The WASH Up
A quarterly update from Water for Women
June 2023
|
|
|
 |
|
From 2023 to 2024 the Australian government, through Water for Women, is investing a further $36 million to support climate-resilient, inclusive and sustainable WASH services and systems, and safeguard water security through WASH and research projects in 16 Asia Pacific countries.Water for Women is partnering with eight civil society organisations (CSOs) to continue implementing 15 inclusive WASH projects, you can now explore each of our CSO projects in detail on our website.
|
|
 |
|
World Water Week 2023 is focused on innovation at a time of unprecedented challenges. The theme Seeds of Change: Innovative Solutions for a Water-Wise World invites us to rethink how we manage water. Which ideas, innovations, and governance systems will we need in a more unstable and water scarce world?
Water for Women is pleased to be convening and supporting several sessions, both online and on-site, with our partners that will explore innovative approaches and solutions in water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) for a water-wise world. We encourage those attending in person to catch our sessions or visit our booth and if you can't make it in person, many of our sessions will be accessible for free online.
Key Sessions include:
|
|
 |
|
This learning brief, launched on #MHDay2023 synthesises and shares lessons from Water for Women’s investment in WASH in schools as part of 20 projects led by civil society organisation partners, with a mix of support for improved WASH facilities and activities aimed at WASH behaviour change.
Combined, these activities reached more than 600 schools in the first phase of Water for Women across Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Vanuatu and Vietnam.
|
|
17 - 20 July
As one of the largest multi-sectoral convenings to advance gender equality, WD2023 will convene 6,000 people in Kigali and 200,000+ people online through the virtual Conference and six-month Global Dialogue leading up to the Conference.
20 - 24 August
Innovation at a time of unprecedented challenges. The theme Seeds of Change: Innovative Solutions for a Water-Wise World invites us to rethink how we manage water. Which ideas, innovations, and governance systems will we need in a more unstable and water scarce world?
View Australia - water partners for development sessions
28 August - 1 September
The Pacific Water and Wastewater Conference is the premier water conference in the Pacific bringing together Water and Infrastructure Ministers, CEOs, managers and young professionals from water and wastewater utilities from PWWA’s 21 member countries and territories. Join them along with industry and private sector members and experts who will share innovations and technology, knowledge, experiences through many exhibits, technical and networking sessions during the conference.
18-19 September
The 2023 SDG Summit will take place on 18-19 September 2023 in New York. It will mark the beginning of a new phase of accelerated progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals with high-level political guidance on transformative and accelerated actions leading up to 2030. The UN Water 2023 Conference and COP27 activities have been leading up to this conference. |
|
|
 |
|
The nation leads the world in reducing the rate of open defecation with household sanitation coverage as high as 88 percent in target provinces.
This in-depth article from Water for Women partner, iDE illustrates the incredible gains in sanitation coverage in Cambodia over more than a decade. iDE has played an important role in supporting Cambodia to move up the JMP ladder, a worthwhile read!
|
|
 |
At the Water and WASH Futures Conference in February, there was a number of sessions, presentations and trainings which provided a regional focus on Pacific Island Countries, we also spoke to many delegates who joined the event from across the Pacific who shared their insights.
We are excited to share with you this Pacific Voices video which captures highlights from the Conference and insights from Pacific delegates.
The Water and WASH Futures committee has also put together a Pacific-Focused Resources page where you can find links to all Pacific-focused presentations.
We hope the tools, stories and resources shared can help build your personal toolkit to accelerate action and implement meaningful change through the projects you work on. |
|
In Focus: Sanitation
Twenty-seven government and non-government partners recently put forward five concrete sanitation-related recommendations for integration into the global Water Action Agenda. These recommendations stem from the session titled, ‘Pollution, Sanitation, Water Quality and Climate Resilience: A Call to Action,’ which was held on 24 March 2023 at the Trusteeship Council Room of the United Nations Headquarters. During the session, government representatives from Zambia, Uganda, Tanzania, Nepal, Indonesia, South Sudan, and Senegal demonstrated the critical need to address water security in a holistic manner. |
|
|
|
It is great to see one of the case studies in Sanitation and Learning Hub and Water for Women's 2022 Frontiers series on Engaging Men and Boys for Gender-Transformative WASH being featured by the BBC in Africa.
Engaging men and boys is an exciting development in the WASH space; for too long our efforts to transform gender inequality focused too narrowly on women and girls.
Limiting ourselves to half the possible number of allies, partners for change, innovators, and leaders to address this issue held back progress, and also placed the ‘burden for change’ squarely on women’s shoulders.
You can find both resources via the links below, featuring many case studies from Water for Women projects.
|
|
|
Across the region, we highlighted...
|
|
 |
|
We know the “why” of prioritising period action – let’s work on the “how”
We could start with a statistic. Every month, 1.8 billion people across the world menstruate – girls, women, transgender men and gender diverse people, of whom many, if not most, are unable to manage their menstruation with dignity and in safe and hygienic conditions (Menstrual hygiene | UNICEF).
But most of us in the WASH sector should be well acquainted with many of these statistics by now. The “why” for ending period poverty is evident. We now understand the real costs to the lives, livelihoods, health and wellbeing of women, girls and people who menstruate if we fail to invest in menstrual health and hygiene (MHH) in our WASH programs... Zeroing in on the “how” is critical for real commitment. And a key part of the “how” is to make MHH everybody’s business. Read more
|
|
|
View more postcards
on our website!
