Webinar: Tools for diagnosing gender, diversity and inclusion in water and sanitation utilities

Gender, diversity and inclusion in the workforce are major factors that contribute to the delivery of inclusive services. According to the World Bank (2019), only an average of 20% of utilities’ workers are women. Many water and sanitation utilities across the globe have started to react to under-representation of women in the workforce by diagnosing their status with respect to gender inclusion and by planning for improvements. There is a wealth of information available on the web, but are existing tools easily implemented by water and sanitation utilities? Do utilities require the intervention of third parties to support them in their quest towards gender, diversity and inclusion, or are the tools ready to be used by utilities with a wide-ranging level of capacity?  

Speakers from leading institutions in the field of gender, diversity and inclusion, such as the Institute for Sustainable Futures of the University of Technology Sydney (ISF-UTS), World Bank, USAID engendering industries programme and Simavi illustrated some of the existing tools for diagnosing water and sanitation utilities. Implementing organizations, such as Ghana Water Company Limited, African Water Association (AfWA) and SOMAGEP shared their experiences in carrying out such a diagnosis. The webinar, held on 19 January 2023, was co-organized by GWOPA, ISF-UTS and AfWA, and supported by the International Water Association.

 

USAID – Engendering industries programme

World Bank – Equal Aqua 

Simavi – Organisation inclusion assessment tool