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Service regulation and human rights to water and sanitation 2017, para. 45
- Paragraph text
- Regulatory standards should prioritize access to both water and sanitation facilities in public places in sufficient numbers; in institutional facilities, including hospitals, schools, public transport hubs, prisons, and places of detention, at the workplace and in rented housing, taking into consideration the special needs of, inter alia, women and girls; and in relation to those without a permanent dwelling, including homeless people and nomadic communities. Regulation should separate access to water and sanitation services from land tenure, often an obstacle to accessing these services in informal settlements.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Service regulation and human rights to water and sanitation 2017, para. 49
- Paragraph text
- The regulation of sanitation facilities should provide that they are designed and built in a way that effectively prevents human, animal and insect contact with human excreta, and should safeguard access to safe water for handwashing, anal and genital cleansing and menstrual hygiene, and ensure mechanisms for the hygienic disposal of menstrual products (see A/HRC/12/24, para. 72). The Special Rapporteur recommends that regulations require that the specific needs of women and girls are incorporated into the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of water and sanitation facilities (see A/HRC/33/49, para. 77 (h)). To that end, their participation in the design of the facilities should be sought by service providers.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Service regulation and human rights to water and sanitation 2017, para. 54
- Paragraph text
- The regulatory framework must provide a contextual meaning of the social and cultural acceptability of water and sanitation facilities. This cannot be done in a meaningful way without the genuine participation of those who use the services. While water should be of an acceptable colour, odour and taste for each personal or domestic use, these are highly subjective parameters, and perceptions of these characteristics depend on local culture, education and experience. Personal sanitation is a highly sensitive issue across regions and cultures, and differing perspectives about which sanitation solutions are acceptable must be taken into account when designing, positioning, and setting conditions for the use of sanitation facilities (see A/70/203, para. 13). Regulations should stipulate that facilities need to allow for acceptable hygiene practices in specific cultures, such as anal and genital cleansing, and menstrual hygiene (see A/HRC/12/24, para. 80). Acceptability often requires separate facilities for women and men in public spaces, and for girls and boys in schools, which should be reflected in regulatory frameworks. Regulation should play an essential role in ensuring that toilets are constructed in a way that safeguards privacy and dignity.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 30
- Paragraph text
- People who do not conform to a fixed idea of gender may experience violence and abuse when using gender-segregated sanitation facilities. Gender non-conforming people face harassment in or avoid gender-segregated public toilets altogether out of fear. For example, transgender girls who use the boys' toilets and transgender boys who use the girls' toilet in schools are highly vulnerable to bullying, harassment and assault by other students. Research from India indicates that transgender persons face difficulties in finding rental housing and are often forced to live in remote slum areas, where access to water and sanitation facilities is poor.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 8
- Paragraph text
- Gender equality refers to the equal rights, responsibilities and opportunities between genders taking into consideration the different interests, needs and priorities and recognizing the diversity of different groups of women and men. Gender equality means that everyone must be able to enjoy the rights to water and sanitation equally. In order to attain substantive equality, therefore, it is necessary to address the specific gendered circumstances that act as barriers to the realization of those rights for women and girls in practice. States must assess existing legislation, policies and strategies, and find out to what extent the enjoyment of the rights to water and sanitation between men and women are equally guaranteed. On the basis of that review, remedies should be provided and gender-responsive strategies should be developed that guide policymaking and the corresponding allocation of budgets. Temporary affirmative measures will in many cases be necessary.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 13
- Paragraph text
- In humanitarian situations, including in times of conflict or natural disaster, when water and sanitation sources are at a minimum, the specific needs of women and girls are often not taken into account. It is vital to better understand and share experiences about the kinds of responses that can be deployed across the diverse range of emergencies, including the most adequate and effective adaptations and interventions. It further requires an integrated approach and ongoing coordination among all sectors concerned. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and gender non-conforming people face additional challenges in areas affected by disaster. A recent United Nations assessment found that, in Europe, women and girls who are refugees are vulnerable to violence and lack services that specifically meet their needs, such as private bathing and sanitation facilities. Some women have reported having stopped eating or drinking to avoid going to the toilet where they felt unsafe. The reaction of Governments and others to these situations is considered inadequate and there is an emphasis on the urgent need to scale up such response efforts.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Humanitarian
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 37
- Paragraph text
- Affordability is of special concern to women and girls, who often have less access to financial resources than men. Women and girls need toilets for urination, defecation and menstrual hygiene management as well as for assisting younger children. Combined with women's lower access to financial resources, pay-per-use toilets with the same user fee for men and women are in practice often more expensive for women. Besides, public urinals are often free for men but not for women. To tackle this, the municipal government of Mumbai is currently constructing several toilet blocks the maintenance of which is financed through family passes instead of by charging a fee for each use. Some public toilets can be used free of charge by women and other groups that often lack access to economic resources, such as children and older people.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Men
