WOMEN WATER PROFESSIONALS IN SOUTH ASIA WORKPLAN for CROSSING BOUNDARIES

Background

The CB project has as its major focus IWRM and gender and water, both poorly researched areas that call for supportive activities and strong advocacy support. Especially in the case of gender and water, past experience indicates that a multi-pronged effort is needed, with capacity building and advocacy backed with empirical studies and appropriate material for dissemination- preferably in national languages- in order to facilitate gender responsive changes in the water sector. An advocacy effort based on a clear understanding of the impact and potential contribution of women to the water sector can promote gender equity as well as pinpointing further gaps in research and education programs.

The CB project plans to carry out a concerted upgrading of professionals skills and expertise with special focus of women water professionals through programs carried out in four leading South Asian universities. The bulk of the fellowships will be reserved for women applicants. It also will organize several women water professionals meetings each year in South Asia based on different themes.

The South Asian status of women, their access to employment and education is poor. Women‘s involvement in water related education and therefore in water related professions in South Asia is low. But women’s contribution, mostly unremunerated, to the water sector is high; so is the potential impact of enhanced access to water for women’s livelihoods. Gender and water issues encompass not only the roles and activities of women water professionals working in the public, academic and private sector but also that of women activists working in community mobilization in water related issues.

However, the nature and role of women water professionals, both in civil society and agencies, within South Asia has not been yet extensively studied. Nor has their potential contribution for promoting IWRM been adequately understood. Recent international focus on gender relations in the water sector has led to some attempts at mainstreaming gender in the water sector, mostly through donor funded projects. But in some cases gender mainstreaming has unfortunately been limited to cosmetic interventions supporting elite groups and has not resulted in any positive enhancement of equity or improved women’s access to decision making. In some cases gender blind projects can actually increase women workload without enhancing benefits.

As it is useful that the women water professional client base be more clearly understood in support of the CB activities, it is proposed to carry out a women water professional centred program. In South Asia many female water professionals are already active in the sector though their visibility is low; their opportunities for advancement and capacity building are limited due to organizational culture of workplaces as well as the prevalent social norms. The selected activities will focus on a better understanding of their current status, recognition of professional needs and also give expression to their aspirations. It will also seek to raise awareness of the players of the water sector of the present and potential contribution of women as activists and professionals within the current cultural constraints of South Asia.

The WWP activity will also serve to raise profile for the CB project and will help highlight its potential contribution as a change agent in capacity building in South Asian water resources management.

Objectives

General objective:

Raise visibility, improve access to capacity building and networks in the water sector, and improve the understanding of the needs and aspirations of women water professionals in South Asia, to enhance their contribution to the South Asian water sector and water resources development reorientation

Specific Objectives:

WWP Target 3 - Enhance contribution of WWPs in the South Asian water sector.

3.

WWP Target 1 - Increase visibility

The start up of the three year work program is scheduled for July 2006 and involves an initial mapping out of actors, action resources, support sources, resource material and linkages within the first three months. An assessment of ongoing and future water sector activities and meetings in South Asia will help highlight current issues, define strategic entry points and potential partnerships. This will include potential web based sources to be linked with the CB site.

A typology of women water professionals in the CB countries will be undertaken through specially commissioned situation analyses of women water professionals in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Southern India and North western India ( Gujarat). This report will identify and define women water professionals (including grassroots activists), document and analyze their professional status , activities, concerns, relevant context and constraints while assessing their current and potential impact. Identifying key actors who would be supportive of the CB program too will be an added advantage.

The WWP situation analyses for Gujarat, South India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka will be carried out simultaneously. Suitable partner researchers, involved and knowledgeable about the issues relating to WWPs will be identified through existing networks and suitable organisations selected. The studies will be carried out by selected lead researchers/institutes and coordinated by the team leader. The cooperation of CB partner institutes in identifying potential key informants will be requested for this activity. The study design will be planned in consultation with the CB project team in Hyderabad where the inception/draft report will be discussed.

The situation analysis will include the following steps, subject to finalization by the CB project team

• Preparation of TOR and initiate contact
• identification of study coordinators
• Finalize contracts
• feedback from coordinator
• Identification of respondent groups and finalization of methodology
• Field survey
• Draft report
• Comments from team/workshop
• Workshop for decision makers
• Final report presented to project. The finalized study will be presented in a workshop in each country targeting male and female decision makers in the water and related sector.

Subject to availability of funds and progress of contacts in non-CB countries, key WWP contacts from these countries too will be facilitated to attend.

In Bhutan and Maldives, where there is almost zero mobilization of WWPs, initial visits will include awareness raising sessions on gender and IWRM which will be conducted in collaboration with selected organisations. This will facilitate building up of contact groups which will support subsequent follow-up and empowerment of WWPs of these countries. It will enable them to have access to capacity building via potential participation in CB related activities. Similar activities will be carried out in Nepal and Pakistan where levels of activity of WWPs are higher.

3.3 Improve understanding

A publication on women water professionals, their professional work, cultural constraints, academic needs and future capacity building needs will be compiled with input from a wide range of South Asian women including those from non-CB countries. This will serve to establish the requirements of WWPs in development of the water sector and as well as the related education sector. The document will be in the form of a well-illustrated coffee table type publication.

The material will be collected though interviews in South Asia including non-CB countries. The interviews will be held using CB activities, regional water related activities and international workshops where many water professionals attend as well as specific visits to Bhutan, Nepal, Maldives and Pakistan. Finally this book will also raise professional prospects of women water professionals by highlighting a better understanding of their potential contribution to the water sector.

Sri Lanka has a relatively high number of WWPs in comparison for other South Asian countries. The reasons underlying the development of this sector will be of this interest to other South Asian groups in particular. A 20 min TV documentary suitable for broadcast on national TV and dissemination in international conferences on the development of this group will be made.

A special section on the CB website will be dedicated to WWP interests. This will be clearing house of information relevant to South Asian WWPs including information on activities, resources and professional opportunities .It will also highlight oncoming WWP/CB meetings. It will include a special sector named “Mirror Wall” - this section will “reflect” inputs from South Asian women water professionals who will tell their personal stories, which will be deemed inspirational or insightful.

Each month a WWP profile, not necessarily all of eminent persons but also including women working in the field including women from grassroot/farmer organisations will be selected for the Mirror Wall. A special segment named “A Day in the Life of …” will provide a vivid portrayal of working life of women accessing water. Web based interaction will also feed in to the proposed theme book on WWPs.

Through the above activities, which will also serve as a formulation of a database, the CB project will facilitate access to a network of possible contacts for their WWP empowerment activities. This in turn will enable the project to better target their activities according to the needs of the WWP constituency.

The WWP program through its various activities will also build a pool of WWP resource persons for CB activities and that of its partner organizations for education and training in the water sector in general. Senior water professionals identified through this activity can act as resource persons and role models for the young water professionals trained through the CB project. The annual WWP meetings of the CB project may be a possible meeting point for the sharing of experiences and ideas.

This activity will create a potential client base, which will benefit the CB in the formulation of demand driven activities and later support partner organizations to market their courses to meet a demand from non CB countries.

In most SA countries the lack of material on gender and water especially in national languages is a hindrance to establish gender sensitivity. It is proposed that national language publications supporting gender mainstreaming in IWRM be made available in tandem with the above activity through WWP groups in CB and non CB countries. Efforts will be made to identify gaps and issues where national language publications on gender and water are needed. In some situations there maybe earmarked activities where translations /readers /material is already available but support for publication needed. In others there may be a need to draw up fresh material with appropriate content. This activity will allow the mobilization of WWPs for the purpose of carrying out an activity, which promotes gender and water. Part financing is expected form the local groups. In particular this will be an incentive to the organization of meetings in non-CB sites.