Abstract
This chapter is primarily based on a study conducted in a rural community in south-central Uganda in Makondo Parish, Ndagwe sub-county, Lwengo district. The study, which employed mixed methods, investigated household dynamics in collection, transportation and use of safe-drinking water. The study findings are complemented by additional interviews with children water collectors in a peri-urban context in Wakiso District that sought, among others, to capture voices and perspectives of children regarding their experiences in water transportation . Our findings confirm that the burden of collecting water for domestic use is almost exclusively a domain of children and their mothers or other female members of the household. The distances covered and the time spent in collecting water, the volumes and mode of transportation are all potentially hazardous to children’s physical and emotional health, which inadvertently have not been addressed by rural water policy and interventions. We argue for water supply options and service interventions that are consciously designed to sustainably address risks and vulnerabilities associated with water collection and transportation by children. Ensuring increased coverage of improved water sources within a distance of one and a half kilometers, promotion of rain water harvesting in communities, ensuring sustainable operation and maintenance of point-water sources as well as protection of open water sources are some of the supply related interventions that could address the burden of children in water transportation. It is not the intention of this chapter to promote child involvement in work, but rather, to advocate for a service delivery environment that not only lessens the physical burden of water collection for children but also other environmental and social risks associated with their ‘socially and culturally defined responsibility’ of water collection.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
A country or region is said to experience water stress when annual water supplies drop below 1700 cubic meters per person per year. When annual water supplies drop below 1000 cubic meters per person, the population faces water scarcity, and below 500 cubic meters “absolute scarcity (UN-Water 2012)”.
References
Abebe, T., & Bessell, S. (2011). Dominant discourses, debates and silences on child labour in Africa and Asia. Third World Quarterly, 32(4), 765–786.
Ademun, S. R. (2009). Domestic water supply: An evaluation of the impacts; challenges and prospects on women in rural households in Uganda. Masters thesis, Lund University, Sweden. http://www.lumes.lu.se/sites/lumes.lu.se/files/ademun_stella_rose.pdf. Accessed 20 June 2016.
Agarwal, A., Angeles, D. M., Bhatia, R., Chéret, I., Davila-Poblete, S., Falkenmark, M., et al. (2000). Integrated water resource management. Stockholm: Global Water Partnership. http://www.gwp.org/Global/ToolBox/Publications/Background%20papers/04%20Integrated%20Water%20Resources%20Management%20(2000)%20English.pdf. Accessed 20 June 2016.
Andvig, J. C. (2001). Family-controlled child labor in sub-Saharan Africa: A survey of research. Social Protection discussion paper series (No. SP 0122). The World Bank. http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2001/10/1771838/family-controlled-child-labor-sub-saharan-africa-survey-research. Accessed 26 Apr 2013.
Arku, F. S. (2010). Time savings from easy access to clean water: Implications for rural men’s and women’s well-being. Progress in Development Studies, 10(3), 233–246.
Asaba, R. B., Fagan, H., Kabonesa, C., & Mugumya, F. (2013). Beyond distance and time: Gender and the burden of water collection in rural Uganda. wH20. The Journal of Gender and Water, 2(1), 31–38.
Bartlett, S. (2003). Water sanitation and urban children: The need to go beyond “improved” provision. Environment and Urbanization, 15(2), 57–70.
Basu, K. (1999). Child labor: Cause, consequence, and cure, with remarks on international labor standards. Journal of Economic Literature, 37(3), 1083–1119.
Bonnet, M. (1993). Child labour in Africa. International Labour Review, 132(3), 371–389.
Boone, C., Glick, P., & Sahn, D. E. (2011). Household water supply choice and time allocated to water collection: Evidence from Madagascar. Journal of Development Studies, 47(12), 1826–1850. doi:10.1080/00220388.2011.579394.
Bowes, J. M., & Goodnow, J. J. (1996). Work for home, school, or labor force: The nature and sources of changes in understanding. Psychological Bulletin, 119(2), 300–321. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0033-2900.119.2.300
Bray, R. (2003). Who does the housework? An examination of South African children’s working roles. Social Dynamics, 29(2), 95–131.
Carter, N., Kreutzwiser, R. D., & de Loë, R. C. (2005). Closing the circle: Linking land use planning and water management at the local level. Land Use Policy, 22(2), 115–127.
Cleaver, F., & Franks, T. (2007). New directions for water governance. id21 insights, 67. http://r4d.dfid.gov.uk/PDF/Outputs/IDS/insights67.pdf. Accessed 8 March 2013.