- Older persons
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 40
- Paragraph text
- According to international human rights law, States must allocate their maximum available resources to the progressive realization of human rights, paying particular attention to the rights and needs of the most marginalized segments of the population. Progressive policies and plans will be rendered worthless, however, without a proper budget. A gender analysis supports Governments in making better budget-related choices by highlighting existing gender inequalities and the impact of public expenditures on women and girls. States should promote gender mainstreaming in budgeting activities for water sanitation and hygiene, and increase women's participation in budgeting processes. Specialized units throughout government can be tasked with oversight.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Gender
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 34
- Paragraph text
- Soap and clean water for personal hygiene is of particular importance during menstruation. Women and girls must be able to use clean materials to absorb or collect menstrual fluid, and change them regularly and in privacy. They must have access to water and soap to wash their hands and body and facilities to dispose safely and hygienically of menstrual materials like pads, cups, cloths and tampons. Facilities must be easy to maintain and to clean. Women and girls with disabilities face unique challenges in accessing sanitation facilities. Their ability to properly manage their hygiene may be particularly compromised and, when facilities do not provide for the space and materials they need, they are especially prone to diseases. Service providers must ensure that facilities are designed with the participation of women and girls in order to adapt them to their biological and sociocultural needs. The specific needs of women and girls must be incorporated into the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of sanitation facilities. Approaches must go beyond advocacy to address policies, infrastructure, maintenance systems and monitoring in order to ensure that services are adapted to the specific needs of users by, for example, taking into account their bodies, including their physical abilities, and their age. Formal independent regulators, as well as locally based participatory water and sanitation committees, should monitor whether regulations are well interpreted, implemented and effective.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 22
- Paragraph text
- Poor menstruation management has far-reaching consequences for society as a whole and a lack of knowledge by both women and men reinforces the taboos on this topic. Education, awareness-raising and training sessions are important ways to address this problem. Moreover, it is not only girls and boys, but also teachers, government officials, community-based health workers and development staff, who must be informed on menstruation and its management. The Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation of India has issued menstrual hygiene management guidelines containing various approaches to creating an environment in which menstrual hygiene is considered acceptable and normal. Education on menstruation should focus on girls before menarche to ensure girls are aware of what will happen to their bodies in time.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Health
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Boys
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 43
- Paragraph text
- Private facilities in or close to the home provide for privacy and safety, which is particularly relevant for women and girls, particularly the eldest, those living with disabilities and those who are pregnant or menstruating. Moreover, it is estimated that one in four women over the age of 35 experiences incontinence and that women disproportionately suffer from a lack of adequate and private facilities. Having a water supply on the premises reduces the time spent on fetching water, cleaning the household and caring for family members. It eliminates the need for transportation and the risk of unsafe storage, reducing the risk of health problems such as musculoskeletal disorders and water-related diseases. States must prioritize water and sanitation provision to households not yet served and, in particular, those households where women and girls have the least adequate alternatives.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 46
- Paragraph text
- Worldwide, there are more possibilities for men than for women to relieve themselves outside the house. Examples include the plenty free-to-use urinals for men in the capital of the Netherlands. In India, public facilities for men outnumber those for women by up to 42 per cent. The construction of public urinals to tackle open urination by men is relatively easy, as such urinals do not need to have doors and locks, have no seat to turn up, generally use less water and are therefore a relatively cheaper solution. States must set targets to scale up adequate public sanitation facilities for women and girls.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 7
- Paragraph text
- Non-discrimination and equality are interlinked and are fundamental principles of international human rights law. Lack of access to adequate water, sanitation and hygiene and the inability to participate in their management have in many instances, on a structural basis, left many rights out of women and girls' reach. Laws serve to give individuals a legal claim, may create social expectations and may spur public action. Legal guarantees on gender equality and non-discrimination can help to build political legitimacy to back the enforcement of women's and girls' rights to access to water, sanitation and hygiene.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 45
- Paragraph text
- Human rights law requires that sanitation facilities be reliably accessible to satisfy all needs throughout the day and the night, and meet the needs of their users. A lack of adequate facilities in public spaces often leads women and girls to avoid the public and both work and school life, particularly during menstruation, when they live with disabilities or suffer from incontinence.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 47
- Paragraph text
