Title | Occasional paper : adjusting the women's programme |
Publication Type | Miscellaneous |
Year of Publication | 1994 |
Authors | PK, B(Province) |
Pagination | 36 p.: drwngs., tab. |
Date Published | 1994-01-01 |
Publisher | Pakistan, Local Government & Rural Development Dept., Water & Sanitation Cell |
Place Published | Quetta, Pakistan |
Keywords | gender, health education, objectives, pakistan, pakistan baluchistan, planning, priority setting, projects, safe water supply, sanitation, women |
Abstract |
Some 30 percent of the rural population in Balochistan, Pakistan has a good water supply and 2 percent a safe latrine. Irrigation channels are used for domestic water supply and waste disposal. A three-year project with Dutch financial aid aims at institutional strengthening of the local government, developing sustainable community-managed schemes and installing 1937 village handpump schemes and 9685 sanitation schemes in 13 districts, starting in 5. Originally, women's involvement was seen as equal to hygiene education for women. Now the programme follows a gender approach, which includes new roles for women and men. The Water and Sanitation Cell (WSC) in the Department implements the projects with local water users groups, male and female. They sign a contract with the WSC, with the responsibilities of both parties. The participation programmes for women and men are separate and the cell sees that the women's views get combined with the men's. Thus handpumps and latrines are located by both. Otherwise these get sited at mosques and in guest-rooms, public places inaccessible to women. The programme informs women on the projects, conveys women's choices in siting to the men, adjusts facilities (e.g. for washing) and stresses men's financial responsibilities. Education on safe handling and storage of water, proper operation of latrines and handwashing aims at women and children and is given to women. Men get separate education as women cannot directly teach husbands. Methods are speech, discussion, demonstration and participatory methods (neighbourhood mapping, discussion posters, card sorting, story with a gap, plastic latrine models and latrine layout drawings on cotton). The document gives six steps of the women's programme and how they fit into the steps of the men's programme. Changes in hygiene education are a gender approach and a greater intensity on fewer and project-selected (key risk) topics. Four extra topics (dehydration, breast-feeding, weaning food and first aid) were added to adjust to women's local priorities. The following section gives the lessons from the first phase. Capable female staff are not hard to find and female reputation is safeguarded by travelling with two women on each team. However, continuity is difficult due to the non-permanent character of the cell, the low (rural) salaries offered, the demands of combining travel with caring for children and the elderly, lack of family support, existence of better job opportunities and marital change (marriage, children). A permanent status is essential for better continuity. |
Custom 1 | 202.1, 302.1, 822 |