Research 2023 - 2024

In December 2024, project implementation under Water for Women's two-year extension phase came to an end. Over the course of the seven-year Fund, a total of 20 research projects and 20 WASH projects were delivered, in addition to 14 linked Innovation and Impact grants, with a total investment of AUD159.9 million supporting climate-resilient, inclusive and sustainable WASH services and systems in 16 Asia Pacific countries.[1]

During the two-year extension phase, the Australian government invested a further AUD4.21 million in funding for seven research projects exploring knowledge gaps for climate-resilient, inclusive WASH, recognising that research is a key pathway for development innovation and to inform policy-making and program delivery.

Explore our research projects below.

 

Inclusive Pathways Towards Climate-Resilient WASH in Bangladesh - The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

Research Focus: As Bangladesh invests in adaptation to reduce the impacts of climate change, how can we ensure that locally led WASH strategies are inclusive of women and men with disabilities?

 

Location: Bangladesh

 

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Supporting Decentralised Rural Water Supply and Climate Resilience in Pacific Islands - The International WaterCentre at Griffith University

Research Focus: How can formal and informal networks better support mobilising and strengthening water committees to be both WASH and water resource managers who engage with community and beyond-community factors affecting climate resilience? 

 

Locations: Fiji, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands

 

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Exploring How Circular Economy Approaches Can Drive Inclusive Climate-Resilient WASH (Circle WASH) - The University of Technology Sydney, Institute for Sustainable Futures

Research Focus: How can WASH systems and services draw on circular economy approaches to achieve inclusion and climate resilience?

 

Locations: Vietnam, Kiribati

 

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Addressing Climate Vulnerability in Nepal Through Resilient, Inclusive WASH Systems (RES-WASH) - The International Water Management Institute

Research Focus: Interrelated WASH-climate-gender challenges and evidence-based strengthening capacity of key actors across sectors and tiers of federal institutions in Nepal. 

 

Location: Nepal

 

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Strengthening Water Resources Management for Climate-Resilient and Inclusive WASH Services - The University of Technology Sydney, Institute for Sustainable Futures

Research Focus: Supporting in-country partners to collect, analyse and use evidence to support climate-resilient, GEDSI-informed water resource planning, drawing on co-production, Participatory Action Research methods and systems thinking tools within an overall systems strengthening approach, to support incentives and implementation of climate-resilient water safety and water management planning.

 

Location: Cambodia 

 

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Climate-Resilient Inclusive Urban WASH in Melanesian Pacific - The International WaterCentre at Griffith University

Research Focus: How can the climate resilience of inclusive urban WASH services be strengthened with locally applicable climate science, planning support systems and champions?

 

Locations: Vanuatu, Fiji, Papua New Guinea

 

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Resilience in a Changing Climate: Advancing Research on Groundwater for Equity (RECHARGE) - The University of Technology Sydney, Institute for Sustainable Futures

Research Focus: How can groundwater be harnessed and protected to facilitate improved climate resilience of inclusive, safely managed WASH services?

 

Locations: Indonesia, Vanuatu, Vietnam

 

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Research 2018 - 2022

 

Map of Asia Pacific region with research locations highlighted

 WASH Research (Type 2) Awards

Gender in WASH Partnerships, Workforce and Impact Assessment - The University of Technology Sydney, Institute for Sustainable Futures 

[WRA034] Research Focus: Gender in WASH partnerships, workforce and impact assessment: strengthening civil society partnerships, workforce development and impact measurement. 

 

Locations: Indonesia, Cambodia, Timor-Leste and Nepal

 

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Community Based Water Management - The International WaterCentre at Griffith University

 

[WRA063] Research focus: Progressing inclusive, resilient and sustainable SDG 6 and WASH outcomes in the rural Pacific: approaches to enable effective community-based water management. 

 

Locations: Solomon Islands and Fiji

 

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Changing Hygiene Around Maternal Priorities - The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

 

[WRA089] Research focus: Changing Hygiene Around Maternal Priorities. 