- Human rights law requires that a sufficient number of sanitation facilities be available with associated services to ensure that waiting times are not unreasonably long. Many public facilities have an identical number of stalls for men and women, although in practice women and girls often have to wait in long lines to use the toilet, while men have much quicker access. The clothes women tend to wear and have to take off using the toilet require more time than for men, and women spend time assisting children using the toilet. Some States have adopted legislation in which equality requires a ratio of two women's cubicles for every cubicle provided for men.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- In addition to risking physical violence, women and girls may also experience sanitation-related psychosocial stress, including fear of sexual violence. Women and girls who have limited access to sanitation facilities experience environmental barriers when they engage in water, sanitation and hygiene practices, including carrying water, managing menstruation, defecating and bathing, that contribute to that kind of stress. Examples include the fear of encountering snakes and mosquitos when walking to a defecation site, or the stress caused by social norms that view the fact of being seen by men while bathing as negative, among other issues. A better understanding of the range of causes of stress and adaptive behaviours is needed to inform context-specific, gender-sensitive water and sanitation interventions.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Men
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 77h
- Paragraph text
- [In line with the above, the Special Rapporteur recommends that States:] Ensure that regulations require that the specific needs of women and girls are incorporated into the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of water and sanitation facilities, taking into consideration the special needs of women and girls made more vulnerable by disability and age. Regulators should monitor whether such regulations are well interpreted, implemented and effective;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 77m
- Paragraph text
- [In line with the above, the Special Rapporteur recommends that States:] Ensure that comprehensive data is collected on access to water, sanitation and hygiene management in respect of women and girls belonging to marginalized groups and living in marginalized areas, and support civil society in collecting data and in analysing, interpreting and monitoring results;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 52
- Paragraph text
- Adequate water and sanitation services, including menstrual hygiene facilities, must be accessible in the workplace, without hindrance, for all employees, in a manner that corresponds with their gender identity. The Special Rapporteur has noted that there is an urgent need to recognize and address the currently neglected lack of facilities that allow for adequate sanitation and menstrual hygiene management for women and girls in the workplace. Women and girls risk their health or miss out on workdays when such facilities are lacking. For example, 60 per cent of all women working in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia work in the agriculture sector and their workplace often does not include facilities that would allow them to manage their sanitation and menstruation, or those facilities are located far away from the place of work. Regulations often do not apply to women working in the informal sector, and women working in public spaces such as markets often have no access to facilities altogether. In the manufacturing industry and in dense urban areas, women and girls sometimes work in overcrowded spaces where privacy is limited and sanitation facilities and spaces are inadequate to manage their menstruation.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 77d
- Paragraph text
- [In line with the above, the Special Rapporteur recommends that States:] Create an enabling environment for women and girls to safely use water and sanitation facilities. Discrimination and violence based on gender identity must be prevented, investigated and remedied, and those responsible must be prosecuted;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 44
- Paragraph text
- Where it is not yet possible to have access to services on site, it is important to scale up the construction of safe and nearby community toilets. As mentioned above, there is a multitude of psychosocial stress factors that women face owing to unsafe, inadequate or absent sanitation facilities. To reduce the risk of women and girls experiencing violence, building codes for community water and sanitation facilities should include gender considerations such as sex-segregated cubicles, closeness to the house and lighted pathways to and at facilities. The location should also make it possible for a concierge to be present and monitor the surroundings. It is important to note, however, that building safer latrines in or close to households does not eliminate the risk of gender-based violence, as the measure does not address the root causes of violence. As outlined by the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council, adequate sanitation without attention to gendered relations of power puts the burden of safety on women and does not address gender-based patterns of violence against women, which require a far more structural approach. Building safer facilities may sometimes, however, take away a burden for women and girls to visit public toilets that provide for privacy and safety. In this context, WaterAid has developed a toolkit for practitioners.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 49
- Paragraph text
- The sanitation and menstrual hygiene needs of homeless women and girls are almost universally unmet and the needs of that group are rarely reflected in water and sanitation policies. Human rights law demands that States place a particular focus on the needs of the most marginalized; hence, States should ensure that homeless women and girls have access to facilities.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 54
- Paragraph text
- Participation is not only a right in itself, but also imperative for fulfilling other rights. Participation encompasses women's power to influence decisions, to voice their needs, to make individual choices and to control their own lives. The lack of water, sanitation and hygiene facilities that meet women's and girls' needs can be largely attributed to the absence of women's participation in decision-making and planning.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 9
- Paragraph text
