Introduction

There is a growing volume of literature suggesting women and men often have disparate relationships to water access, knowledge, governance, uses and experiences in Africa. This could be due to gendered labour practices, socio-economic factors and/or intersectional differences such as income (Harris et al., 2016:1). Issues of water in Africa are therefore inextricably linked with issues of gender. 

Consequently, the posts on this blog throughout the following months will discuss issues of gender in relation to water throughout Africa, highlighting problems that both men and women face respectively. Topics will include issues related specifically to groundwater, agriculture and the collection of water as well as sanitation. There will be a focus on women’s issues in particular and this first post will outline the primary reasons as to why women are disproportionately impacted by water related issues in Africa and therefore why assessing water issues in Africa from the perspective of gender is so important.

Women and children are primarily responsible for the collection of water across Africa. This reduces the time women and children have available to engage in other activities such as generating income and attending school (Graham et al., 2016:3).

Girls often have to drop out of school to help out at home or because there are no separate toilet facilities which can guarantee them privacy. This is particularly important once they reach puberty. In fact, women and girls are often made to feel uncomfortable relieving themselves during the day (water.org, 2016) due to lack of access to toilets and so have to wait until nightfall, which can put them at risk of physical attack and sexual violence. Furthermore, traveling long distances to collect water in the day can also leave women and girls at risk of danger even in daylight (Graham et al., 2016:3).

Women are also primarily responsible for the management of domestic water use as they clean, cook and wash. Despite this, they are rarely consulted or involved in the planning and management of water. Women also play a dominant role in agricultural activities, though again they often experience problems due to limited access to land (Baker et al., 2015: 325). There is in fact evidence to show that gender equality and female empowerment are crucial for improving a country’s economy and considering water is essential to all economic activities, ensuring women have access and are involved in the decision-making process of water resource management is essential (Abrahams et al., 2010: 78). This will be discussed in greater detail in another blog post.

Therefore, issues of gender clearly need to be considered when discussing water issues or implementing any water resource management schemes, as this blog will discuss.

References:

Abrahams, Y., Mhlongo, S., & Napo, V. (2011). A gendered analysis of water and sanitation services policies and programmes in South Africa: 2006 – 2010. Agenda, 25(2), 71-79.

Baker, Cullen, Debevec, & Abebe. (2015). A socio-hydrological approach for incorporating gender into biophysical models and implications for water resources research. Applied Geography, 62, 325-338.

Graham, J., Hirai, M., Kim, S., & Vitzthum, V. (2016). An Analysis of Water Collection Labor among Women and Children in 24 Sub-Saharan African Countries. PLoS ONE, 11(6), PLoS ONE, 2016, Vol.11(6).

Harris, L., Kleiber, D., Goldin, J., Darkwah, A., & Morinville, C. (2016). Intersections of gender and water: Comparative approaches to everyday gendered negotiations of water access in undeserved areas of Accra, Ghana and Cape Town, South Africa. Journal of Gender Studies, 1-22.

Water.org. (2016). Women and Water: The Role of Gender & The Water Shortage, Water.org. [online] Available at: http://water.org/water-crisis/women-crisis/ [Accessed 13 Oct. 2016].