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p. 9 of 19 BACK | NEXT Emerging Global Water Issues Water Quality, Pollution, and the Environment A Double-Edged Sword: Flood and Droughts Geographical Variability in Water Resources Shared Waters Heightened Awareness of Water Issues Elements of a Water Strategy Basic Human Rights and Environmental Renewal Water for Poverty Reduction Water for Food Production Water as a Finite and Economic Good Imperatives for Wise Water Management ADB's Evolving Role in the Changing Context

Water in the 21st Century : Elements of a Water Strategy

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Water for Poverty Reduction

Not only are the poor more prone to the adverse impacts of unsafe drinking water and inadequate sanitation, but ADB's field surveys also consistently show that the poor spend disproportionately more of their incomes on potable water than more privileged sections of the community for whom piped water supplies are assured. For example, the poor in Manila pay as much as 10 percent of their household income for a meager quantity of poor-quality water (see box on page 16). While investments in human capital (education, health care, shelter, and protection from the effects of natural disasters) are also required to break the cycle of poverty, the impacts of poor-quality drinking water and the lack of adequate sanitation are particularly strong and immediate. The policy imperative of this-for governments as well as for ADB-is quite clear.

While the poor are disadvantaged in terms of access to the benefits of improved water supply and sanitation, poor women are in a particularly invidious situation. The gender division of labor in many societies allocates to women the responsibility for collecting and storing water, caring for children and the sick, cooking, cleaning, and maintaining sanitation. The availability of a decent water supply and sanitation system goes a long way to improving the quality of life for poor women and their families. In many parts of the region, the arduous task of walking long distances over difficult terrain to fetch water falls to women, often with the help of their daughters. Women care for the sick, who are often children suffering diseases caused directly by contaminated water. Providing clean and dependable water close to the home can substantially reduce women's workloads, and free up time for women to engage in economic activities to improve household incomes. For girls, the time saved can be used to attend school. Hence, providing water supply and sanitation is pivotal to improving both the social and economic status of women, while simultaneously addressing gender and poverty concerns. The central role that women play in providing, managing, and safeguarding water is recognized in the third Dublin Principle.

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