Cleaver, F., & Hamada, K. (2010). ‘Good’ water governance and gender equity: A troubled relationship. Gender and Development, 18(1), 27–41. doi:10.1080/13552071003599996.
Coles, A., & Wallace, T. (Eds.). (2005). Gender, water and development. Oxford: Berg.
Coyne, I. T. (1997). Sampling in qualitative research. Purposeful and theoretical sampling; merging or clear boundaries? Journal of Advanced Nursing, 26(3), 623–630.
Crow, B., & Sultana, F. (2002). Gender, class, and access to water: Three cases in a poor and crowded delta. Society & Natural Resources, 15, 709–724.
Crow, B., & McPike, J. (2009). How the drudgery of getting water shapes women’s lives in low-income urban communities. Gender, Technology and Development, 13(1), 43–68. doi:10.1177/097185240901300103.
Danert, K. & Motts, N. (2009). Uganda water sector and domestic rainwater harvesting subsector analysis. https://rmportal.net/library/content/translinks/translinks-2009/enterprise-works-vita-relief-international/paper_ugandadomesticrainwaterharvesting.pdf/view. Accessed 7 June 2012.
Feldman, D. C. (1976). A contingency theory of socialization. Administrative Science Quarterly, 21(3), 433–452.
Franks, T., & Cleaver, F. (2007). Water governance and poverty: A framework for analysis. Progress in Development Studies, 7(4), 291–306.
Gagné, M., & Deci, E. L. (2005). Self-determination theory and work motivation. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 26(4), 331–362.
Geere, J. L., Hunter, P. R., & Jagals, P. (2010). Domestic water carrying and its implications for health: A review and mixed methods pilot study in Limpopo Province, South Africa. Environmental Health, 9(52), 1–13.
Goodnow, J. J. (1988). Children’s household work: Its nature and functions. Psychological Bulletin, 103(1), 5–26. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0033–2909.103.1.5.
Government of Uganda (GOU). (2011a). Water and environment sector performance report, 2011. Kampala: Ministry of Water and Environment.
Government of Uganda (GOU). (2011b) National framework for operation and maintenance of rural water supplies in Uganda. Kampala: Ministry of Water and Environment.
Grootaert, C. (1999). Child labor in Cote d’Ivoire: Incidence and determinants (The World Bank policy research working papers).
Haspels, N., & Jankanish, M. (Eds.). (2000). Action against child labour. Geneva: International Labour Organization.
Hemson, D. (2007). The toughest of chores: Policy and practice in children collecting water in South Africa. Policy Futures in Education, 5(3), 315–326.
Koolwal, G., & Van de Walle, D. (2013). Access to water, women’s work, and child outcomes. Economic Development and Cultural Change, 61(2), 369–405. doi:10.1086/668280.
Magala, J. M. (2014). Women as principal gate keepers: An ethnographic research study on water and health in rural Uganda. Dissertation, Dublin City University.
Maina, S. W., & Sittoni, T. (2012). Uganda loses UGX389 billion annually due to poor sanitation. UNDP-Water and Sanitation Program. http://documents.worldbank.org.curated/en/2012/03/16230612/uganda-loses-ugx389-billion-annually-due-poor-sanitation. Accessed 13 Jan 2013.
Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE). (2007). Water and sanitation sector district implementation manual. http://www.mwe.go.ug/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=153&Itemid=55. Accessed 21 Mar 2013.
Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE). (2011a). National framework for operation and maintenance of rural water supplies in Uganda. http://www.mwe.go.ug/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=237&Itemid=97. Accessed 9 Nov 2012.
Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE). (2011b). Water and environment sector performance report. www.mwe.go.ug/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=146&Itemid=90. Accessed June 2012.
Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE). (2014). Water and environment sector performance report, 2014. http://www.rural-water-supply.net/fr/resources/details/627. Accessed 3 February 2015.
Mugumya, F. (2013). Enabling community-based water management systems: Governance and sustainability of rural point-water facilities in Uganda. Dissertation, Dublin City University.
Onyango, P., & Lynch, M. A. (2006). Implementing the right to child protection: A challenge for developing countries. The Lancet, 367(9511), 693–694.
Orellana, M. F. (2001). The work kids do: Mexican and Central American immigrant children’s contributions to households and schools in California. Harvard Educational Review, 71(3), 366–390.
Ray, I. (2007). Women, water, and development. Annual Review of Environment and Resources, 32(1), 421–449. doi:10.1146/annurev.energy.32.041806.143704.
