Women as principal gate keepers: an ethnographic research study on, water and health in rural Uganda

In most of the developing world, women are socially and culturally responsible for domestic water supplies and management. These activities have a significant effect on the health of women and the children. This study presents an ethnographic understanding of women, water and health in one rural village in Uganda over a period of fourteen months in 2010 /2011. An exploration of the role that women play and a characterisation of their everyday life with regards water management was done. Fieldwork included participant observations and interviews. Data were recorded in fieldnotes and analysed based on critical incidents that illuminated the in-depth search from the “how to the why” of events. The gendered perspectives with regards patriarchy, masculinity, power and submissiveness, provided a theoretical framework for understanding issues with regard to water management. The study reveals that water management is a socially ascribed role and a symbol of womanhood with restricted masculine participation and engagement. I present women as principal gate keepers of water at household and at community levels, but with limited power given the patriarchal nature of this society. I conclude that inadequate water influences women’s engagement in health behaviours, constrains their role performance and influences the realisation of a woman’s full potential towards self-actualisation. This study advances knowledge on the socio-cultural perspectives to health with regards women, water and health. The study urges health workers to go beyond the predetermined packages that focus on the biomedical model to health. The study suggests that access should be increased to get water closer to the households in order to enhance women’s role performance and opportunities to live their full potential. The need to ensure effective engagement and inclusion of women (as the primary water users) in decision-making beyond mere presence of the women in leadership positions (tokenism)

Water and Development: Good Governance after Neoliberalism

Water has always been a crucial catalyst for human development. In Africa, competition among different sectors for this scarce resource remains a critical challenge to water managers and decision-makers. 'Water and Development' examines a range of issues, from governance to solar distillation, from gender to water pumps, using a range of research methods, from participant observation to GIS and SPSS data analysis. Throughout, however, there is the unifying thread of developing a participatory and sustainable approach to water which recognises it as an essential public necessity. The result is essential reading both for students of development and the environment and for NGOs and policy-makers seeking a robust and transformational approach to water and development