#2 - Progressing Capabilities
The overarching and frequently ill-defined concept of development is the centre of discussions between gender and water within Africa here. If this blog is to aptly discuss issues surrounding this subject it is imperative to generate a sufficient underpinning philosophy in which to base discussions. My purpose here is to foreground an appreciation of enhancing ones capabilities as a proxy for enhancing ones level of development. As a country, per capita statistics and qualities of life recordings are measured to represent those individuals living within a country. So, it is with a focus on the individual that is to take centre stage in appropriating effective development initiatives. This post will centre itself around an individualised capabilities approach in understanding, defining and instigating development. It will stress the importance of framing development with respect to enhancing capabilities in order to better address the issues surrounding gender and water in Africa.
Before this blog delves into the nitty-gritty of gendered water issues in Africa, I would first like to elucidate the reasons for this focus on advancing capabilities as the defining feature in development. As noted in my previous post, the majority of academics, institutions and organisations equipped to target this development issue in Africa come from distinct western societies, or are an amalgamation of various actors, such as the IMF, WB and UNESCO. There is a problem, not only that these groups are physically distanced from their site of focus, but they are also removed from the social, cultural, and religious traditions by which these African societies operate. A simple, and somewhat rudimentary, approach to development focusing purely on neoliberal, GDP enhancing, development strategies is an economically insufficient, and ethically inferior, tactic in stimulating development within this continent. A focus on advancing capabilities, understood as an individuals available actions, doings and beliefs (Sen, 1989), offers the remedy to foster more suitable development initiatives which do not impose certain 'westernised' beliefs of saying or doing. The panacea to this has been proven by focusing on bottom-up approaches, incorporating the voices of the urban and rural poor in development policies.
Participatory Rural Appraisal schemes stand as testament for the ability to appreciate the local differences which allow for a more ethically appropriate outcome for development to occur. This method in particular uses visual and oral techniques (such as mapping and conversing) in order to minimise westernised power over development, replacing it with local knowledge in development agendas (Mohan et al., 2002). One example of the need for this approach comes from obscuring Muslim and Hindu religions. Cultural norms of female modesty, deference and obedience are expected and this often sees women placed in somewhat subordinate roles. In order to avoid misappropriating resources, these facets of tradition and culture need to first be understood and respected. A bullish focus on increasing enrolment rates in education for women, or through gender parity in employment, may not be sufficient, but in fact reinforce post-colonial and paternalistic hierarchies. As argued by Martha Nussbaum (2000), it is not the responsibility of development actors to impose the ways of living which they believe will improve living standards, but it is to respect the freedoms of individuals to choose the kind of lives they want, emphasising the importance of providing the capability to do so, to become educated, or to access paid employment, but not enforcing this way of living. When it comes to water, there is a high incidence of the 'double day', where women are physically and temporally stretched to complete their household commitments, and to achieve an education or work in a paid position. Provisioning more numerous and closer water solutions would give women the capability to achieve their goals in advancing their livelihoods, without necessitating that they do so.
There is moral dilemma of imposing universal values with regards to provisioning development initiatives. Individuals should be dignified and free, shaping their lives through cooperation and reciprocity with others, without being passively shaped by the world or by certain western cultures (Nussbaum, 2000). It is this understanding, espoused by Rawls and Mills, that formulated a capabilities approach which has become popular with development initiatives such as the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and the Women's Environment and Development Organisation. Nussbaum believes that certain universal values are instrumental to a quality life and should be promoted, such as: the ability to live a full-length life free from preventable diseases, to live in good health and to have access to suitable nourishment and shelter, to have sovereignty of your own body, freedom of movement, to be able to imagine and think in a human way which is informed by education, scientific and mathematic ability, and, to hold an emotional wellbeing which is free from fear of anxiety about abuse or neglect, to name a few. Importantly, when it comes to water provision, the role of development actors should fall squarely on progressing a locally informed and capability enhancing water supply and management solutions, without imposing strict power hierarchies over how household labour should be organised, or what the role of each member in African households 'should' be doing. Often, as it turns out, when the capability for women to expand their futures is presented, such as through accessing a previously untenable education or employment prospect, first their is hesitation in breaking the societal norm, but eventually their is a shift towards more gender equal livelihoods (Kabeer and Natali, 2013).
