Jordan Water Management Initiative (WMI): Gender Analysis and Action Plan, Component 3: Activity 3.5.1

The strategy aims to decentralize, commercialize, and consolidate water and wastewater services, increasing private sector participation. WMI is organized into four main components: Water Supply Systems Deliverables, Water Conservation and Demand Management, Water Sector Governance, and Protection of Water Supply. Gender mainstreaming and mobilizing women, men, youth, and vulnerable populations are key elements to achieve success in these components. Women play a crucial role in water management, serving as water users, utility customers, and advocates for behavior change. Their roles change among different social, ethnic, regional, and age groups, with each family having its own particular dynamic and roles and responsibilities. Generalizations about women's roles in water management are not applicable, as there are always exceptions. WMI recognizes this and will conduct assessments for each separate campaign and behavior change target. Women comprise over half of the engineering graduates in Jordan, yet only 13% of women overall are employed in the workforce. This is one of the lowest women's workplace participation rates in the world, causing concern for the government and private sector. The Jordan National Agenda addresses this topic with a goal to "empower women to become active players in the development process." The agenda aims to eliminate wrongful social practices against women, increase women's contribution to the economy, ensure a reasonable share of women in official decision-making positions, and reaffirm the principle of equal opportunity regardless of gender. The WMI workplan for April-September 2016 includes a Knowledge Attitudes and Practice (KAP) survey and a full gender and youth assessment. WMI staff will address all activities through a gender lens with the support of WMI's Youth, Gender, and Vulnerable Populations Specialist. The results from the assessments will be used to further refine and develop gender-related interventions for the project. The WMI Gender Analysis and Action Plan (GAAP) provides a review of the current situation, addressing gender issues and women's role in water sector management in the home, community, and the workplace. The plan covers all these roles through consultations with WMI staff. The GAAP aims to increase and highlight women's role as customers, water users, and contributors to improved water sector management as community leaders and employees in the water sector. WMI will integrate gender considerations throughout all activities, in support of the USAID Gender Equality and Female Empowerment Policy and USAID/Jordan Mission Special Development Objective. The goal is to increase and highlight women's role in water sector management, addressing gender equality issues for both women and men. WMI will accomplish this goal through addressing gender equality issues, integrating gender considerations in a participatory manner through all project stages, and using results from assessments to further refine and develop gender-related interventions. The USAID Water Management Initiative (WMI) will focus on increasing and highlighting women's role in water sector management, addressing gender equality issues for both women and men. WMI will integrate gender considerations throughout all activities, using results from assessments to further refine and develop gender-related interventions. The goal is to increase and highlight women's role as customers, water users, and contributors to improved water sector management as community leaders and employees in the water sector. WMI's workplan for April-September 2016 includes a Knowledge Attitudes and Practice (KAP) survey and a full gender and youth assessment. WMI staff will address all activities through a gender lens with the support of WMI's Youth, Gender, and Vulnerable Populations Specialist. The results from the assessments will be used to further refine and develop gender-related interventions for the project. The WMI Gender Analysis and Action Plan (GAAP) provides a review of the current situation, addressing gender issues and women's role in water sector management in the home, community, and the workplace. The Jordan National Agenda addresses the topic of women's workplace participation, with a goal to "empower women to become active players in the development process." The agenda aims to eliminate wrongful social practices against women, increase women's contribution to the economy, ensure a reasonable share of women in official decision-making positions, and reaffirm the principle of equal opportunity regardless of gender. WMI will work to address these goals, increasing and highlighting women's role in water sector management, addressing gender equality issues for both women and men.