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Research exploring community managed water+ services and: 1. The relationship between governance and sustainability 2. The heterogeneity of women’s experiences Dr. Helen Pankhurst Addis Ababa, April 2013 1

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Dr. Helen Pankhurst's presentation - Addis Ababa, April 2013 In community management of water services, four elements of good governance - participation, inclusion, accountability and transparency - are pivotal to the success or failure in the short run and are even more critical for long-term sustainability. To explore the relationship between functionality and sustainability, CARE USA developed a functionality, governance and finance snapshot tool for community-managed water systems. This paper shares the findings of the tool as to the Global Water Initiative (GWI) in East Africa in 2012. http://water.care2share.wikispaces.net/file/view/GWI_GovernanceSustainability_4page%20GWI%20branded.pdf Women's experiences are not homogeneous and yet water+ programs often report benefits to them as a whole, for example in terms of reduced burden, increased dignity, and livelihood and empowering opportunities. To better understand the real impact of water+ services on particular categories of women and how the demographics of the beneficiaries might affect the outcomes of a program, the Global Water Initiative (GWI) East Africa, led by CARE, administered a women's experience snapshot questionnaire. The aim of the study is to promote further discussion and analysis of the two-way impact of women's heterogeneity on their experiences and the effectiveness of water+ services. http://water.care2share.wikispaces.net/file/view/GWI_WomensExperiences_4page%20GWI%20branded.pdf

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Page 1: GWI East Africa - Research

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Research exploring community managed water+ services and:1. The relationship between governance and sustainability2. The heterogeneity of women’s experiences

Dr. Helen PankhurstAddis Ababa, April 2013

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Snapshot methodology

Data on 2012 Global Water Initiative (GWI) East Africa

Common Factors

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Part 1:The relationship between governance and sustainability

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Governance and functionality

Figure 1: Factors affecting sustainability (n = 269)

0 100 200

Governance

Finance

Technology

Environment Most important

Second most important

Third most important

Least important of the four

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281 schemes, developed or rehabilitated by GWI East Africa program

Mainly water for domestic use, also water for irrigation, clothes washing and cattle troughs

The snapshot was filled in by, mixed interest groups: women and men, community members and committee leaders

Context

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Functionality

Figure 2: Functionality status (n = 278)

5%9%

86%

Not functioning

Functioning with difficulties

Functioning well

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Governance

Some of the feedback on the initial governance of systems developed is likewise very positive

E.g. in terms of inclusion, 95 % reporting that all community members use the services equally and equitably

Generally strong areas in terms of initial participation and inclusion

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Governance

Figure 3: Committee and officer bearer selection (n = 276)

2%

18%

80%

The committee and office bearers were selected not elected

It is unclear, mixture of selection and community voice

The committee and office bearers were elected by the community

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83% of schemes plan for O&M 32%, indicated that the tariffs had

increased 21 % had made advanced

expenditure on spares, etc However, only 67% are just about

covering costs Funds not generated in advance in

43% of cases In 39 % there is no regular reporting

back

Financial Governance

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Looked at three indicators of functionality; 15 indicators significant for all three

1. Existence and functionality of bylaws2. The process regarding committee elections

(selected or elected)3. Community awareness of committee roles and

responsibilities4. Training and capacity regarding basic maintenance

# 5 – 15 continued on next slide…

Towards a predictive tool

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5. Length of time to fix if broken due to a financial problem

6. Purchase of parts for preventative maintenance 7. The overall financial situation of the scheme8. How funds needed for O&M are raised 9. Where funds are kept10. Committee knowledge/practice of record keeping11. Presence of at least two people involved in finances12. Community knowledge of finances of scheme13. Existence of audits or external finance checks14. Plan for break downs & loss of trained staff15. Forward planning

Significant indicators of functionality (cont…)

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Front-end: initial community participation and inclusion done well, but the back-end is given less attention

E.g. election vs. re-elections; initial financial discussions vs. mechanisms for regular financial report-back

By-laws, need to be documents that people know about, refer to and update over time

Conclusion for governance study

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Part 2: The heterogeneity ofwomen’s experiences

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Water+ programs often report benefits to them as a whole

But particular women’s experiences mediated by age, position in the household, wealth, disability etc so how do these factors affect how women experience project and how effective it is?

A women’s experience snapshot questionnaire developed to look at these issues

The heterogeneity of women’s experiences

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Tool used in 2012 in GWI East Africa program

Small sample of 191 women with differences in location, marital status, income, household position and composition, educational level, wealth, disability

Small, non-randomized sample, findings need to be treated with caution, but 1st step to think about the differentiated experience of women, and the impact of these differences on the program itself

The heterogeneity of women’s experiences (cont…)

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Position in household

10%

29%

43%

10%

9%

Elderly relative

Head of household

Wife of head of household

Older adult

Young dependent

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Feedback on time, amount, and quality of water

Wor

se

Not v

ery

differ

ent

A bi

t bet

ter

Sign

ifica

ntly b

ette

r

No an

swer

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%

Time taken to col-lect water

Amount of water collected

Quality of water

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Dignity: (86%) Heads of households rather than elderly relatives, young dependents or other adults in the household were more likely to report increases in respect/dignity

Leisure Time: (74%), time for socializing (77%). Relatively poor women more likely to report improvements compared to women in the middle income status

Examples of differences

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Financial Impact

2.7%

14.8%

44.5%

27.5%

10.4%

Worse than before

Not very different

A bit better

Significantly better

No answer

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Married women in particular but also widowed women were more likely than single women to take on these roles. Also women with young and old children were more likely than women with no children and wives of heads of households were more likely to take be involved compared to another adult living in the household.

Committee members

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25 % of women reported that their voices within the community had improved.

Women with young and old children were more likely to report an improvement than women with no children, likewise married women were more likely than divorced women to report improvements, other adults within the household also more likely than old parent/relative or young dependants and wives of heads of households more likely than old parent or young dependents.

Voice in the community

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80% of women felt the initiative had contributed to greater equality.

Disabled women were more likely to report this benefit compared to non-disabled women and likewise women with children more likely to do so than women with no children.

Gender equality and empowerment

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Women’s experiences not homogeneous Figures just reflecting existing differences? Program reinforcing existing patterns. Some women

- namely those that are successful and at their peak in terms of society’s expectations of them as mothers and wives - have more opportunities to be heard and involved than others?

Women’s experiences conclusion

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Further studies - Whose voice dominates? Whose is least likely to be heard? What’s the effect on effectiveness of the initiative? How equitable and transformative is it?

Clear that women experience’s are mediated not only by differences in relative wealth and disabilities, but also by position in, and composition of, households.

Developing an understanding of the heterogeneity of women’s experiences is the first step. We need to be much more sensitive to the heterogeneity as this can affect both the effectiveness of the service provided, and its potential for transformative impact.

Women’s experiences conclusion (cont…)

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Thank you

[email protected]

http://thehowardgbuffettfoundation.org/initiatives/global-water-initiative

http://water.care2share.wikispaces.net/