World Water Day, celebrated every year on 22 March under the auspices of the United Nations, provides a unique opportunity to draw international attention to the vital importance of freshwater and to the persistent challenges related to its access, management, and sustainability. Since its inception, this observance has highlighted an annual theme addressing emerging priorities and structural challenges in the global water sector. In 2026, the chosen theme, “Water and Gender,” explicitly recognizes the close link between water management, sanitation, and gender inequalities, underscoring that the global water crisis is also a social, economic, and human crisis [1].
Although water is an essential resource for all humanity, access to and management of water are neither neutral nor equitable. In many regions of the world, women and girls bear the primary responsibility for collecting, transporting, and managing water for domestic use. This burden, often overlooked in conventional economic statistics, nevertheless entails a substantial human cost. According to data compiled by the United Nations, women and girls collectively spend approximately 250 million hours each day collecting water in countries with inadequate water supply services,more than three times the time devoted by men and boys [2]. This lost time translates into missed opportunities in education, employment, and social participation.
Water issues are also closely linked to women’s health and dignity. The lack of adequate, safe, and accessible sanitation services exposes women and girls to increased risks of waterborne diseases, infections, and health complications, while also heightening their vulnerability to violence and violations of physical integrity. In schools, the absence of separate toilets and facilities adapted to menstrual hygiene management remains a major factor in absenteeism and school dropout among adolescent girls. Globally, fewer than 40% of schools have water, sanitation, and hygiene services that meet the specific needs of girls [2].
These structural inequalities are part of a broader context of women’s marginalization in water-related decision-making processes. Despite their central role in the daily management of water at household and community levels, women remain largely underrepresented in institutions responsible for planning, managing, and regulating water and sanitation services. This exclusion has direct consequences for the effectiveness and sustainability of public policies, as the specific needs of half the population are insufficiently taken into account in the design of infrastructure and services [3].
Global figures confirm the scale of this challenge. More than one billion women still lack access to safely managed drinking water services, and around 1.8 billion people live in households that rely on water sources located outside the home, a burden borne predominantly by women [4]. In this context, the persistence of gender inequalities directly undermines the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 6 on water and sanitation, as well as Sustainable Development Goal 5 on gender equality.
The theme “Water and Gender” adopted for World Water Day 2026 reflects a significant shift in how water policies are approached. It recognizes that gender equality is not a secondary or sectoral objective, but an essential condition for the sustainability of water-related solutions. The United Nations emphasize that systematically integrating gender considerations into water policies improves service quality, optimizes investments, and strengthens community resilience to climate shocks and water crises [1].
This approach is rooted in a human rights-based vision, according to which access to safe drinking water and sanitation constitutes a fundamental right, inseparable from the rights to dignity, health, and equality. It requires moving beyond purely technical solutions to address social norms, power relations, and institutional frameworks that perpetuate inequalities. Recent reports by UN Women and the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs show that, without structural change, none of the key indicators of gender equality will be achieved by 2030, with direct consequences for global water security [4].
International experience nevertheless demonstrates that when women are fully involved in water governance, outcomes improve significantly. Their active participation in local management committees, river basin authorities, or national institutions contributes to better alignment of services with the real needs of populations, more rational use of resources, and more sustainable maintenance of infrastructure. Several studies show that water-related projects incorporating a gender-sensitive approach achieve higher success and durability rates than those that do not take gender into account [5].
World Water Day 2026 therefore calls on governments, financial institutions, international organizations, and civil society to act collectively to transform the water sector. This requires strengthening the collection of sex-disaggregated data, increasing funding dedicated to gender equality in water programs, and providing greater support for training and leadership development for women in water-related professions. It also involves promoting gender-sensitive infrastructure that ensures safety, accessibility, and dignity for all [6].
In a context marked by climate change, population growth, and rapid urbanization, pressure on water resources will only intensify. Ignoring the gender dimension would mean depriving ourselves of a critical lever to address these challenges. Conversely, making gender equality a central pillar of water policies not only helps reduce social injustices, but also strengthens the collective capacity to sustainably manage a vital and increasingly scarce resource.
Conclusion
The theme “Water and Gender” reminds us that the water crisis is not solely a matter of scarcity or infrastructure, but also a question of power, rights, and justice. Recognizing, valuing, and fully integrating the role of women in water management is an indispensable condition for building a future in which water becomes a driver of empowerment, resilience, and sustainable development for all humanity [1,3].
References
[1] UN-Water, World Water Day 2026: Water and Gender, United Nations, New York, 2025. Available on: https://www.unwater.org/our-work/world-water-day
[2] UN-Water, Water and Gender: Facts and Figures, United Nations, New York, 2024. Available on: https://www.unwater.org/water-facts/water-and-gender
[3] United Nations, World Water Day – Background and Key Messages, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, New York, 2024. Available on: https://www.un.org/en/observances/water-day
[4] UN Women, UNDESA, Gender Snapshot 2025: Accelerating Progress on Gender Equality, United Nations, New York, 2025.
[5] United Nations, The Role of Gender Equality and Social Inclusion in Achieving Water-related Goals, UN Chronicle, New York, 2023.
[6] UN-Water, Human Rights-Based Approaches to Water and Sanitation, United Nations, New York, 2022.
