Message 39: Manirul Islam on Juana Vera

Manirul Islam responds on Juana Vera’s message highlighting that participation and an understanding of how social structures influence water management, are areas that have to be looked at in order to mainstream gender.

Section: What is needed?

In this section Juana has provided many important issues and argument which mainly refers to social system. There is a need to get into the issues as how social systems influence water management issues and how water management system could be improved with restructuring the social system to bring benefits for women. Attempts should be made to point out issues of water management and social system and linking those issues to the development of women.

What should be done to effectively mainstream gender in water management in agriculture?

To answer this question it is needed to explain what is gender mainstreaming? Public Service International (PSI), France (2002) noted that Gender mainstreaming consists of the decision making processes in all areas of an organisation’s policy and work to taken into account the unequal gender relations. The goal of gender mainstreaming is to ensure that all policies and activities of an organisation take into account direct and indirect discrimination and promote equality of treatment and opportunities between men and women and the equitable distribution of measures and benefits. It has also been stated that gender mainstreaming consists of two main aspects:

The identification of the ways in which existing policies and decision making processes within any organisation are reflecting and reinforcing existing inequalities between men and women.
The development of policies and practices to overcome these inequalities

The measures which could be effective for mainstreaming gender in water management in agriculture are;

Involving women with men in the beginning of a project.

Project cycle that can be adapted to suit local contexts and demonstrates the gender aspects which need to be considered at each phase of the project. Women involvement at the stage of planning of a project would be congenial for planning a project as women can give inputs with sharing their ideas and experiences. Involvement of women in the process of planning can positively effect women’s skills and capabilities as well

Ensure participation of women in the phase of operation of a project through involving them in different water user groups.

Through participation in different water users group women could be able to develop their skills and experiences and would come to know how water management problems could be deal with.

Facilitation also needed from organisational level to involve stakeholders (women and men) as they could explore new issues and be familiar with the system.

Participation of stakeholder under different water user groups generally maintained through rules and regulation formulated by the national body or by the implementing agency. Stakeholders also need facilitation from the implementing agency in the beginning of a program or project.

Formulate proper tools and guidelines to practice in the local level.

It has been often claimed that most of the guidelines which already in used could not meet the local needs as those guidelines did not contextualized the local situation. There is a overriding importance to formulate appropriate guidelines which can address the practical situation of the locality and development initiatives from its content and approach.