Dr John Sentamu made the comments following a visit to a WaterAid project in Uganda earlier this month.
He toured the Kalerwe community, located around 4km north of Kampala, where WaterAid has worked with local partners, including the African Evangelical Enterprise, to build rain water tanks, public toilets and pre-paid water meters.
WaterAid has teamed up with local partners across Uganda to deliver water and improve sanitation in remote or difficult to reach communities.
The communities face challenges in securing clean water and proper sanitation as a result of many issues such as land rights, overcrowding, and poor refuse management.
The Archbishop of York said the situation in communities like Kalerwe was "desperate".
He said: “The challenges are tough, very tough for the local people. There are 350 people in this community using just two latrines. The situation is that the town runs out of water when the rains don’t come in time. People are using unclean water which is collected in jerry cans. This is too difficult to imagine for most. I am glad the African Evangelical Enterprise is involved, telling people of the love of God but that love of God has also a practical implication.”
The Archbishop appealed to Christians to consider supporting WaterAid's work during Harvest.