IDH’s Post

🌍 Transforming Jobs, Transforming Lives 🌍 Better jobs are a catalyst for inclusive growth and sustainable development. Jobs that uphold dignity, equity, and improved living conditions can drive transformation across industries, communities, and economies. This collaboration seeks to implement a holistic water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) initiative focused on the textile and apparel industry in Athi River. 📌 What we’re achieving: ✔️ Enhancing water and sanitation services for factory workers and neighboring communities. ✔️ Promoting menstrual hygiene management (MHM) and breaking the stigma surrounding periods. ✔️ Driving behavioral change to improve workplace conditions and overall well-being. This initiative is more than improving infrastructure—it’s about empowering communities, championing gender equality, and setting the stage for long-term transformation in Kenya’s garment sector. #InclusiveGrowth #SustainableDevelopment #WASH #MHM #GenderEquity #Kenya

SDG6 Monitoring and Progress report. The WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Program (JMP) 2023 update report, Progress on household drinking water, sanitation and hygiene 2000-2022: Special focus on gender, compiles data on global progress towards achieving universal access to safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH). It also provides an in-depth analysis of gender inequalities between and within countries, revealing the unique risks that women and girls face from inadequate access to safe WASH. Key facts from the new report: Water: In 2022, 2.2 billion still lacked safely managed drinking water, including 115 million people drinking surface water. Sanitation: In 2022, 3.5 billion people still lacked safely managed sanitation, including 419 million who practised open defecation. Hygiene: In 2022, 2 billion still lacked basic hygiene services, including 653 million with no facility at all. Menstrual health: Adolescent girls and women living in rural areas are more likely to use reusable materials, or no materials at all, to manage menstruation. Gender: 1.8 billion people still do not have drinking water on-premises, and in two out of three households, women are primarily responsible for water collection.   Achieving universal coverage by 2030 will require a six-fold increase in current rates of progress for safely managed drinking water, a five-fold increase for safely managed sanitation, and a three-fold increase for basic hygiene services. In Kenya, WASH investments to total budget decreased from 2.17% in 2019 to 1.84% in 2022/23. During the same period, WASH allocations as a share of GDP decreased from 0.60% to 0.48%. This level of investment is low given that the country loses an equivalent of 0.9% of GDP due to poor water and sanitation services. The current allocation of 1.84% is below the Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) commitment to allocate at least 7% of the total budget to the WASH sector. As a share of GDP, 0.48% is below the Africa Infrastructure Country Diagnostic (2008) proposal, which required Sub-Saharan African countries to allocate 0.9% of GDP to achieve improved WASH outcomes for all citizens. However, the current investments almost meet the Ngor Declaration target of allocating 0.5% of GDP to WASH. To handle the gap of WASH Financing, Kenya recently amended the Water Act 2016, while the amendments will make it possible for private investors to develop upstream bulk-water PPP projects in collaboration with national government agencies, the ultimate off-takers will mostly be WSPs. WSPs have over many years suffered from under-investment and governance challenges. Do you think PPP is the Solution for the ailing WASH sector? ESCR-Net - International Network for Economic, Social & Cultural Rights Economic and Social Rights Centre- Hakijamii World Water Week German WASH Network WASH AI The Sanitation and Hygiene Fund (SHF)

India’s #SwachhBharatMission, launched 10 years ago, has transformed millions of lives, going beyond toilets to deliver dignity, safety, and empowerment to communities across the country. Here are some incredible achievements: Empowering Communities: With nearly 500 million people benefiting from improved sanitation, the movement has been an inspiring example of people-led and people-driven change. Children as Agents of Change: Children have played a pivotal role, spreading safe hygiene practices to their families and communities, helping drive behavioral change for generations to come. Empowering Women: For women in rural India, the mission has meant not just safety, but opportunity. Initiatives like training “Rani Mistris” (women masons) empower women to lead and contribute directly to their communities’ sanitation needs. Fostering Sustainability: Moving beyond open defecation-free (#ODF) status, India is now focusing on sustainable waste management practices, such as solid and liquid waste management in ODF Plus villages. This shift is key for environmental sustainability and the ongoing sanitation journey. With UNICEF India’s crucial partnership, the Swachh Bharat Mission continues to drive progress in the #SustainableDevelopmentGoals, setting a model for the world in achieving large-scale sanitation improvements. (above are the highlights from the article, you can read the full article written by Arjan de Wagt here: https://lnkd.in/gUzA_J-N) #SwachhBharat #CleanIndia #UNICEF #ForEveryChild #SDGs

