Women in Water Diplomacy: Nile and Beyond

The need for more women in water diplomacy is universal. This was the overarching statement during the first-ever Women in Water Diplomacy Network Leadership Council and Nile and Beyond Strategy launch event hosted online by the Swedish Embassy in Pretoria on 14 December.

Gender and water Water diplomacy

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Andreas Karlsson

Director,

Communications

Building on the experience from the Nile basin, the efforts of the Network will, in the years to come, reach outside of its original region to address gender inequalities and support women’s leadership in transboundary water governance in the Nile and beyond.

Since the inception of the Women in Water Diplomacy Network in 2017, it has continued to evolve its work of increasing women’s participation in transboundary water cooperation decision making. On Tuesday, a new eight-women strong Leadership Council was announced, following an open call for self-nominations across the network. The newly elected council members are high-level representatives from African nations and they each bring with them specific expertise to further develop the work of the Network.

Their jobs will be to co-design the network’s strategy, implementation, monitoring, and representation in partnership with Network members, SIWI and other partners. And just as importantly: they will serve as role models and inspirers in a field where women participation is far from equal to that of men’s.

“We all been in this field for a long time. We know what it takes to get here, and we want to help and inspire others to follow. Our shoulders are broad enough to climb and we invite other women to do just that,” says council member Dr Zodwa Dlamini of South Africa, an independent consultant and former Chief Delegate and Permanent Representative on the Lesotho Highlands Water Commission.

She adds: “This initiative is very timely. The work that has been done in the Nile Basin has shown that we are on the right track, and we must now continue to build momentum and understand that this is a universal issue that must be addressed as such.”

“We must now continue to build momentum and understand that this is a universal issue that must be addressed as such.”

Dr Zodwa Dlamini of South Africa, independent consultant & former Chief Delegate and Permanent Representative on the Lesotho Highlands Water Commission

For that very reason, Tuesday’s meeting also saw the launch of the new Women in Water Diplomacy Nile and Beyond strategy development process. The success of the original Network, focusing on the Nile Basin, is, as Dr Dlamini notes, widely praised and there has been immense interest and inquiry from other African transboundary basins. The Nile and Beyond strategy will therefore explore opportunities to develop a community of practice for women water diplomats in other regions and basins, drawing upon the experience of the Network’s development in the Nile as well as the process and Central Asia and Afghanistan.

It is not yet clear, however, where this ‘beyond’ might actually be? The next Nile and Beyond strategy consultation for current and new partners is planned for March 8, 2022 – International Women’s Day – and is expected to provide further resolution on the strategy and Network priorities in years to come. The general focus though, will be basins with a high-level of both water insecurity and gender inequality. The list of regions that meet this description is long, something which underlines the importance of the assessment and engagement process ahead.

The Nile and Beyond strategy will revolve around eight strategic pillars, each of which captures important aspects and challenges of women’s participation in transboundary water, including:

Gender empowerment in transboundary water decision making.
Youth empowerment and inter-generational knowledge exchange.
Peer to peer learning and capacity building.
Technical cooperation and experience exchange.
Research cooperation.
Linkages to pan-African processes.
Linkages to global processes.
Linkages to basin processes.

Network Council Member Jacqueline Nyirakamana, a transboundary water resources cooperation specialist from Rwanda’s Ministry of Environment, explains the pressing need to accelerate efforts to include women in water diplomacy: “There is a great gender imbalance in the water sector in general, and in transboundary water issues in particular. In most cases, men make the decisions even though women are the ones who are most affected by the outcome. So, we need women in the water world, from engineering and hydrology to diplomacy. We must empower women and make sure that they can participate fully and bring their real-life expertise into this field.”

“Men make the decisions even though women are the ones who are most affected by the outcome. (...) We must empower women and make sure that they can participate fully and bring their real-life expertise into this field.”

Jacqueline Nyirakamana, Network Council Member & transboundary water resources cooperation specialist, Rwanda Ministry of Environment

During the launch seminar, several speakers and panellists repeated this message. One was the Swedish Ambassador to South Africa, Mr Håkan Juholt, who hosted the meeting and spoke passionately about both Sweden’s and SIWI’s long-time commitment to uncover and address gender inequality in all parts of society.

The reasons behind the startling gender inequality in the world of water diplomacy are complex and will require a multifaceted set of actions. According to Dr. Dlamini, it is important to remember that direct support and building of confidence are important aspects:

“As women in the water sector, our main obstacle is often ourselves. Many opportunities seem to be tailored for men and it is easy for a woman to think that ‘this is not for me’, ‘I will not be accepted here’, or ‘my expertise is not good enough’. We must change that perception, so that women feel encouraged and empowered to participate fully and contribute with their expertise. Only good things will come out of that.”

Watch the recording of the event

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About the Women in Water Diplomacy Network

The Women in Water Diplomacy Network is a project of the Stockholm International Water Institute’s Shared Water Partnership programme (SWP). SWP was founded in 2010 as a platform to improve cooperation over shared waters in regions where water is, or may become, a source of conflict or where water can serve as a catalyst for peace. The overall objective of the Shared Waters Partnership is peaceful cooperation between basin states sharing transboundary water sources. The Shared Waters Partnership and the Women in Water Diplomacy Network are supported by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, the United States, Norway, the Netherlands, and UNDP. The Women in Water Management Network development process is implemented in partnership with OSCE and the Central Asia Regional Environment Centre (CAREC).

The next edition of the Women in Water Diplomacy Nile and Beyond Newsletter will come out on Nile day, February 22, 2022. Make sure to subscribe below to receive our updates.
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