#6Female Participation: A Step In The Right Direction

The World Bank is committed to assisting countries in their development and achieving poverty reduction based on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Water resource management remains a key challenge for achieving target 6.5 and other non-water related goals. Water resource management refers to the process of developing, managing, and planning water resources, both in terms of water quality and quantity. Effective management will ensure that people have amounts and quality of water for drinking and sanitation facilities, energy generation, food production and inland water transport. 


So, where does gender equality come into this, you might ask? Without the inclusion of young girls and women (YGAW) in the procedures of water resource management, the challenges surrounding water accessibility and use cannot be met. Despite emphasis by the SDGs on the importance of gender equality to sustainable development in the fifth target, the relationship between environmental sustainability and YGAW’s inclusion and empowerment has often been ignored. 


Why is it important for YGAW to participate?


Put simply, YGAW are major drivers of sustainable development because they are primary users and collectors of water. Thus, improving their participation in water management could undoubtedly lead to better resource management. For example, if YGAW were more involved in water decision-making, it would allow for greater compliance and maintenance as well as the strengthening of YGAW’s water privileges and bargaining power. 


Determinants of YGAW’s participation 


The low level of participation in water management is due to a host of reasons:

  • The gender gap in property rights – water rights are usually allocated based on formal land rights, which YGAW are typically excluded from
  • It is assumed and accepted that men dominate economic fields whilst YGAW’s role is concerned with domestic and household matters
  • Water management is considered time-consuming, and this takes away from time which could be spent in child-care, cooking, and cleaning
  • YGAW are assumed to make meaningless contributions because they have low levels of education, they are busy, or they lack communication and negotiation abilities
  • As a result of patriarchal attitudes, it is inappropriate for YGAW to speak out in public

Water resource management in Tanzania


In order to increase YGAW’s access to adequate water and sanitation, their participation in water-related decision-making must be improved. In efforts to do exactly this, Tanzania launched the Uplifting Women’s Participation in Water-Related Decision-Making (UPWARD) initiative which aimed to help YGAW who bear the burden of water scarcity along the Wami-Ruvu and Rufiji River basins. As part of a 5-year programme, trained team members led education and empowerment sessions to over 300 individuals to try and challenge gendered norms including the notion that YGAW should remain shy and not contradict or speak after men. 


Source: Community Team Members and UPWARD Programme Staff

Although the initiative was able to normalise women speaking outwardly in the meetings, their opinions were still not of value. While these programmes are a step in the right direction, such attitudes require much more time to challenge, ideally beginning from primary school followed by reflections in policy.  



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

#3Women Still Carry Most of the World's Water: The Case of Ethiopia

Image
Why the need for a gendered and child-centred approach? Hi guys, and welcome back! Last week I highlighted the inequities women face in accessing and using water due to cultural norms which prevail across many African countries and societies. Today, I want to keep the focus on inequity, specifically on the gendered nature of water collection.   So, why should we adopt a gendered and child-centred approach to understand water collection? Well, first and foremost, the task of collecting water falls disproportionately on young girls and women (YGAW) in the household. This is especially true for rural regions across Africa where inadequate water infrastructures leaves YGAW no choice but to travel long distances and queue long hours for water. The non-governmental organisation WaterAid estimates that globally, women spend around 200 million hours fetching water. Second, in Sub-Saharan Africa women’s lives are heavily influenced by water collection. The amount of time spent fe...
Read more

#5A Man's World

Image
I recently explored the challenges that menstruating young girls and women (YGAW) face with access to wash, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities. Today, I am focusing on the violent atrocities that YGAW encounter when such facilities are lacking or inadequate. In Sub-S aharan Africa, where the state of sanitation is deteriorating, open defecation continues to remain a common practice. Approximately 215 million people continue to engage in open defecation. This is despite the Sustainable Development Goals proposing that countries must provide adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls. Evidently, there is a long way to reaching this target. Informal settlements and WASH   The issue of open defecation is most acute within informal settlements, and Kenya remains a prime example of this. For decades, the government have failed to acknowledge these informal settlements and so the enforcem...
Read more

#4The War on Period Poverty

Image
This week we celebrated World Toilet Day, a campaign advocating for safely managed sanitation around the world.  Thus, I dedicate today’s blog to the importance of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities for young girls and women (YGAW), referring to Rwanda and Ethiopia throughout. Have you ever imagined life without a toilet? Truth is, many of you probably have not and until recently, neither had I. Having a toilet is a privilege often taken for granted and for many people across Sub-Saharan Africa accessibility is a real problem. While 43% of people do not have access to basic water supply, 72% are deprived of basic sanitation.   What is period poverty? YGAW are disproportionately affected by the lack of access to basic WASH facilities. During menstruation, the concerns become increasingly visible; YGAW living in resource-poor countries in Africa, appropriate WASH facilities and sanitary products are completely absent or unaffordable, with limited disposal option...
Read more