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Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 57
- Paragraph text
- Although the pivotal role of women as providers and users of water, as well as the need to equip and empower women to participate at all levels in water resources programmes, has long been recognized, it is mostly men who manage and control the water services, resources, wastewater and solid waste industries at all levels. The integration of women into these types of jobs can contribute to gender mainstreaming throughout the sector and to services being managed from the perspective of women. Women's participation in the sector can be encouraged by developing policies and strategies, including on education, with defined targets and timelines. As a good example, in the National Drinking Water Policy of Pakistan it is outlined that special efforts will be made to recruit and induct women in water supply-related institutions and other relevant agencies to ensure that the needs of women are adequately addressed in the design, operation and maintenance of water supply systems. Aquafed and the Women for Water Partnership have reported that they are working together with companies and water associations to develop employment policies that aim to increase the representation of women in their staff and to remove prejudices against female employees.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Development cooperation and the human rights to water and sanitation 2017, para. 89c
- Paragraph text
- [Relating to funders’ policy, the Special Rapporteur recommends:] That the human rights to water and sanitation be emphasized in funders’ policy on specific groups, such as women, persons with disabilities and indigenous peoples, complementing overarching development cooperation policies;
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 56
- Paragraph text
- At the national level, legal protections must be formulated to ensure the active participation of key stakeholders, including women and marginalized groups, in the formulation and implementation of policies. Governments must put in place mechanisms to involve women in the formulation of regulations and policies on water and sanitation and in decisions related to financing and budgeting, to influence the focus of monetary investments.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 64
- Paragraph text
- States must monitor the extent to which they and third parties comply with the legal content of the human rights to water and sanitation and of human rights principles. States must monitor decision-making processes and policy implementation, including on national and local budgets, to track whether they serve to close existing gender-based inequalities. The effectiveness of review and monitoring requires the allocation of sufficient resources, transparency of government and State bodies that are independent of government interference. It requires that those in positions of authority have clearly defined duties and performance standards, enabling their actions to be assessed transparently and objectively. Courts, national human rights institutions, non-governmental organizations, independent regulators and ombudspersons play an important role in identifying and addressing gender inequalities in the enjoyment of the rights to water and sanitation and must be supported by the State in doing so. Social movements play an important role in holding the State to account as they can press public officials into being more answerable and request reasoned justifications for actions and decisions. For example, thousands of women in slum areas in Nairobi affected by a lack of toilets and bathing facilities signed a petition asking the Ministry of Health to conduct a public inquiry in informal settlements, and succeeded.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Planning for the realization of the rights to water and sanitation 2011, para. 70
- Paragraph text
- Groups that should have opportunities to participate include civil society organizations, community-based organizations, national human rights institutions, academia and research institutions, the private sector and above all the communities and people concerned themselves, with a special emphasis on women's input. Disadvantaged and at-risk people and communities must be represented, to ensure that participation is not only for a few well-established non-governmental organizations or local elites. Meetings should reach out to people at all levels of society, taking into account constraints that might prevent them from attending. This would mean organizing meetings close to where people live, or work, in all regions of the country, organizing meetings during hours when people are available, using local languages, organizing parent- and child-friendly meetings, using organizations of which people are already members as platforms for undertaking such meetings and other measures, among other channels. The National Human Development Initiative launched in Morocco in 2005 provides an example of a participatory, bottom-up and integrated approach. It resulted in the formal and real involvement of communities, civil society at the local level, and the integration of all local political, economic and social agents in a single process.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Women
- Year
- 2011
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 62
- Paragraph text
- Civil society groups can play a role in empowering women to claim their rights. It is moreover important for marginalized groups, including for example women and gender non-conforming people, to be able to unite, to express themselves, to be heard and to gain respect and recognition. Governments and donors should therefore invest in interest groups at all levels and support their effective participation at all stages of decision-making and planning, including in budgetary processes.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 38
- Paragraph text
- Water cut-offs may excessively affect women as family caretakers, in particular in poor female-headed households. Human rights law prescribes that a person's inability to pay for reasons beyond their control must never result in the disconnection of services. In Colombia, the Constitutional Court has stated that female-headed households may in some cases be subjected to special protection should they not be able to pay their water bills, and must be guaranteed special tariffs and a minimum amount of free water.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 70
- Paragraph text
- The rapid development of technology has made it possible to leverage data from new sources. There is a great opportunity to connect official statistics to citizen-generated data. States must therefore support the crucial role played by civil society, women's organizations in particular. In addition to developing innovative ways of collecting data, civil society also brings qualitative value in analysing and interpreting results to make sure that gaps in monitoring are detected and that gender-specific needs are taken into account.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Development cooperation and the human rights to water and sanitation 2017, para. 21
- Paragraph text
- The Special Rapporteur observed that the human rights framework might be incorporated in overarching policies that broadly encompass all development cooperation operations or in policies or strategies specifically designed for the water and sanitation sector. Furthermore, policies and strategies were also identified that focused on specific groups, such as women, indigenous populations and persons with disabilities, which occasionally included particular considerations for those people’s needs related to water and sanitation. However, in order to balance the multiple topics of relevance to the present report, funders’ general development cooperation policies and specific policies on water and sanitation are addressed herein.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Ethnic minorities
- Persons with disabilities
- Women
- Year
- 2017
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Gender equality in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2016, para. 55
- Paragraph text
- Water, sanitation and hygiene policies and laws must proactively and deliberately enable the active, free and meaningful participation of women at all stages of planning, decision-making, monitoring and evaluation. As a principle, the participation of women must be fully integrated in both the legislative and the executive branches of government, and in initiatives by implementing entities, such as non-governmental organizations and service providers. Participation must take place at the micro, meso and macro levels. This includes community-level initiatives, as well as initiatives and decision-making at the national, regional and international levels.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Development cooperation in the water and sanitation sector 2016, para. 43
