retrieve the relevant articles. The study adhered to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Protocols (PRISMA) guidelines. A random-effects model was used to estimate the pooled effect size, and the Egger regression model was employed using STATA 14 software to assess potential publication bias., Results: A total of 26 studies involving 7,962 water samples met the eligibility criteria for meta-analysis. The pooled prevalence of at least one bacteriological contamination of drinking water was 52.26% (95%CI: 39.09-65.43), with extreme heterogeneity (I2 = 99.7%; p-value < 0.001). The pooled prevalence of total and fecal coliform in drinking water was 49.55% (95% CI: 34.88-64.23) and 44.27% (95%CI: 34.36-54.19), respectively. 14.13% of the water source was at a very high sanitary risk level (unfit for drinking), with significant heterogeneity (I2 = 94.1%, p< 0.001). The absence of household-level water treatment (OR = 3.3; 95%CI: 1.28-5.32) and drawing water using dipping methods (OR = 4.52; 95%CI: 1.71-7.34) were determinant factors for bacteriological contamination of drinking water., Conclusion: We found that the bacteriological quality of drinking water did not comply with the World Health Organization and Ethiopia's standard guidelines for drinking water, which call for urgent intervention. One out of seven water sources was at a high sanitary risk level, which could increase the risk of infectious disease in the country. The absence of household-level water treatment and drawing water using dipping was a significant factor in the bacteriological quality of drinking water. Based on these findings, the water supply and sewerage authority should prioritize regular monitoring of the bacteriological quality of drinking water., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2025 Daba et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Waste stabilization pond (WSP) technology is one of the most promising wastewater treatment methods. In developing countries, including Ethiopia, only a small proportion of the wastewater is being treated. Discharge of untreated wastewater into receiving water bodies may lead to disruption of ecological integrity, economic, and public health risks. However, there is limited evidence on WSP efficiency and effluent water quality in Ethiopia. A laboratory-based cross-sectional study was conducted on 60 wastewater samples. A standard method of procedure was used to collect and analyze samples. SPSS version-24 was used for statistical analysis and a paired t -test was used to test for statistical significant differences. A statistically significant difference ( p < 0.001) in the removal efficiency of BOD 5 up to 75.3% (117 mg/L effluent) and COD up to 56.5% (457.5 mg/L effluent) was recorded. A statistically significant difference ( p < 0.001) in the removal efficiency of TN up to 79% (17.4 mg/L effluent), TP up to 69.2% (4.8 mg/L effluent), and PO 4 -3 up to 71% (3.36 mg/L effluent) was recorded. Whereas, a statistically significant difference ( p < 0.001) in the removal efficiency of total coliforms up to 99.99% (3.4 × 10 3 MPN/100 mL effluent) was recorded. The overall efficiency of the treatment plant was 73.5% and its water quality index of the effluent water quality of WSP was 30. The finding showed that the efficiency of the WSP was judged as satisfactory and the effluent water quality of WSP is unsuitable for the discharge into the environment. Therefore, to improve the efficiency of the WSP and to produce adequately treated water, it required adequate preliminary treatment, modification of the design, desludging of the pond, additional treatment, and frequent monitoring and maintenance of the pond.2 MPN/100 mL effluent) was recorded. The overall efficiency of the treatment plant was 73.5% and its water quality index of the effluent water quality of WSP was 30. The finding showed that the efficiency of the WSP was judged as satisfactory and the effluent water quality of WSP is unsuitable for the discharge into the environment. Therefore, to improve the efficiency of the WSP and to produce adequately treated water, it required adequate preliminary treatment, modification of the design, desludging of the pond, additional treatment, and frequent monitoring and maintenance of the pond., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Belay Desye et al.)

Introduction: Access to safe drinking water is essential to health, and it is a basic human right. However, drinking water treatment plant efficiency and its water quality are not well investigated in low-income countries including Ethiopia., Methods: A laboratory-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 75 water samples. Data analysis was carried out using SPSS version 22 to generate descriptive statistics, and one-way ANOVA was used to test statistically significant difference., Results: Physicochemical qualities of the water samples from tap water sources were found to be pH (6.88 ± 0.05), turbidity (5.15 ± 0.006 NTU), electrical conductivity (170.6 ± 0.1 μ S/cm), residual chlorine (0.19 ± 0.003 mg/L), and fluoride (1.17 ± 0.009 mg/L). The removal efficiency of turbidity, total hardness, and nitrate was found to be 94.4%, 52.3%, and 88.7%, respectively. Removal efficiency of the treatment plant for total coliforms up to 91.6% (15 ± 0.26 CFU/100 mL in tap water) and faecal coliforms up to 99% (1.51 ± 0.03 CFU/100 mL in tap water) was recorded. Parameters of pH, temperature, and faecal coliform were statistically significant different at p < 0.05 in tap water source. The overall efficiency of the treatment plant (68.5%) and the water quality index (76) were recorded., Conclusion: Based on the results, some of the investigated parameters of water quality (turbidity, residual chlorine, total coliform, and faecal coliform) were found to be not within the permissible limits of WHO guideline values for drinking water quality. The water quality index of the water samples was categorized under good water quality. To adequately treat drinking water and improve the treatment plant, adequate preliminary treatments like screening to reduce the incoming organic loading, proper chlorination of the drinking water system, and frequent monitoring and maintenance of the treatment plant system are required., Competing Interests: The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper., (Copyright © 2021 Belay Desye et al.)