Figure 1
In those households where water needs to be collected, 57 % of those collecting water in El Salvador, 55.6 % of those fetching water in Panama, and 57.9 % of those fetching water in Paraguay are women. In Mexico, the burden of fetching water seems more evenly divided: with 50.8 % of women burdened with water-collection responsibilities (Figure 1).
Surprisingly, even though rural locations typically have a greater portion of the population not connected to a piped system (and thus are places where household members are more likely to have to fetch water), water-collection responsibilities are not more gendered in rural locations. In fact, in Paraguay, the reverse is true: 68.7 % of women in urban Paraguay are in charge of collecting water vs. 55.1 % of women in rural locations (Figure 2 and Figure 3). The factors driving the urban-rural divide in water-collection responsibilities in Latin America, and elsewhere, is a subject that merits additional exploration.
Figure 2
Figure 3
Gender divisions in water-fetching responsibilities have broader implications for social equality. In addition to reflecting deeply-rooted, gendered, social roles, burdening women with the task of fetching water limits their use of spare time; it restricts women’s ability to invest in gaining skills, education, and to engage in entrepreneurial activities which may improve their human-capital. It also raises the opportunity costs of working, lowers their reservation wages, and hampers women’s capacity to earn income and integrate into the labor market. The burden is even heavier for small girls, as loading the burden of fetching water onto them limits their ability to attend, and finish, school.
With the World Bank taking a more active role in mainstreaming gender initiatives across its different development initiatives, it’s important to place greater visibility on women, and the disadvantages they face in the water-sector. As we keep an eye on SDG target 6.1, we should re-double our efforts to lift the water-carrying burden off women’s shoulders.
[1] The MICS survey has been administered relatively recently in an array of countries in Latin America: Paraguay, Mexico, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Cuba, Panama and Uruguay.
The question on water collection responsibilities was asked only to those households without a connection to piped water. Uruguay was excluded from the analysis presented because the responses to the question on water collection responsibilities had a very small sample size.
Cuba and Dominican Republic were excluded for succinctness, and to focus on inland countries, which we believe may be more easily comparable among themselves.
Source link : https://blogs.worldbank.org/en/water/gender-and-water-collection-responsibilities-snapshot-latin-america
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Publish date : 2019-06-26 03:00:00
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