One out of every four people in the world – over 2.2 billion – still lack access to safe drinking water. But the water crisis doesn’t affect everyone equally. Where access is limited and unsafe, inequality becomes more visible. And often those who take on most of the burden are women and girls.
This is why this year World Water Day, celebrated every 22nd of March, focuses on a dimension that is often forgotten concerning the water crisis: the relationship between water and gender equality. Under the slogan “Where water flows, equality grows”, the United Nations campaign takes on a transformative focus based on rights, where women participate equally in decisions about water.
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Over 1 billion women, that is more than a quarter of the world’s female population, lack safe access to drinking water services. Additionally, in two out of every three homes, women are mainly responsible for going out to find water, according to a report by Unicef and the World Health Organization (WHO).
In many places, women and girls are charged with the task of collecting water for their homes, managing it for daily needs, and caring for those who get sick when the water is unsafe. To do so, they have to form long queues, walk miles to a water source and in some cases pay high charges.
In the 53 countries for which data exist, women and girls dedicate 250 million hours a day to collecting water. The time invested in this task limits their opportunities for education, employment and development.
In the 53 countries for which data exist, women and girls dedicate 250 million hours a day to collecting water, over triple that carried out by men and boys, according to UN Women. The time invested in this task limits their opportunities for education, employment and development.
Despite this, they continue to be under-represented in areas of decision-making where water is concerned. According to a global report, around 14% of countries still do not dispose of the mechanisms that ensure the equal participation of women in decision-making related to water and the management of water resources.
World Water Day has been celebrated on the 22nd of March since 1993, after the UN General Assembly officially established it in December 1992 with the aim of raising awareness about the importance of water and promoting its sustainable management.
One of the most vital advances in this agenda came in 2010 when the General Assembly recognized the human right to water and sanitation. This recognition establishes that everyone must have access to enough safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water to cover their basic needs.
But, with just four years to go before the deadline to comply with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), guaranteeing universal access to drinking water continues to be one of the biggest challenges worldwide.
In this context, World Water Day takes on a key theme of the water crisis. In previous years, issues such as glaciers, peace, climate change and food security were highlighted. This year, the attention is firmly on the connection between water, women and gender equality.
Although they are often only presented as those most affected by scarcity, women perform a fundamental role in water management. For the UN, it is time that women and girls occupy a central place in solutions to the water crisis, whether it be as engineers, farmers, scientists, carers, or defenders and agents of change.
It is time that women and girls occupy a central place in solutions to the water crisis, whether it be as engineers, farmers, scientists, carers, or defenders and agents of change.
When women participate equally in the management and governance of water, the services tend to be more inclusive, sustainable and effective. The message of the 2026 World Water Day is resounding: where access to water is better and women participate in decision-making, equality and opportunities also grow.
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