Click here. You can search by organisation, country and thematic tags. |
|
|
Project Spotlight: Plan International in Solomon Islands...
|
|
 |
In Solomon Islands, 64% of schools have no or limited access to drinking water, 63% have no sanitation facilities and 75% lack any access to hygiene services.
Plan International and Live & Learn Environmental Education are working in Solomon Islands’ Guadalcanal Province to support improved WASH facilities and outcomes, including training and raising awareness on the importance of handwashing and menstrual health and hygiene. Watch this beautiful video that captures the impact of their work. |
|
 |
|
On 17 May we celebrated International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT). We shared some practical tips, learning and considerations for water and WASH practitioners in partnering with SGM organisations to improve WASH outcomes for all. We also launched a toolkit to support Partnerships between WASH and SGM organisations.
|
|
 |
|
By working closely with government partners in Bhutan, Nepal and Lao PDR, Water for Women partner SNV Netherlands Development Organisation is building climate resilience through inclusive WASH interventions.
This story is part of our Water, WASH & Climate series brought to you by Water & WASH Futures Conference & Water for Women.
|
|
Innovation and Impact in action...
|
|
| We've been sharing the work of some of our Innovation & Impact work across social media, you can view a selection below (just click the image to learn more) or view all 14 on our website. |
|
 |
A big thank you to our partners and projects that came to close in December 2022
See the links below to learn more about each project's achievements.
|
|
|
Insightful reading:
Menstrual health in East Asia and the Pacific: regional progress review
We are also reading this important report released in time for #MHDay2023. Developed by WaterAid, UNICEF and the Burnet Institute in Australia.
The report reviews the progress made in policy and programming towards supporting menstrual health needs across the East Asia and Pacific region between 2016 and 2022.
|
|
|
 |
|
Climate risk integration: A new era for aid and development programming
How can climate change be integrated more effectively into the development sector? What role can local knowledge and community-led research play? Discover 5 key takeaways in this short blog from UTS-ISF and weADAPT
This weADAPT blog has been cross-posted and adapted from the University of Technology Sydney website, where the original blog was published on the 19th April 2023: A new era for aid and development programming. Please access the original text for more detail, research purposes, full references, or to quote text.
|
|
- A journal article from UTS-ISF and Water for Women was published in April, Gender equality approaches in water, sanitation, and hygiene programs: Towards gender-transformative practice
The recent (re-)emergence of gender-transformative approaches in the development sector has focused on transforming the gender norms, dynamics, and structures which perpetuate inequalities. Yet, the application of gender-transformative approaches within water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) programing remains nascent as compared with other sectors. Adopting a feminist sensemaking approach drawing on literature and practice, this inquiry sought to document and critically reflect on the conceptualization and innovation of gender-transformative thinking in the Australian Government's Water for Women Fund.
- London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine’s Jane Wilbur and WaterAid’s Chelsea Huggett, along with a host of other authors, recently published A qualitative cross-sectional study exploring the implementation of disability-inclusive WASH policy commitments in Svay Reing and Kampong Chhnang Provinces, Cambodia. This study has noted several areas where Cambodia's WASH systems are focusing efforts to ensure people with disabilities gain access to WASH, but it has also highlighted aspects where implementation of policy commitments could be strengthened. A more comprehensive and cross-sectoral approach to progressively realizing the rights to water and sanitation for people with disabilities and challenging disability discrimination more broadly could significantly disrupt the vicious cycle of poverty and disability.
|
|
|
Recent knowledge and learning products published by Water for Women and our partners...
|
|
| WASH in Schools: Insights from Water for Women
This learning brief synthesises and shares lessons from Water for Women’s investment in water, sanitation and hygiene in schools as part of 20 projects led by civil society organisation partners, with a mix of support for improved WASH facilities and activities aimed at WASH behaviour change.
|
|
|
 |
|
Climate Finance for the WASH sector in Asia-Pacific
Accessing climate adaptation financing for WASH projects has been a challenge for civil society organisations due to a number of procedural, design and systemic barriers. To address this challenge, a consortium Water for Women partners has developed a series of briefs on climate finance for the WASH sector in the Asia and Pacific. The Pacific regional brief is now available along with five country-specific briefs
|
|
|
21 fact sheets on self-supply water services in Asia and the Pacific
UTS-ISF in partnership UNICEF (EAPRO and ROSA) and support from Water for Women have developed 21 country factsheets providing an overview of self-supplied water services across Asia and the Pacific. These factsheets profile the prevalence of self-supply, spatial and temporal trends, service levels including water quality and availability, equity dimensions, and policy aspects of self-supply in each country.
|
|
|
|
Environmental Indicators of Climate Risks to Inclusive WASH
This learning resource summarises a range of indicators that WASH service authorities and their civil society organisations (CSOs) can use to monitor the key risks of six climate hazards to household WASH access. Specifically, the indicators pertain to changes in the natural or built environment that may be outside the sphere of control of a WASH program.
|
|
|
 |
|
ICYMI
Transformative WASH for climate resilience - a toolkit
For World Water Day and UN Water 2023 Conference we developed a toolkit drawing together key resources from Water for Women and our partners for water and WASH practitioners. This toolkit can help you deliver transformative WASH programming with an explicit focus on supporting local communities and institutions to shift harmful norms that exclude the diverse voices of women, people with disabilities and marginalised groups - a key to building climate resilience.
|
|
Follow us to be sure you don't miss out!
|
|
Water for Women is the Australian Government’s
flagship WASH program.
|
|
|
|
|
Back to Search
Receive notifications when this page is updated
Subscribe