In summary, approaching gender parity in water across Africa, there is an imperative to advance male and female capabilities. The need to focus on capabilities as opposed to more simplistic measures of male and female water access, proximity and safety is important when determining effective policy amendments working to advance the livelihoods of the communities most in need. While overarching measurements of water access, proximity and safety are exceptionally important, it is through generating local knowledge, ensuring both male and female voices of a community are heard, which will go the distance in alleviating water inequalities and economic growth infringements.
Before this blog delves into the nitty-gritty of gendered water issues in Africa, I would first like to elucidate the reasons for this focus on advancing capabilities as the defining feature in development. As noted in my previous post, the majority of academics, institutions and organisations equipped to target this development issue in Africa come from distinct western societies, or are an amalgamation of various actors, such as the IMF, WB and UNESCO. There is a problem, not only that these groups are physically distanced from their site of focus, but they are also removed from the social, cultural, and religious traditions by which these African societies operate. A simple, and somewhat rudimentary, approach to development focusing purely on neoliberal, GDP enhancing, development strategies is an economically insufficient, and ethically inferior, tactic in stimulating development within this continent. A focus on advancing capabilities, understood as an individuals available actions, doings and beliefs (Sen, 1989), offers the remedy to foster more suitable development initiatives which do not impose certain 'westernised' beliefs of saying or doing. The panacea to this has been proven by focusing on bottom-up approaches, incorporating the voices of the urban and rural poor in development policies.
Participatory Rural Appraisal schemes stand as testament for the ability to appreciate the local differences which allow for a more ethically appropriate outcome for development to occur. This method in particular uses visual and oral techniques (such as mapping and conversing) in order to minimise westernised power over development, replacing it with local knowledge in development agendas (Mohan et al., 2002). One example of the need for this approach comes from obscuring Muslim and Hindu religions. Cultural norms of female modesty, deference and obedience are expected and this often sees women placed in somewhat subordinate roles. In order to avoid misappropriating resources, these facets of tradition and culture need to first be understood and respected. A bullish focus on increasing enrolment rates in education for women, or through gender parity in employment, may not be sufficient, but in fact reinforce post-colonial and paternalistic hierarchies. As argued by Martha Nussbaum (2000), it is not the responsibility of development actors to impose the ways of living which they believe will improve living standards, but it is to respect the freedoms of individuals to choose the kind of lives they want, emphasising the importance of providing the capability to do so, to become educated, or to access paid employment, but not enforcing this way of living. When it comes to water, there is a high incidence of the 'double day', where women are physically and temporally stretched to complete their household commitments, and to achieve an education or work in a paid position. Provisioning more numerous and closer water solutions would give women the capability to achieve their goals in advancing their livelihoods, without necessitating that they do so.
There is moral dilemma of imposing universal values with regards to provisioning development initiatives. Individuals should be dignified and free, shaping their lives through cooperation and reciprocity with others, without being passively shaped by the world or by certain western cultures (Nussbaum, 2000). It is this understanding, espoused by Rawls and Mills, that formulated a capabilities approach which has become popular with development initiatives such as the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and the Women's Environment and Development Organisation. Nussbaum believes that certain universal values are instrumental to a quality life and should be promoted, such as: the ability to live a full-length life free from preventable diseases, to live in good health and to have access to suitable nourishment and shelter, to have sovereignty of your own body, freedom of movement, to be able to imagine and think in a human way which is informed by education, scientific and mathematic ability, and, to hold an emotional wellbeing which is free from fear of anxiety about abuse or neglect, to name a few. Importantly, when it comes to water provision, the role of development actors should fall squarely on progressing a locally informed and capability enhancing water supply and management solutions, without imposing strict power hierarchies over how household labour should be organised, or what the role of each member in African households 'should' be doing. Often, as it turns out, when the capability for women to expand their futures is presented, such as through accessing a previously untenable education or employment prospect, first their is hesitation in breaking the societal norm, but eventually their is a shift towards more gender equal livelihoods (Kabeer and Natali, 2013).
In summary, approaching gender parity in water across Africa, there is an imperative to advance male and female capabilities. The need to focus on capabilities as opposed to more simplistic measures of male and female water access, proximity and safety is important when determining effective policy amendments working to advance the livelihoods of the communities most in need. While overarching measurements of water access, proximity and safety are exceptionally important, it is through generating local knowledge, ensuring both male and female voices of a community are heard, which will go the distance in alleviating water inequalities and economic growth infringements.