Assessment of groundwater quality and spatial accessibility using integrated gis and laboratory analysis in rural binga, Zimbabwe

Access to safe drinking water, adequate sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) remains a significant public health challenge in rural regions of developing countries. In these developing countries, particularly in rural communities like Binga, Zimbabwe, water scarcity and inadequate WASH infrastructure continue to undermine public health and livelihoods in rural Binga District, Zimbabwe. This study presents an integrated approach combining Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and laboratory water quality analysis to evaluate groundwater safety and spatial accessibility in randomly selected seven wards of Binga District. Sixteen boreholes and deep wells were geolocated and sampled for key physicochemical and microbiological parameters, while GIS techniques, particularly buffer analysis and Inverse Distance Weighting (IDW) interpolation assessed household proximity to water sources and spatial distribution patterns. Results indicate that while most water quality parameters meet World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines, fluoride concentrations consistently exceed safe limits, posing a geogenic public health risk. Critically, fewer than 5% of 467 mapped households fall within the recommended 1 km access radius, reflecting severe inequities in borehole distribution and water accessibility. The identified mismatch between groundwater quality and availability highlights infrastructural barriers as the primary driver of water insecurity. The integrated GIS-laboratory framework provides a replicable methodology for diagnosing water access challenges and informs strategic planning for targeted water resource management in similarly vulnerable rural settings.