Roy, J., & Crow, B. (2004). Gender relations and access to water: What we want to know about social relations and women’s time allocation (University of California Center for Global, International and Regional Studies working papers). http://escholarship.org/uc/item/0m5033gv. Accessed 17 Sept 2013.
Rudaheranwa, N., Lawrence B., Banga, M. (2003). Beneficiaries of water service delivery in Uganda (Economic Policy and Research Centre (EPRC) research series no. 37). http://dspace.africaportal.org/jspui/bitstream/123456789/29977/1/Research%20Series%20No%2037%20-%20Beneficiaries%20of%20Water%20Service%20Delivery%20i%20Uganda.pdf?1. Accessed 25 June 2012.
Sobsey, M. D. (2002). Managing water in the home: Accelerated health gains from improved water supply. World Health Organization. http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/dwq/wsh0207/en/. Accessed 23 Oct 2012.
Sorenson, S. B., Morssink, C., & Campos, P. A. (2011). Safe access to safe water in low income countries: Water fetching in current times. Social Science & Medicine, 72(9), 1522–1526. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.03.010.
Sugita, E. W. (2006). Increasing quantity of water: Perspectives from rural households in Uganda. Water Policy, 8(1), 529–537.
The Water Project. (2016). The water project. http://thewaterproject.org/poverty. Accessed 12 July 2016.
Thompson, J., Cairncross, S., Porras, I., Tumwine, J., Mujwahuzi, M., Katui-Katua, M., et al. (2001). Drawers of water II: 30 years of change in domestic water use and environmental health in East Africa. London: International Institute for Environment and Development.
United Nations. (2012). The Millennium development goals report 2012. http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/pdf/MDG%20Report%202012.pdf. Accessed 15 Aug 2013.
United Nations (UN). (2000). United Nations millennium declaration. New York: United Nations. http://www.un.org/millennium/declaration/ares552e.htm. Accessed 20 June 2016.
United Nations (UN). (2009). Millennium development goals report 2009. New York: United Nations. http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/pdf/MDG_Report_2009_ENG.pdf. Accessed 20 June 2016.
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). (2006). Beyond scarcity: Power, poverty and the global water crisis (Human development report 2006). http://www.undp.org/contentdam/undp/library/corporate/HDR/2006%20Global%20HDR/HDR-2006-Beyon%20scarcity-Power-poverty-and-the-global-water-crisis.pdf. Accessed 22 May 2013.
United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) & World Health Organisation (WHO). (2012). Progress on drinking water and sanitation. New York: United Nations. http://www.unicef.org/media/files/JMPreport2012.pdf. Accessed 20 June 2016.
United Nations-Water. (2006). Gender, water and sanitation: A policy brief. New York: UN-Water. http://www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/pdf/un_water_policy_brief_2_gender.pdf. Accessed 20 June 2016
Water and Sanitation Program (WSP). (2012). Economic impacts of poor sanitation in Africa. https://www.wsp.org/sites/wsp.org/files/publications/WSP-ESI-Uganda.pdf. Accessed 22 June 2016.
White, B. (1994). Children, work and ‘child labour’: Changing responses to the employment of children. Development and Change, 25(4), 849–878.
Whittington, D., Xinming, M., & Roche, R. (1989). Calculating the value of time spent collecting water: Some estimates for Ukunda, Kenya. World Development, 18(2), 269–280.
Witter, S. (2004). Developing a framework for monitoring child poverty: Results from a study in Uganda. Children & Society, 18(1), 3–15.
World Health Organization (WHO) & United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). (2000). Global water supply and sanitation assessment 2000 report. http://www.unicef.org/wash/files/gafull.pdf. Accessed 16 April 2012.
World Health Organization (WHO) & United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). (2010). Progress on sanitation and drinking water: 2010 Update. World Health Organisation and United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund – Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply and Sanitation, Geneva. http://www.unicef.org/eapro/JMP-2010Final.pdf. Accessed 20 June 2016.
World Health Organization (WHO) & UN-Water. (2014).UN-water global analysis and assessment of sanitation and drinking water (GLAAS): Investing in water and sanitation: Increasing access, reducing inequalities. http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/publications/glaas_report_2014/en/. Accessed 13 Jan 2015.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Mugumya, F., Asaba, R.B., Kamya, I.R., Asingwire, N. (2017). Children and Domestic Water Collection in Uganda: Exploring Policy and Intervention Options that Promote Child Protection. In: Kaawa-Mafigiri, D., Walakira, E. (eds) Child Abuse and Neglect in Uganda. Child Maltreatment, vol 6. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48535-5_6
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-48535-5_6
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-48534-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-48535-5
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)