 

Location: Cambodia

 

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Changing Hygiene Around Maternal Priorities (CHAMP) Plus - The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

 

 

[WRA089] Research focus: Changing Hygiene Around Maternal Priorities. 

 

Location: Cambodia


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Water Supply and Gender - The International Water Management Institute

 

[WRA094] Research Focus: A gender perspective to understand and enhance the functionality of water supply systems: lessons from Nepal 

 

Location: Nepal

 

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Climate Change Response for Inclusive WASH - The University of Technology Sydney, Institute for Sustainable Futures

 

[WRA120] Research focus: Supporting CSOs to assess climate change impacts and improve the service, gender and social inclusion outcomes of WASH programs. 

 

Locations: Indonesia and Timor-Leste

 

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Gender-Transformative Social Accountability for Inclusive WASH - The University of Technology Sydney, Institute for Sustainable Futures

 

[WRA140] Research focus: Gender transformative social accountability for inclusive WASH 

 

Location: Bangladesh

 

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Map of research project locations

WASH Research (Type 1) Awards

On 22 March, 2019 - World Water Day - the WASH (Type 1) Research Awards were announced by the Australian Ambassador to Thailand, Mr Allan McKinnon.

‘The Water for Women Fund is a partnership that values collaboration… Our two meetings in Bangkok are an important step towards cementing that collaborative spirit. It is how we have to work if we want to make a difference to the 2.1 billion people who do not have safely managed drinking water services and the 4.5 billion people who lack safely managed hygiene services. Working smarter is also important and we need good evidence to do this. I am therefore very pleased to announce the WASH Research Awards Type 1 today.'

The Type 1 Research Awards addressed key sector knowledge gaps and contributed to the Water for Women Fund end of program outcome of “strengthened use of new evidence, innovation and practice in sustainable gender and inclusive WASH by civil society organisations, national and international WASH sector actors.”

The five selected projects are listed below, click on the project to learn more.

 

Transitioning to Safely Managed Water Services in Self-Supply Contexts - The University of Technology Sydney, Institute for Sustainable Futures

 

[WRA1004] Research Theme: Safely managed water and sanitation

Locations: Indonesia and Vanuatu

 

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Engaging Corporate Actors for Inclusive WASH - The International WaterCentre and Griffith University

 

[WRA1054] Research Theme: Gender and social inclusion in WASH

Locations: Indonesia and Fiji

 

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Promoting Safe Child Faeces Management - The International WaterCentre and Griffith University

 

[WRA1031] Research Theme: Safely managed water and sanitation

Location: Solomon Islands

 

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Improving WASH Access for Women and Girls with Disabilities - The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

 

[WRA1048] Research Theme: Gender and social inclusion in WASH

Locations: Cambodia and Bangladesh

 

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Gender and Socially Inclusive Co-Design of Water-Sensitive Communities - Monash University and Emory University

 

[WRA1023] Research Theme: Gender and social inclusion in WASH

Locations: Indonesia (Makassar) and Fiji (Suva)

 

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COVID-19 Research

Water for Women partners undertook research to better understand and support WASH responses to COVID-19 in the Indo-Pacific region in support of DFAT’s Partnerships for Recovery response - WASH was a critical response to all.

WASH, Foodways, Markets, Women and COVID-19 in Vanuatu - The International WaterCentre and Griffith University

 

[RA01] Research Theme: COVID-19 WASH responses

Location: Vanuatu 

 

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[1] On 14 November, 2022, coinciding with Water and Gender Day at COP27 in Egypt, Australia’s Minister for International Development and the Pacific, the Hon Pat Conroy MP, announced a two-year extension for Water for Women to strengthen climate-resilient inclusive water, sanitation and hygiene for Asian and Pacific communities.

From 2023 to 2024 the Australian government invested a further AUD41 million to support climate-resilient, inclusive and sustainable WASH services and systems, and safeguard water security in our region. This included a further AUD4.21 million in funding for seven research projects exploring climate-resilient, inclusive WASH during this extension phase.



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