Women are most likely to be responsible for fetching water, while girls are nearly twice as likely as boys to bear the responsibility, and spend more time doing it each day

Women and girls aged 15 and older are primarily responsible for water collection in 7 out of 10 such households, compared with 3 in 10 households for their male peers, according to a new report released by UNICEF and WHO.

Around 1.8 billion people live in households without water supplies on the premises around the world, the report said. Women are most likely to be responsible for fetching water, while girls are nearly twice as likely as boys to bear the responsibility, and spend more time doing it each day.

Girls under 15 (7 percent) are also more likely than boys under 15 (4 percent) to fetch water.Most often, women and girls must travel farther to gather it, delaying their opportunity to complete their education and increasing their risk of physical harm and other dangers.

The report is the first comprehensive examination of gender disparities in household drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH).

“Every step a girl takes to collect water is a step away from learning, play, and safety,” said Cecilia Sharp, UNICEF Director of WASH and CEED. “Unsafe water, toilets, and handwashing at home robs girls of their potential, compromises their well-being, and perpetuates cycles of poverty.”

Responding to girls’ needs in the design and implementation of WASH programmes is critical to reaching universal access to water and sanitation and achieving gender equality and empowerment, Sharp added

More than half a billion people still share sanitation facilities with other households, compromising women’s and girls’ privacy, dignity, and safety, the report noted. For example, recent surveys from 22 countries show that among households with shared toilets, women and girls are more likely than men and boys to feel unsafe walking alone at night and face sexual harassment and other safety risks.

The inadequate WASH services increase health risks for women and girls and limit their ability to safely and privately manage their periods. Among 51 countries with available data, women and adolescent girls in the poorest households and those with disabilities are the most likely to lack a private place to wash and change.

“The latest data from WHO shows a stark reality: 1.4 million lives are lost each year due to inadequate water, sanitation and hygiene,” said Dr Maria Neira, WHO Director, Environment, Climate Change and Health Department. “Women and girls not only face WASH-related infectious diseases, like diarrhoea and acute respiratory infections, they face additional health risks because they are vulnerable to harassment, violence, and injury when they have to go outside the home to haul water or just to use the toilet.”

The findings go on to show that a lack of access to hygiene also disproportionately affects women and girls. In many countries, women and girls are primarily responsible for domestic chores and caring for others – including cleaning, preparing food, and looking after the sick – which likely exposes them to diseases and other risks to their health without the protection of handwashing.

Additional time spent on domestic chores can also limit girls’ chances of completing secondary school and gaining employment, the report said.

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