Allies accelerating sustainable WASH solutions in Nepal

Email icon Back to Search
At a rural outdoor location in Nepal, a woman is presenting menstrual health and hygiene management products to a group of mothers who are sitting cross-legged in a circle on the ground around her.

In Dungeshwor Rural Municipality, in Dailekh, a sanitation entrepreneur presents menstrual health and hygiene products during an information session for mothers groups (SNV / Meeting Point)

 

The links between water and women, and the impacts of climate change on both, are becoming better understood. In two out of three households without on-site water access, it is women and girls’ responsibility to collect it. This often means long daily walks that put their health and well-being at risk, and hamper their school, livelihood and social activities.

 

When water is scarce or polluted, and there is not enough water for sanitation and hygiene (WASH), women, girls, people with disabilitioes and other marginalised groups are disproportionately impacted. Conflict linked to water insecurity also increases the risk of violence.

 

Sundar KC, Chairperson of Dungeshwor Rural Municiaplity, understands these realities and is an ally for gender equitable, disability and socially inclusive WASH. He is among the many community leaders who SNV partners with to improve access to climate-resilient and inclusive WASH in Dailekh through their Water for Women project, Towards Climate-Resilient Inclusive WASH Services in Rural Nepal,

 

Supported by Australia through Water for Women, SNV has been supporting local government-led improvements in rural water and hygiene services in Dailekh since 2018. Through the Beyond the Finish Line project in Nepal, access to safely managed drinking water in Dungeshwor increased by 77 percentage points. At the same time, the project supported the final push needed for the RM to realise 100% access to handwashing.

 

After being elected as the head of local government in May 2022, Sundar KC started prioritising actions based on the RM’s existing WASH strategies, which included inauguration of the RM’s water quality testing laboratory, which reflected the Water Supply Services Improvement Strategy (2021) focus on providing a better level of service measured in terms of quantity, quality, accessibility, and reliability (QQAR).

 

A man demonstrating water testing to a group of seated Nepalese women and men in a rural village of Dailekh, Nepal.
Resource person Dilip Khadka demonstrates the importance of water testing and household level water purification processes in Dungeshwor RM, Dailekh (SNV / Meeting Point) 

 

Later that year in September, Sundar KC declared Ward No. 2 as "Purna sarsafai unmukha", meaning "Towards Total Sanitised" – an important milestone in the RM’s Sanitation and Hygiene Behaviour Change Communication Strategy.

 

"The water supply services strategy speaks about achieving intermediate to high levels of services on QQAR parameters for all people by 2030, but it is our responsibility to achieve this target by 2027... one ward had already been declared Purna sarsafai unmukha ward and today, we’re on the journey to make the whole RM “Towards Total Sanitized," he declared.

 

But for Sundar KC, these achievements were just the beginning, and in June 2023, when Dungeshwor Council passed its annual plan and budget policy for the current fiscal year (July 23-June 24), his efforts paid off. The policy explicitly reflected the RM's vision for building climate resilience in water supply, sanitation and hygiene services, for all people living in the RM. 

 

Through their current Water for Women project, SNV and local partners are supporting Sundar KC and his team to understand climate change-related threats and potential mitigation actions to sustain and improve water supply services and WASH, especially for potentially disadvantaged groups.

 

All this learning and new knowledge has informed Dungeshwor RM’s upcoming fiscal policy, which specifies the preparation and implementation of a:

  • climate-resilient drinking water plan, complete with the construction and rehabilitation of climate-adaptive structures
  • disaster risk reduction and compensation plan, and
  • long-term plan for environmental protection, climate adaptation, and conservation of water resources.

 

With this new policy set out, Sundar KC believes the RM is moving in the right direction to secure safe water and WASH for all! 

 

Water for Women partners with SNV in Nepal to support adaptation and strengthen resilience within current area-wide rural water supply services with four RMs across two districts - Dailekh and Sarlahi. This project is contributing to improved health, gender equality and well-being of these rural communities  through climate-resilient and inclusive WASH services and broader water security, with the aim to drectly benefi an estimated 41,200* people by the end of this year.

 

*Project targets are based on partner Civil Society Organisations (CSO) baseline studies. Project targets are updated periodically in response to changes in context as appropriate. To see our latest progress towards targets, see our progress.

 

World Water Day is observed annually on 22 March and this year's theme, 'Water for peace', emphasises the importance of working together to balance everyone’s needs, to ensure that no one is left behind in access to clean water and safe sanitation, and to make water a catalyst for a more peaceful future. 

As the lifeblood of any community, when water is scarce, polluted, denied or usage unfairly shared, conflicts can arise or intensify. For women and girls, people with disabilities and other marginalised groups, water insecurity exacerbates inequities and has disproportionate impacts, including on their health and well-being. Water conflict also increases the risk of violence.

Throughout the world, women are at the frontlines of climate change and it's impacts on water security. With primary responsibility for meeting caregiving and household water needs, including for sanitation and hygiene (WASH), women are water experts in their communities.

Every day, women are brokering peace, driving sustainable agriculture for food security, and delivering WASH for the health and well-being of their families and communities. Women and water can lead us out of this crisis. 

But women cannot do it alone. As climate change impacts increase, and populations grow, we must unite to advance gender equality and accelerate progress on SDG6 - Water and sanitation for all. Everyone has a role to play in creating a fairer and more cohesive society. 

Throughout Asia and the Pacific, Water for Women partners are working with communities, governments, researchers, rights holder organisations, and service providers in 16 countries to deliver climate-resilient and inclusive water and WASH services for all. Together, we are accelerating progress for SDG6 for a water secure and peaceful future for all.

0 Likes

Comments

Contact Us