Unravelling The Intersectionalities of Water Security

According to the World Health Organization, 1 out of 6 people globally do not have access to adequate drinking water. Likewise, twice as many people do not have access to safe and clean sanitation.  The main reasons for that include groundwater arsenic contamination, high levels of salinity, and drought, which are all worsened by pollution, climate change and unequal distribution of resources.

The human right to water was only effectively recognized after the unsuccessful attempt to implement neoliberal development policies —such as the privatisation of water in Latin America in the early 2000’s — was received with considerable backlash by the international community. 

 

The Millennium Development Goals, a symbol of global cooperation envisioned by the United Nations, also include sanitation as one of the most neglected targets on track, which emphasises the importance of guaranteeing water security for basic needs in domestic use and public health regulation. 

The Politics of Impact Disparity 

Water insecurity refers not only to a matter of quantity but also of quality. Considering the impact that extractivist activities – such as mining, coal combustion, and pigment production – have on local ecosystems and the colonial legacies embedded in the economies of several countries that occupy the base of the chain of production, it is reasonable to conjecture how most of these people who suffer with water insecurity are citizens from developing nations.

The perpetuation of an international trade network that forces former colonial countries to rely on commodity exports results in the strengthening of the position and the profits of Western industrialized powers. Meanwhile, developing nations are left at the mercy of crop production with no adequate structure to deal with the aftermath of climate change – which directly affects food and water security (as evidenced by the impacts of the several heatwaves, floods and wildfires being seen around the world in recent months).

There is a striking gap in how developed nations use an average of 400-500 litres a day per person, while in developing countries the volume is just 20 litres.  For example, several communities in Kenya make use of sand dams to preserve rainwater in the prevention of drought. Moreover, in Sub-Saharan Africa, the average level of access to clean water and sanitation is only at 68%.

What these numbers fail to account for is that the data is not universally applicable to the entire population, since many of the policies implemented to improve such conditions are made at the urban level. Besides, without considering the political and economic context that enables the persistence of such disparities there are no comprehensive governance strategies that can work in the long-term.

The Intersectionalities Deepening Water Security

The identified discrepancy is still not extensive enough to reflect the lives of every citizen in these environments. The web of social structures existing within these communities also implies an hierarchy of authority that accentuates decision-making powers for some and vulnerability for others. 

For one, water scarcity overlaps with gender inequality as women become more vulnerable to violence  because of the lack of means for completing household chores, poorly designed or located latrines and the necessity of walking long distances to access water(which also hinders their educational attainment). On the other hand,we need to consider the fundamental job of women whose subsistence is based in forest preservation and how water scarcity effects them. These women and their communities could also be put at risk in face of extractivist companies precisely because they retain such knowledge. 

Alternatively, we can infer the violence in the way indigenous and native communities within developed countries are treated by evidencing facts such as Native American homes having  a 0.67 percent of no indoor plumbing, which also characterises a health-based violation of rights. Similarly, indigenous communities worldwide have been suffering without access to clean water, as shown in  studies focused on the interconnections between water and health in light of the sustainable development commitments in Global North countries like Australia.

Another group we should focus on are glacial communities in the Arctic that rely on surface water for their basic needs and are suffering fromthe sudden increase in temperature, winter precipitation, cyclone activity and evapotranspiration, which worsens water loss and implies drier conditions in the upcoming years.

Spotlight on Solutions: International Cooperation Meets Local Action

If the global powers worked towards a new international order that considers the mobilization of resources from central to peripheral countries and invests in a comprehensive approach that also considers income redistribution – internal equality – within nations, then perhaps we can hope for a truly ideal governance structure.

While that is yet to be implemented, initiatives like the Global Alliance for a Sustainable Planet, which leverages private finance for global cooperation with different regional focuses – constitute some of the best options  for mitigating the impacts and disparities of climate change within the existing global order.

Here we highlight two of our partner projects that have done an incredible job at tackling water insecurity. First of all, by seeking the core reason for pollution due to the introduction of plastic into the food chain, Water Unite works towards a circular economy by supporting and catalyzing new types of investment in systems strengthening and improving coordination among government, private sector and community groups, more specifically in recycling facilities and deposit return schemes.

So far they have managed to run programmes in 7 countries and to return 8 billion litres of water to regional systems, helping 653,089 people gain access to safe sanitation and hygiene through 896 tonnes of recyclable materials collected.

Similarly, ICIMOD is an intergovernmental knowledge and learning centre that develops and shares research, information, and innovations to empower people in the eight regional member countries of the HKH – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan to build resilience to environmental and social economic shocks while coming up with innovative solutions to critical mountain problems. Their River Basins and Cryosphere regional programme helps communities manage water resources and disaster risks, prioritize the sustainable use of water and land resources to enhance livelihoods and understand the role of the cryosphere contributions. 

By focusing on local action to tackle water insecurity and replicating it in several regions, both these initiatives encapsulate the power of international cooperation that understands the importance of local grassroots and giving voice and agency to the communities affected by the issue. The most comprehensive and effective approach to handling such a problem is recognizing the power of contribution from local groups that experience daily the consequences of pollution and natural disasters that were worsened by climate change and providing them with the resources to be independently sustainable in the long term.

Conclusion

The global water security crisis is a multifaceted challenge that affects millions of people worldwide, particularly in developing nations. This crisis is the result of various interconnected factors, including contamination, resource inequality, and the adverse impacts of climate change. While recognizing the human right to water has been a significant step, the persistence of water insecurity demands a holistic approach.

It is clear that addressing water security requires more than just increasing water availability. The existing disparities in water usage between developed and developing nations, along with the intersecting challenges faced by marginalized communities, call for comprehensive solutions that consider the social, economic, and political contexts in which this crisis unfolds.

Efforts to tackle water insecurity should include global cooperation and a reevaluation of international economic structures that perpetuate inequality. Initiatives, such as those mentioned above, recognize the power of local communities and the importance of providing resources for long-term sustainability and self-sufficiency, which is why it is of utmost importance to support them.

In an ideal governance model, resources would be mobilized from central to peripheral countries, income redistribution would be prioritized within nations, and global powers would work together to ensure access to clean water for all. While we are not there yet, these efforts demonstrate the potential for change. In a world facing the compounding challenges of climate change and water insecurity, the power of international cooperation and local empowerment offers hope for a more sustainable and equitable future in which water security is a reality for every person, regardless of their circumstances.