Study on Water, Women, and Local Social Organization in the Western Kenya Highlands

This 2005 paper adds to the literature on the multiple values of improved water supplies – improved health, time savings, and small-scale production for individual farmers and collectives – for the case of a rural community in the western highlands of Kenya. Members of those households, particularly women, have benefited substantially in terms of time savings, health and small-scale production.

Although women emerge as the main beneficiaries of improved water management in the community, their substantial contributions are largely hidden behind social norms regarding gender roles and relations. Research methods need to carefully triangulate information sources in order to clarify the very substantial and active roles performed by women.

You can find the pdf of this CAPRI Working Paper below (save it to your computer to open it):

CAPRIWP51.pdf  (320.8 kB)