- Paragraph text
- In other States, policies specifically concerning the water and sanitation sector contain formulations that reflect the human rights framework in rather distinct ways. For example, the water supply and sanitation assistance strategy of the Japan International Cooperation Agency reflects recognition of the declaration by the General Assembly in 2010 that access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation are basic human rights. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands indicated that the Netherlands recognized the right to safe drinking water and sanitation as basic human rights and that such recognition granted it the ability to point out, during policy discussions with partner countries, the responsibilities of the Government and the rights of the population, in particular vulnerable groups. The Swiss Agency for Development Cooperation indicated that its new water strategy also set a rights-based approach to water. An official document from Belgium on development cooperation mentioned that human rights principles, including the rights to water, health and decent work and the rights of women, children and indigenous peoples, were all important components of its normative framework. In a reference document on realizing the human rights to water and sanitation, the Government of Sweden recalled its declaration of full support for the human rights to water and sanitation and that richer States had an obligation to assist other States in fulfilling the right to water and sanitation. Spain also has strongly integrated human rights language into its development cooperation policies, aiming to adopt a rights-based approach in its cooperation policy and supporting the implementation of the human rights to water and sanitation.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
- Year
- 2016
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Participation in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2014, para. 76
- Paragraph text
- A positive lesson in people's agency can be learned from community-led total sanitation, which relies on a community's capacity for collective action to end open defecation. The approach challenges the dominance of "expert" solutions and subsidies, focusing instead on reflection and behaviour change through mobilization. It looks beyond the individual to create open defecation-free communities. Facilitators engage the community in analysing the implications of open defecation on health, dignity and women's security. The process usually succeeds in making clear that unless the entire community uses latrines, everyone is affected.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Harmful Practices
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Participation in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2014, para. 46
- Paragraph text
- With regard to water management, principle No. 3 of the Dublin Statement on Water and Sustainable Development, adopted by the International Conference on Water and the Environment in 1992, acknowledges that "[w]omen play a central part in the provision, management and safeguarding of water.... [I]mplementation of this principle requires positive policies … to equip and empower women to participate at all levels in water resources programmes, including decision-making and implementation". While women's participation is essential, care must be taken to avoid reinforcing existing stereotypes about women and girls being solely responsible for water management, which in many instances implies water collection.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Girls
- Women
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Participation in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2014, para. 43
- Paragraph text
- Efforts must enable effective participation. For example, a mode of engagement that relies on writing would marginalize the illiterate. Where approaches such as questionnaires are used, it is essential to recognize the risks of elite capture and counter it with other opportunities such as simple versions of a questionnaire and oral discussions. Even when they are able to take part in meetings, marginalized groups often exercise self-censorship, being intimidated either by the presence of others with "higher" status or formal procedures. One approach to avoid this is starting the process with more homogenous groups for discussing particular issues, e.g., groups of women or of young people, and then bring their input into the larger process. At the international level, the United Nations Environment Programme engages with "major groups" rather than civil society as a whole, including children and youth, farmers, indigenous peoples, women, and workers and trade unions.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Children
- Ethnic minorities
- Women
- Youth
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Participation in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2014, para. 16
- Paragraph text
- Other regional instruments include the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (art. 13 (1)), the American Convention on Human Rights (art. 23 (1) (a)), the Inter-American Democratic Charter (art. 2) and the first Protocol to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (European Convention on Human Rights) concerning the right to free elections (art. 3). Article 9 of the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa provides for equal participation of women in the political and decision-making process. Furthermore, the right to participation is enshrined in many national legal systems.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Participation in the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2014, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- Treaties adopted subsequent to the International Covenant expand the understanding of participation. Article 7 (b) and (c) of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women guarantees women's equal rights to "participate in the formulation of government policy and the implementation thereof" and to "participate in non-governmental organizations and associations concerned with the public and political life of the country". Article 14 (2) (a) specifies that women living in rural areas have the right to "participate in the elaboration and implementation of development planning at all levels".
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2014
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
Stigma and the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation 2012, para. 58
- Paragraph text
- States cannot meet their human rights obligations without addressing stigma. They not only have obligations not to act as stigmatizers, but are also obliged to protect individuals from actions or omissions of third parties. States must protect individuals from human rights abuses committed by private actors, including the media, service providers, community members and family members. To determine what States are required to do to combat stigma, one can build on the due diligence standard developed to define the obligations of States as regards the actions of private parties. It has been widely used in other areas of law, such as violence against women, providing a framework of assessment for ascertaining whether human rights obligations are met. It requires States to go beyond enacting legislation, to take positive action to meet their obligations effectively, and to make a legitimate and reasonable effort to prevent and combat stigma.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Violence
- Person(s) affected
- Families
- Women
- Year
- 2012
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
The MDGs and the human rights to water and sanitation 2010, para. 48
- Paragraph text
- Certain countries have made important strides towards introducing participation in the water and sanitation sectors at the national level. For example, Ghana's 2007 national water policy aims to ensure participation at the lowest appropriate level of society in water-related issues and calls for the acceleration of women's representation at all levels and in all spheres of water-related management. South Africa's legislative and policy framework is based explicitly on constitutionally protected human rights to water and sanitation, and the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry issued generic public participation guidelines for use by water service authorities to ensure adequate participation in service delivery. Nevertheless, the main challenge is to more fully translate laws and policies into practice.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Gender
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- Women
- Year
- 2010
- Date added
- Aug 19, 2019
Paragraph
18 shown of 18 entities