In the framework of the innovations of the 9th World Water Forum for the organisation of a more effective Forum at the social, political and economic levels, a Forum that will be a catalyst for action for commitments on water and sanitation, the participation of women is a major concern of the Executive Secretariat of the 9th World Water Forum and of the international steering committee.
To launch the mobilisation process, a first exchange webinar was organised with women's organisations and support structures in collaboration with the UN-Women Office in Dakar, Women for Water Partnership, the network of women water and sanitation professionals of Senegal and the West African Women's Association. The webinar programme was structured around the different stages of the process, presentations on the problems of access to water and sanitation for women and the perspectives in the framework of the 9th World Water Forum.
Participants stressed the need to develop an inclusive approach that can ensure effective participation of women, the need to diversify communication channels beyond digital tools that rural women may not have access to, the need to initiate projects to ensure access to water and sanitation, to work on sharing experiences and developing synergies to succeed in mobilising women at the 9th World Water Forum.
A call was made for the development of synergies, the design of a concerted roadmap for women with a small working group, the mobilisation of all women at the international level. The different organisations committed themselves to be more involved in the process and to follow up.
