Women On the Frontlines of Water Insecurity

Mar 25, 2015 | Mayesha Alam
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Water is essential to life on earth, but we are facing a global crisis. According to a new report released by UNESCO on March 22 to mark International Water Day, the world will face a 40 percent shortage in our water supply by 2030. This is an alarming problem that disproportionately affects women and girls.

In many places around the world where dependable irrigation is a distant dream and clean water a precious commodity, women and girls bear the primary burden of finding water. What they are able to carry on their heads and shoulders is then rationed carefully for drinking, cooking, cleaning and other livelihood needs. In fact, around the world, women and children spend 140 million hours per day collecting water for their families and communities, according to Water.org, and this results in their lost productive potential. For example, in many villages of India and Ethiopia, girls are kept out of school or fall behind on their studies because they are required to fetch water. This, in turn, contributes to child marriage and early pregnancy. For women in warzones, such as South Sudan, the often long and lonely journey of collecting water comes with very real physical dangers, including rape and kidnapping. For those who are forcibly displaced, either in their own countries or as refugees in foreign lands, lack of access to water or sanitation is one of the most significant challenges faced on a daily basis. Climate change is also exacerbating water shortage and women, who comprise the majority of the world’s agricultural labor force, must adapt to increased famines, droughts and flooding. Lack of adequate access to safe water and sanitation is also a key factor in maternal and child mortality, and is dramatically more pronounced in rural settings. In January 2015, the World Economic Forum identified water shortage as being the single greatest “Global Risk” based on its widespread societal effects.