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Water supply and women in developing countries


Water supply and women in developing countries is a complex topic, as lack of accessible, sufficient, clean and affordable water supply has adverse impacts specifically related to women in developing nations. In most countries, women are the primary household members responsible for providing water for domestic consumption. The collection of water, which may take up to six hours a day to meet the household needs, is a duty often relegated to women and children. This foregone time often prevents children, especially girls, from attending school and women from pursuing small business opportunities.

In 2000, the Second World Water Forum in The Hague concluded that women are the primary users of domestic water, that women used water in their key food production roles, and that women and children were the most vulnerable to water-related disasters. At the International Conference on Water and the Environment, the Dublin Statement on Water and Sustainable Development included "Women Play a central part in the provision management and safeguarding of water" as one of 4 principles. Many women's rights and water advocacy organizations have identified water privatization as an area of concern, sometimes alleging negative effects that specifically affect women.

Water supply schemes in developing nations have shown higher success when planned and run with full participation of women in the affected communities. A study including 88 communities in 14 countries showed that projects where men and women from intended user households were included in selection of site facilities, and where water projects were initiated by user households, rather than by external agencies or local leaders, achieved a final higher access to services than those that did not.

Chilean law does not specifically include a gender component relating to water projects, but notes that all water projects must assess impact on the "lives and customs of human groups". A study commissioned in 2000 by the Direccion General de Aguas relating to gender and the challenges of water resources noted:

All government institutions dealing with water resources have a very low percentage of women at the planning and decision-making levels. In stakeholder associations, their percentage in decision-making functions is even lower because women seldom participate in this kind of organisation. A sample study of water rights shoed that 16 percent of these rights belong to women. In the rural areas, the gender balance in water management is somewhat better, especially in the Indian territories. The current average percentage of women presidents in the rural zones is almost 20 percent.

The 1995 Constitution of the Republic of Uganda, Article 33 [2] states "The State shall provide the facilities and opportunities necessary to enhance the welfare of women to enable them to realise their full potential and advancement". Evidence of this outlined responsibility, though excluded from official water statutes, has been addressed in the National Gender Policy, National Water Policy, and the Local Government Act. The National Gender Policy lays out a framework for gender-oriented sectoral policy in development. The National Water Policy calls for the inclusion of women at all stages of implementation, noting that "women and men should have equal opportunities to participate fully in all aspects of community management". The local government act requires 30% of the representation on local councils to be women, currently at around 10%.


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