Concluding Thoughts

 

So, this is it. My final post- in this, I summarise my blog so far highlighting aspects which were important to me

Throughout my blog, I explored many aspects of the water-gender relationship including, collection, sanitation etc, and how the lack of access to safe water perpetuates the gender discrepancy. I focussed on Sub-Saharan Africa, and in doing so I aimed to keep the message that Wanaina (2006) expressed about Africa being a continent of diversity, thus avoiding any stereotyped perceptions.

In my introductory post, I highlighted the UN’s stance on the SDG’s as being ‘the blueprint for better change’. Upon analysing the relationship between gender and water for the past few months, I would say yes- I would consider it to be a ‘blueprint' or foundation in providing a direction for change, however the SDGs are lacking: There is little acknowledgement of MHM or water collection in the SDGs relating to gender and water (5 and 6). This re-emphasises my point of needing to address all aspects of the intersectionality regarding gender and water.

In terms of the gender discrepancy, I do believe positive change is happening, with many countries showing increased awareness and initiative to tackle these problems, such as Kenya with MHM. This is a step into the right direction but more does need to be done. As, I mentioned in the last blog post, it is not enough to simply put women into the system and hope they participate and empower themselves. I also believe how gender is framed impacts development potential. Whilst women should be the  focus, how one singles out females can potentially create a narrative of girls being ‘other’ (Cornwall 2003) rather than promoting equity and inclusion. Thus, it is important to account for females holistically and in relation to males as well. As I’ve mentioned, I believe education of girls and boys is the way forward for creating long-term development, through dismantling patriarchal traditional ideologies which both men and women sadly hold.

So, to wrap up I want to say thank you! I hope you enjoyed reading my blog as much as I did research and writing it. I must say, after spending months on this I do have an attachment. Writing about period poverty was especially touching because it made me realise how lucky I am to have safe and affordable access to sanitation materials, that the thought of dropping out of school would never even cross my mind. Also, I am aware from first-hand experience that the taboo of menstruation is not native to Sub-Saharan Africa highlighting the need for boys and girls to unlearn internalised negative narratives and openly discuss these issues.

As I mentioned in the introduction- 50% of the world’s population is female accounting for half the human potential. We must all fight for gender equality in order to fulfil this potential and ensure sustainable development!

Thank you for reading.