women for water is partnering with Global Grassroots to advance gender equity through clean water access in communities across Rwanda. This project, led by local women, will provide clean water access and business training to community members in the Jali Sector. Water sales revenue will fund training in gender equity for 100 couples that experience domestic violence. Evidence proves that when women have access to clean water closer to home, they are safer and household dynamics more equitable.
Rwandan women often have difficulty completing all of the daily household duties due to the long distances and time required to collect water. Too often, this becomes a primary trigger for domestic violence. To reduce the burden on mothers, girls will help with household chores, particularly the water collection. Girls who spend time collecting water have inconsistent school attendance and often drop out, eliminating their chance at an education that will lift them out of the cycle of poverty.
Reducing water collection time enables women and girls more time for household tasks, education and economic pursuits, elevating their agency. Clean water access plus gender rights training decreases domestic violence by providing men with a greater understanding of women's roles, increasing men's chore-sharing, and advancing women's opportunity. This project will mobilize a women-led water venture to transform their community through clean access to water, while addressing violence and equity.
Together, women for water and Global Grassroots believe that when women lead, communities succeed. Working with undereducated women in post-conflict Africa, Global Grassroots has learned that the women most invested in serving their communities, have the least skills and resources to advance their own ideas. Once launched, their water ventures act as hubs for social innovation, as these new leaders, guided by mindfulness practice, use their revenue to continue to drive social transformation.