- Many legal constituencies, however, have laws in place that hinder the equal enjoyment of the rights to water and sanitation. In many countries, land ownership, which is a precondition for gaining access to water, is often denied to women by family laws that also make it difficult for women to inherit land. Some countries criminalize open defecation while at the same time closing down public sanitation facilities. Public urination and defecation is often criminalized and laws that aim to keep cities clean may discriminate against homeless persons who have no other option but to relieve themselves in the open. Among them are many women and girls in desperate need of an adequate facility that offers privacy. Some States allow individuals to use toilets in a manner consistent with that person's chosen gender identity while other States oblige persons to use only those toilets that correspond with the biological sex listed on their birth certificate. Restrictive gender recognition laws not only severely undermine transgender peoples' ability to enjoy their rights to basic services, it also prevents them from living safely, free from violence and discrimination. Water and sanitation facilities must be safe, available, accessible, affordable, socially and culturally acceptable, provide privacy and ensure dignity for all individuals, including those who are transgender and gender non-conforming.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 12
- Paragraph text
- Although women - at every economic level, all over the world - may suffer disproportionate disadvantages and discrimination, they cannot be seen as a homogenous group. Different women are situated differently and face different challenges and barriers in relationship to water, sanitation and hygiene. Gender-based inequalities are exacerbated when they are coupled with other grounds for discrimination and disadvantages. Examples include when women and girls lack adequate access to water and sanitation and at the same time suffer from poverty, live with a disability, suffer from incontinence, live in remote areas, lack security of tenure, are imprisoned or are homeless. In these cases, they will be more likely to lack access to adequate facilities, to face exclusion or to experience vulnerability and additional health risks. The effects of social factors such as caste, age, marital status, profession, sexual orientation and gender identity are compounded when they intersect with other grounds for discrimination. In some States, women sanitation workers are particularly vulnerable, as they are exposed to an extremely dirty environment and contamination, which have a far greater impact during pregnancy and menstruation. Women belonging to certain minorities, including indigenous peoples and ethnic and religious groups, may face exclusion and disadvantages on multiple grounds. Those factors are not exhaustive and may change over time.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 58
- Paragraph text
- Women's and girls' voices are indispensable to ensuring that their needs are understood and prioritized, including on material and privacy requirements for menstrual hygiene management. In many cases, they are not consulted about the placement of water points and sanitation facilities, nor do they participate in designing the type of facility best suited to their needs or easiest for them to use, even though women and girls most often use these facilities and are primarily responsible for maintaining them. Including women and girls in making decisions about the design and location of facilities is even more relevant for those who have special needs because of a disability or their age or because they are pregnant, live in remote areas or are homeless, for example. Trans or gender non-conforming users of planned facilities must be given opportunities to participate. Some may find it useful to have access to a gender-neutral facility, while in other communities it may be acceptable for persons to simply use the toilet they feel most comfortable with.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 17
- Paragraph text
- Social prejudices deny women equal opportunities in technical and managerial jobs in the water and sanitation sector and general norms work against girls and women in terms of enrolment in technical or engineering studies. States can invest in reskilling and retraining women for these jobs, and stimulate increased access to higher education. Proactive recruitment efforts can reduce barriers that stop women from applying for jobs they would like to do, particularly in fields where women are either underrepresented or where wage gaps persist. The presence of women in more publicly visible positions, including in politics, management and decision-making, may influence stereotyping and deeply rooted gender-assigned roles.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Gender
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 75
- Paragraph text
- Safe, adequate and affordable access to water, sanitation and hygiene, as well as the promotion of women's empowerment, can serve as an entry point to ensure that women and girls can enjoy their right to have and make choices, their right to have access to opportunities and resources, and their right to control their own lives, both inside and outside the home. Gender equality in respect of the human rights to water and sanitation will not only empower women individually but will also help women overcome poverty and empower their children, families and communities.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Poverty
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 3
- Paragraph text
- Gender inequalities are pervasive at every stage of a women's life: from infancy, through to puberty, parenthood, illness and old age. In the present report, the Special Rapporteur on the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation seeks to underscore the importance of placing a strong focus on the needs of women and girls at all times, throughout their whole lifecycle, and of not overlooking the needs of women and girls with disabilities, living in poverty or suffering from other disadvantages. Gender inequality in access to water and sanitation facilities affect a wide range of other human rights, including women and girls' rights to health, to adequate housing, to education and to food.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Poverty
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 2
- Paragraph text
- Many of the challenges to achieving gender equality in access to water, sanitation and hygiene are well documented: where water is not available in the home, women and girls are primarily responsible for water and hygiene at the household level and bear the greatest burden for collecting water. Other challenges related to inequality include access to sanitation, menstrual hygiene and toilets for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and gender non-conforming people and an increased risk of gender-based violence.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Social & Cultural Rights
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- LGBTQI+
- Women
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph