HLPF 2018 side event on women and water:
WfWP Steering Committee member Lesha Witmer on the State of affairs of recent reports and tools on women and water
WfWP Steering Committee member Lesha Witmer on the State of affairs of recent reports and tools on women and water
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Ladies and gentlemen,
As our friend and champion and key note speaker, Uschi Eid said earlier, there is a disconnect between formal policy and actual plans and actions. She already updated you on the outcomes and trends of the voluntary reports of Member States. Now what about the rest? UN system, NGOs, business? Women - and Water issues seem to share the same constraint and burden: everybody agrees on their importance and their interconnection. Not enough act on it. |
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SDG17.18 explicitly calls for disaggregated data; UN statistical committee calls it “ counting the uncounted” in their latest report from December 2017.
They give a few examples: Exclusion by design leads to absence of relevant disaggregation: • Incomplete coverage (hard to reach populations, ethnic groups) • School based surveys will be confined to children attending school • Administrative data may cover only those enjoying services • Data sources need to “work together” to build the story.
A 2013 Survey by the UN Statistical Commission reveals that gendered water data is among the least available of national-level indicators.
The decisions of the IAEG working group on processes to enhance disaggregated data collection look promising; however results will not be available until September 2020. And: nothing on how to incorporate citizens (and women’s) data.
A quote from the sustainable development report:
“Producing data for the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda requires strong political commitment and increased resources to support global and national efforts to strengthen statistical systems. In addition, new data sources and technologies for data collection and for the integration of different sources of data will need to be explored, including through partnerships with civil society, the private sector and academia….”
Some organizations / reporting agencies do a lot already to collect relevant disaggregated data like JMP and GLAAS. However, when then reporting, they condense information again in such a way that diversity is lost and at policy level this information is not taken into account (enough).
In the meantime: UNESCO-WWAP developed and tested water-women sex-disaggregated indicators already in 2014/2015. It gives suggestions for all 8 targets of SDG6 and beyond. Inter alia UNFCCC adopted this toolkit as part of their instruments available. The indicators and methodology have been tested and are currently adapted as a result of the tests. Want to reinvent the wheel? How do we motivate Member States to start using them as part of their standard procedure?
Another great initiative that does not get enough attention: the GEF IW:Learn (water) gender component.
It is an investment in connecting water and gender mainstreaming policies and intentions translated into projects on the ground. Organizations like UNESCO-WWAP, WWF, IUCN, World bank could use more support to continue and expand this capacity building effort. It is crucial governors and directors and overseeing bodies give more possibilities to development banks to directly support initiatives like this and of course women organizations to execute measures on the ground. The latest OECD report stated that only 0,5 % of all ODA goes directly to women’s organizations. If than water is counted in: the % is below any meaningful statistic.
Intriguing: there are two SDG reports circulation on behalf of the SG and UN Desa and the UN statistical committee. Confusing at the least. One report is not making the connection between SDG5 and 6 at all, the other one does. A remarkable text in “The sustainable Development report 2018” as published by the UN Statistical committee:
“The role of women’s participation is increasingly important as a measure of equity. Among the 84 countries participating in the 2017 survey, the number of countries that had policies specifically mentioning women’s participation is higher for rural communities than for urban areas.”
The UN Water synthesis report states:
Women need much greater engagement in decision-making about WASH infrastructure and services, they need to be asked about location, design and management of water points and toilet facilities. Women and men need to be equally represented on WASH committees, service providers and water user associations, and a concerted effort is required to promote more women in leadership positions. National and local governments therefore need to integrate gender issues into their policy-making and decision-making and enable women to have an effective “voice” and engage in meaningful participation.
Community participation is a key component of increasing sustainable WASH service provision, particularly in rural areas (SDG targets 6.1 and 6.2), and also for IWRM (target 6.5). Achieving this can contribute towards increased participation of women in political, economic and public life (target 5.5), and empower and promote social, economic and political inclusion (targets 10.2 and 10.3). It can also contribute towards ensuring conservation, restoration and sustainable use of freshwater ecosystems and their services (target 15.1) and ensuring responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels (target 16.7).
And what a good action: the report of NGO CSW coordination (it took CSW and UN Women … years to start discussing water): “a gendered approach to HLPF”. I quote from Susan O’Malley’s introduction:
“I hadn’t realized how important and useful our Report is until I looked at the Voluntary National Reviews that have been submitted to date for HLPF 2018 and realized that SDG 5 on Gender Equality, let alone anything on women and girls, is rarely mentioned; if women are mentioned, it is in the context of reproductive health, maternal mortality, education, and security, not in connection to water, sanitation, clean energy, sustainable communities or responsible consumption. It is as if SDG 5 on Gender Equality was last year’s consideration without the realization that gender equality must suffuse all of the SDGs in order for them to be implemented.”
The current draft for the ministerial declaration of the HLPF mentions mainstreaming/ so not actions (e.g. para 17). Para 25 talks about services, women as beneficiaries. It “welcomes” reports, instead of saying we are going to look for solutions and actions at national and regional and global level.
So a lot of good and bad food for thought. The main question for the discussion is: How can women play a meaningful role in the implementation of SDG 6+ and what is needed to support them? It seems there is acceptance at “ vision” and policy level of the importance of the inclusion of women at all levels, but it is now about how to make it a reality, for example by asking ourselves:
I hope the discussion following is going to come up with workable suggestions to the HLPF and support from all countries represented here to assist in influencing that.
They give a few examples: Exclusion by design leads to absence of relevant disaggregation: • Incomplete coverage (hard to reach populations, ethnic groups) • School based surveys will be confined to children attending school • Administrative data may cover only those enjoying services • Data sources need to “work together” to build the story.
A 2013 Survey by the UN Statistical Commission reveals that gendered water data is among the least available of national-level indicators.
The decisions of the IAEG working group on processes to enhance disaggregated data collection look promising; however results will not be available until September 2020. And: nothing on how to incorporate citizens (and women’s) data.
A quote from the sustainable development report:
“Producing data for the full implementation of the 2030 Agenda requires strong political commitment and increased resources to support global and national efforts to strengthen statistical systems. In addition, new data sources and technologies for data collection and for the integration of different sources of data will need to be explored, including through partnerships with civil society, the private sector and academia….”
Some organizations / reporting agencies do a lot already to collect relevant disaggregated data like JMP and GLAAS. However, when then reporting, they condense information again in such a way that diversity is lost and at policy level this information is not taken into account (enough).
In the meantime: UNESCO-WWAP developed and tested water-women sex-disaggregated indicators already in 2014/2015. It gives suggestions for all 8 targets of SDG6 and beyond. Inter alia UNFCCC adopted this toolkit as part of their instruments available. The indicators and methodology have been tested and are currently adapted as a result of the tests. Want to reinvent the wheel? How do we motivate Member States to start using them as part of their standard procedure?
Another great initiative that does not get enough attention: the GEF IW:Learn (water) gender component.
It is an investment in connecting water and gender mainstreaming policies and intentions translated into projects on the ground. Organizations like UNESCO-WWAP, WWF, IUCN, World bank could use more support to continue and expand this capacity building effort. It is crucial governors and directors and overseeing bodies give more possibilities to development banks to directly support initiatives like this and of course women organizations to execute measures on the ground. The latest OECD report stated that only 0,5 % of all ODA goes directly to women’s organizations. If than water is counted in: the % is below any meaningful statistic.
Intriguing: there are two SDG reports circulation on behalf of the SG and UN Desa and the UN statistical committee. Confusing at the least. One report is not making the connection between SDG5 and 6 at all, the other one does. A remarkable text in “The sustainable Development report 2018” as published by the UN Statistical committee:
“The role of women’s participation is increasingly important as a measure of equity. Among the 84 countries participating in the 2017 survey, the number of countries that had policies specifically mentioning women’s participation is higher for rural communities than for urban areas.”
The UN Water synthesis report states:
Women need much greater engagement in decision-making about WASH infrastructure and services, they need to be asked about location, design and management of water points and toilet facilities. Women and men need to be equally represented on WASH committees, service providers and water user associations, and a concerted effort is required to promote more women in leadership positions. National and local governments therefore need to integrate gender issues into their policy-making and decision-making and enable women to have an effective “voice” and engage in meaningful participation.
Community participation is a key component of increasing sustainable WASH service provision, particularly in rural areas (SDG targets 6.1 and 6.2), and also for IWRM (target 6.5). Achieving this can contribute towards increased participation of women in political, economic and public life (target 5.5), and empower and promote social, economic and political inclusion (targets 10.2 and 10.3). It can also contribute towards ensuring conservation, restoration and sustainable use of freshwater ecosystems and their services (target 15.1) and ensuring responsive, inclusive, participatory and representative decision-making at all levels (target 16.7).
And what a good action: the report of NGO CSW coordination (it took CSW and UN Women … years to start discussing water): “a gendered approach to HLPF”. I quote from Susan O’Malley’s introduction:
“I hadn’t realized how important and useful our Report is until I looked at the Voluntary National Reviews that have been submitted to date for HLPF 2018 and realized that SDG 5 on Gender Equality, let alone anything on women and girls, is rarely mentioned; if women are mentioned, it is in the context of reproductive health, maternal mortality, education, and security, not in connection to water, sanitation, clean energy, sustainable communities or responsible consumption. It is as if SDG 5 on Gender Equality was last year’s consideration without the realization that gender equality must suffuse all of the SDGs in order for them to be implemented.”
The current draft for the ministerial declaration of the HLPF mentions mainstreaming/ so not actions (e.g. para 17). Para 25 talks about services, women as beneficiaries. It “welcomes” reports, instead of saying we are going to look for solutions and actions at national and regional and global level.
So a lot of good and bad food for thought. The main question for the discussion is: How can women play a meaningful role in the implementation of SDG 6+ and what is needed to support them? It seems there is acceptance at “ vision” and policy level of the importance of the inclusion of women at all levels, but it is now about how to make it a reality, for example by asking ourselves:
- how to influence the statistical offices to collect and analyze sex-disaggregated data and what should the HLPF do to encourage member states to do it,
- how to build the expertise of e.g. “ water” project managers to include women and gender-responsive measures
- how to convince ODA and other donors to give money directly to women’s organizations ...
I hope the discussion following is going to come up with workable suggestions to the HLPF and support from all countries represented here to assist in influencing that.
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Lesha Witmer is a member of the Steering Committee of Women for Water Partnership (WfWP) with the portfolio “Advocacy” She represents two members of WfWP: Business and Professional Women International and VAM foundation (Women and Labour Market).
She is a senior consultant in the field of women, water and its governance and a Board member of several international organisations such as Climate is Water Campaign, European Pact for Water, Butterfly Effect, International Standard Development Committee for Water Stewardship. |
Lesha Witmer (c) with H.E. Ambassador Katalin Annamária Bogyay, Permanent Representative of Hungary to the UN (l) and Uschi Eid
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