The role of women in generating data for environmental sustainability discourse - a water governance approach

Abstract

‘Leave no one behind’ is the overarching Sustainable Development Goal motto for the world development order in the 21^st century. SDG 5 roots for gender equality and inclusivity thus recognising women as part of the global citizens who are active doers in their environment as they form 50.1 per cent of the sub-Saharan Africa population. They thus have a role in generating data for their well-being. African scholarship has been wrought by a lack of city-wide data and especially gender specific data. This paper explores the role of women who live in informal settlements in producing environmental data about water specific items therein. It will go further to explore their representation in the governance processes. The methodology used in this paper is an exploration of water governance studies carried out in Nairobi’s (Kenya) informal settlements to analyse what kind of data women generate, their perceptions and how significant this data is in the policy making process. It uses both ethnographic and cross disciplinary action research and suggests that women have a near perfect lack of representation in data generation whilst recommending the need for them to be actively involved and included in the sustainability discourse all the while using the correct terminology as boundary terms.

Keywords: Governance, Environmental Sustainability, Women, Informal Settlements, Africa