Historically, socially and economically, women in many societies have
been given the onerous responsibility of travelling long distances, often in
unfavourable weather conditions, to carry home containers of water on their
heads for drinking and domestic purposes. Women are over-represented in
performing these tasks but are under-represented in offering a signifi cant
contribution in water management at decision-making levels.
This article aims to explore and analyse the defi nitive transferral of
gender responsibility from ‘carrying’ water to ‘carrying responsibility’
for water. The article [qualitative] builds on a literature review, policy
regulations and case-studies that refl ect transformational reallocation
of set tasks and explores the way forward to utilise water as a means of
enhancing gender empowerment. The article recommends the use of
gender disaggregated data and a close consideration of gender-based
and gender-sensitive approaches in defi ning water policies. Importantly,
scope is also left for further investigation of strategies and policies which
promote gender empowerment in and through water programmes.
The article emphasises the roles of women in water resource
management in South Africa as a case study