Women’s Rights and Access to Water and Sanitation: Advocacy Materials
Women’s Rights and Access to Water and Sanitation: Key Findings
‘We will not be forgotten’: How to Reclaim the Neighbourhood
Action Research Project on Community Women’s Rights and Access to Water and Sanitation (WATSAN) in Delhi’s Resettlement Colonies
A joint initiative of JAGORI, Women in International Cities, Canada and Action India, supported by IDRC, Canada
The working-classes in Delhi have been subject to a systematic process of dispossession and impoverishment for the last three to four decades. Forcible eviction from slums in Delhi and relocation to the periphery of the city forms the core of this process as most of the evicted work in the informal sector. Such relocation to colonies such as Bawana on the periphery of the city make it impossible for them to continue to attempt to earn sustainable livelihoods. In order to understand the impact of eviction on people’s livelihoods, action research, since 2004, has been undertaken in Bawana. The abysmal conditions of water supply in the area and the fact that the burden of filling water falls on women and young girls have been noted by Menon Sen & Bhan in “ Swept off the Map: Surviving Eviction and Resettlement in Delhi” (2008: Jagori & Yoda Press). For further details: http://jagori.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/public-hearing-sanitation.ppt The Safety of Women in Urban Spaces has been one of the focus issues of Jagori (see http://jagori.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/is-this-our-city.pdf) therefore it was decided to explore in depth the linkages between the issue of safety of women and WATSAN services. The lack of proper toilets and water facilities and its impact on women and girls is the focus of the action research project in two resettlement colonies of Delhi: Bawana and Bhalaswa by JAGORI and Action India respectively.
The research teams worked closely with the community women to frame the issue, develop the tools and methodology. They examined the issue in all its manifestation its impact on the everyday lives of the inhabitants. The research study was undertaken in the period June 2009 – April 2010. The research sought to deepen the understanding and the linkages of poverty, tenure, water access, sanitation and the lack of access to other services on women’s lives, livelihoods and well-being in the target communities. The initial step undertaken was to adapt and test the Women’s Safety Audit Methodology (WSA) to generate a concrete model to engage resettled women with their local government agencies, other representatives in their communities and other partners. The WSA brought to the fore the gender service gap in – water, sanitation, hygiene, solid waste management and drainage.
The research project has a strong participatory element – community women and youth have been part of a core team and have helped identify the problems, discussed the action research methods and action plans, been part of the monitoring and documentation processes. The guiding principle behind the entire project is to ensure that women’s voices are included – across diversities of caste, religion, ethnicity and other minority status (including differently-abled women) – in all processes. The core guiding pillar of the research is to ensure the voices of women reach the higher echelons of policy makers and political actors.
A National Advisory Committee (6 members, comprising inter-disciplinary fields) have been identified and set up to guide the process and to provide expert inputs. Two meetings with this advisory group have been held so far.
The process of building women’s leadership capacities on governance in order to negotiate with local government, service providers to explore, discuss and evolve effective mechanisms that can also be ‘used’ or ‘tested’ is presently on way. This process will build the capacities of the above group, increase their knowledge of water, sanitation, gender budgeting, advocacy and health needs in their colony. The methodology will be based on principles of adult learning and feminist understanding. It will include and build upon team bonding and team building processes. Each workshop will have distinctive content and methodology to build the existing knowledge and skills of the community leaders.
A partnership with a communications agency for popular communications is in the process of being finalized. The women leaders will be trained in advocacy skills to disseminate audio content and digital stories through multiple channels which include narrowcasting through cable channels, listener’s clubs, broadcast, websites and portals. This will ensure that the reach is to the widest – involved and interested public.
In parallel support to the advocacy efforts of the women leaders a group of interested and sensitized youth are being trained in theatre techniques to produce a street-play on WATSAN issues affecting their colony.
A study to utilize Gender Responsive Budgeting (GRB) recognized as an important tool to achieve gender equity has been initiated in partnership with an agency working on GRB. An analytical framework for an in-depth assessment of the budgetary provisions and gender responsiveness of the various government plans and schemes aimed at the provision of water and sanitation facilities will be developed. Funds that have been provided over time for maintenance of such facilities in the project areas will also be analyzed within the same framework. It is also planned to build the capacity of the women leaders to use budget analysis as a tool in order to advocate for greater allocations and better utilization of funds towards WATSAN services.
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