Seminar "Conflict over Water and Water to Solve Conflicts"

Report and background papers of the seminar "Conflict over Water and Water to Solve Conflicts" co-convened by GWA and Saferworld

Report on the seminar “Conflict over Water and Water to Solve Conflicts”: During Stockholm World Water Week 2008, the Gender and Water Alliance organized a seminar titled “Conflict over Water and Water to Solve Conflicts” in cooperation with Saferworld UK. The water world is characterised by competing claims, uncertainty and degradation of water supply at different levels, therefore for many people water management is by definition conflict management. Furthermore water intersects with other social relations of power, especially gender, reinforcing the power differences between different people. At the same time conflicts can be windows of opportunity to address change, chalenging inequities and differences. The seminar focussed on stories of hope, showing that facilitating access to water for all is at the heart of approaches to navigate conflict. To showcase this, five different cases were presented of conflict over water and how water was used to mitigate conflict.
Peace building by improved access to water and sanitation for women and men in Gujarat after communal riots: Paper by Nafisa Barot, describing how water and sanitation facilities were used to build peace between different groups of people after the 2002 Gujarat riots.
Drama and awareness raising to solve conflicts between different groups of users of saniation and water facilities in Borno State, Nigeria: Paper by Aisha Hamza. The installation of water and sanitation facilities by the state government, individuals or a donor agency is meant to alleviate the hardship encountered by citizens of the state. However, it becomes a source of conflict for most of the users when self-interest sets in and clashes with the collective interest of the community at large.
Darfur: Identity, Gender and Water in the Conflict: Paper by Raga Elzain and Maysara Mohamed Salih. The armed conflict of Darfur in Sudan that was fuelled in 2003 has resulted in one of the most contemporary tragic humanitarian situations in the world. In this paper it is the intention to give a reflection on the relationship of the scarcity of water to gender, ethnicity, religion and conflict. Emphasis is laid upon Internally Displaced People and water and sanitation.