13.4.4  Affordable

As well as being physically accessible, water should also be reasonably priced and affordable for everyone. Buying water should not reduce a person’s capacity to buy other essential goods. This means that essential amounts of water must sometimes be provided free according to the socioeconomic strength of the communities. Ensuring the affordability of water requires that services match what people can pay. For example, in most rural communities of Ethiopia protected water sources are freely provided by the government and other organisations.