We celebrated International Women's Day 2024 a few weeks ago, honoring the women who work at GWSC by highlighting their voices, roles, and contributions. In that spirit, we aim to showcase an example of how GWSC, along with its partners, is implementing these values. In this article, The Odisha government's sanitation policy focuses on empowering women in urban sanitation. It acknowledges that poor sanitation disproportionately affects vulnerable groups, especially women, and aims to include them in decision-making processes. The policy promotes affordable and sustainable sanitation systems and builds partnerships with women-led self-help groups and slum dweller associations to manage sanitation infrastructure. This inclusive approach ensures sanitation benefits are sustained and citizens are active partners in sanitation improvement. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eVHBhmwm Photo credit to SCI-FI@CPR

I was invited by UNDP Eswatini to participate in a Collective Intelligence Workshop focused on managing single-use diapers. During the workshop, I shared insights on why simply banning the importation of diapers in Eswatini is not a feasible solution. We need a tripartite approach to address this issue effectively: 1. Awareness Campaigns: It's crucial to run robust campaigns targeting women and communities to highlight the benefits of reusable diapers and the dangers associated with single-use options. 2. Taxation: Introducing high taxes on single-use diapers can help discourage their purchase, encouraging families to consider more sustainable alternatives. 3. Subsidies: Supporting the use of reusable diapers through subsidies will make them more accessible to everyone. Let’s work together towards a sustainable future for Eswatini! #Sustainability #ReusableDiapers #WasteManagement #Eswatini #UNDP

The WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Program (JMP) 2023 update report, Progress on household drinking water, sanitation and hygiene 2000-2022: Special focus on gender, compiles data on global progress towards achieving universal access to safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH). It also provides an in-depth analysis of gender inequalities between and within countries, revealing the unique risks that women and girls face from inadequate access to safe WASH. https://lnkd.in/dfnpTPMd

Sanitation must be prioritised at country and local leadership levels for transformative change to happen. Progress in countries indicates that concerted efforts for sanitation at all government levels is key to unlock change. #norvanreports #NorvanUpdates

Sub-Saharan Africa’s population is growing at 2.7% per year and is expected to reach two billion by the year 2050. The region’s urban population is growing even faster: it was at 533 million in 2023, a 3.85% increase from 2022.

🥳 Our first outreach program ✨ SOS Menhema 🌱 Check this video out to learn more about our project and how you can support Public Health en Afrique

This #LabourDay, it is important that we recognise the rights of all workers, including those within the WASH sector. In recent years, I've begun to focus on the need for equity and inclusion approaches for sanitation workers. Here are a few of my highlights: Sally Cawood and I explored the role of artificial intelligence in the elimination of manual scavenging in India and Bangladesh for FemLab.Co: https://lnkd.in/dV8bHyj I wrote a blog for the Towards Brown Gold project at the Institute of Development Studies on the need to consider marginality in sanitation labour: https://lnkd.in/ewyC8zXP I had the amazing chance to team up with a wonderful group of experts to host the first ever Sanitation Workers Forum, where I did a video podcast with Sally for the 'In conversation with' series, talking about intersectionality in sanitation work: https://lnkd.in/eJMuR7hX In 2022, I worked with Sally, Mariam Zaqout, PhD and Barbara Evans to publish this journal paper in Frontiers in Water, in which we highlight the need for equity and inclusion approaches in sanitation work: https://lnkd.in/eEtMNAc8 There is so much yet to be learned about the lives of sanitation workers and how we can support them to fully realise their rights. As well as looking at rights 'to' sanitation, let's consider rights 'in' sanitation too.