A WOW! e-Brief

Work of Women program @ World Neighbors

January 2007

Introduction

Overview on Women and Water

World Neighbors and Water

An Interview with Linda Jo Stern, MPH

Learn More

The resources below, a number of which were utilized in the preparation of this e-newsletter, are recommended as good sources for further learning on the subject of water, development and women.

WSSC/Water, Engineering and Development Centre. For Her It’s the Big Issue: Putting Women at the Centre of Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene. Evidence Report. Geneva, Switzerland: Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council, 2006.

http://www.genderandwater.org/page/5124

From the site: “The report describes how not only women, but also the community as a whole benefits from involving women in water supply and sanitation projects.” This “Evidence Report” is an easy-to-read overview of issues related to women, water and sanitation, and includes interesting examples of local work from around the world.

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Gender and Water Alliance.

http://www.genderandwater.org/

From the site: “The Gender and Water Alliance (GWA) was established at the Second World Water Forum (WWF) in March 2000. The mission of GWA is to promote women's and men's equitable access to and management of safe and adequate water, for domestic supply, sanitation, food security and environmental sustainability. The provision of sustainable water and sanitation services that incorporate an integrated water resources management approach requires a special emphasis and focus on gender, social justice and human rights. GWA believes that equitable access to and control over water is a basic right for all, as well as a critical factor in promoting poverty eradication and sustainability.”

Gender in Water Partnership.

http://adb.org/water/actions/topic.asp?code=GEN

From the site: “The Gender in Water Partnership between ADB [Asian Development Bank] and the Gender and Water Alliance aims to mainstream gender considerations into water sector operations to achieve universal access to safe water and sanitation, with special emphasis on the needs of women.” Includes links to reports and other documents related to gender sensitive approaches to water solutions in Asia.

Gender and Water Alliance. Resource Guide: Mainstreaming Gender in Water Management. Version 2.1. 2006.

http://www.genderandwater.org/page/2414

More technical than some of the other documents listed here – it was written for use mainly by water professionals, politicians, gender specialists – there is important information contained. Apart from covering a range of issues, there are a number of case studies included. Available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French and Arabic, the various versions also each include some content unique to the language region – making them interpretations rather than just translations from the original English.

UNESCO Water Portal.

http://www.unesco.org/water/

From the site: “The UNESCO Water Portal is intended to enhance access to information related to freshwater available on the World Wide Web. The site provides links to the current UNESCO and UNESCO-led programmes on freshwater and will serve as an interactive point for sharing, browsing and searching websites of water-related organizations, government bodies and NGOs, including a range of categories such as water links, water events, learning modules and other on-line resources.” On this site you can also subscribe to a free, weekly online newsletter on water and sustainable development.

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Information from the Fourth World Water Forum (Mexico City, Mexico, in March 2006).

http://www.worldwaterforum4.org.mx/home/home.asp

From the site: “The World Water Forum is an initiative of the World Water Council that has the aim of raising the awareness on water issues all over the world. As the main international event on water, it seeks to enable multi-stakeholder participation and dialogue to influence water policy making at a global level, thus assuring better living standards for people all over the world and a more responsible social behavior towards water issues in-line with the pursuit of sustainable development.”

World Water Assessment Programme. Water – A Shared Responsibility: The 2nd UN World Water Development Report. UNESCO Publishing/Berghahn Books, 2006.

http://www.unesco.org/water/wwap/wwdr/index.shtml

Review or download this report using the above link. From the site: “A comprehensive assessment of the state of the world’s freshwater resources, critical water-related problems and societies’ coping mechanisms. . . . The report points to a prevalent lack of capacity and knowledge base as today’s primary obstacles to achieving the necessary levels of water governance and illustrates that only our global cooperation will help to ensure an integrated equitable and sustainable management of the world’s most precious resource – water.”

World Water Assessment Programme. Water for People – Water for Life: The 1st UN World Water Development Report. UNESCO Publishing/Berghahn Books, 2003.

http://www.unesco.org/water/wwap/wwdr1/

The first report from the 24 UN agencies is also available online from the above link.

 

UNDP. Beyond scarcity: power, poverty and the global water crisis. Human Development Report 2006. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006.

http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006/report.cfm

Every year since 1990 the United Nations Development Programme has commissioned a Human Development Report that examines and reports on sustainable human development.  A number of measures of development are reported on year after year, including some related to water and sanitation. In addition, each report highlights a highly topical issue in development by involving experts and practitioners from around the world, and reporting on aspects of this issue. This topic for 2006 was water. Download or order this report using the above link.

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WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation. Water for Life: Making It Happen. France: World Health Organization, United Nations Children’s Fund, 2005.

http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/monitoring/jmp2005/en/index.html

This easily readable report highlights the ways in which water is related to achieving the Millennium Development Goals, as well as spotlighting issues for different age ranges (e.g., under five years of age, school-aged, etc.), diseases and specific gender issues.

 

WHO/UNDP Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation. Meeting the MDG Drinking Water and Sanitation Target: The Urban and Rural Challenge of the Decade. Geneva, Switzerland: WHO, 2006.

http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/monitoring/jmpfinal.pdf

This report, available for download from the link above, provides an explanation of the Millennium Development Goals related to water and sanitation and provides a comprehensive assessment of progress to date, and the challenges ahead.

 

Food & Water Watch

http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/water

A spin-off of Public Citizen, the U.S. consumer advocacy group, Food & Water Watch’s mission focuses on challenging the privatization of water and promoting local, democratic control over water resources around the world. They disseminate information on privatization efforts and results of privatization on water quality and access in U.S. communities and globally. The Food & Water Watch Web site offers information on current issues and local actions, as well as an option to subscribe to a free e-mail list. An excellent resource for identifying connections between U.S. issues and those in developing countries.

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