#8Concluding Thoughts

If you are reading this, we have reached the end of this series of blogging. Although academically and sometimes emotionally challenging, I have enjoyed teasing out the intricacies and links between water, gender, and development, something which I previously knew very little about. I hope that I have opened your eyes to the realities of water-related issues and how at the forefront of these issues are young girls and women. From compromising their education to ignoring their individual needs and entrapping them into spheres of violence, young girls and women continue to be disproportionately impacted by poor quality and access to water. 


However, I have shown that all is not bad; there is light at the end of the tunnel. Contributions from various levels – community led for example, in crafting sanitary products or organisation led like the Peepoo initiative – have helped to tackle issues regarding water and sanitation. Although these alone cannot completely solve school absence and eradicate open defecation, they are a step towards the right direction. But, if we are serious about tackling water-related issues, it is vital that young girls and women as well as young boys and men are educated. Education is fundamental to challenging social and gendered norms at an early stage, reducing the likeliness of these being reinforced in future generations. This must be followed by increasing recognition of women at the policy level. By this, I mean that policies that advocate the participation, inclusion and empowerment of young girls and women should be designed, revised and most importantly, practiced. 


Lastly, I have remained especially considerate of Wainaina’s words throughout the writing process. So, to not ‘treat Africa as if it were one country’ and generalise all water-related problems, I have narrowed the focus of this blog to the East African region. While I realise even this runs the risk of generalising, I have used case study examples such as Kenya and Uganda. 


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