The government has reaffirmed its commitment to enhance budget allocations for gender-responsive water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services.
This was announced by Vice President Maj. (Rtd) Jessica Alupo on Tuesday, August 20, 2024, during the launch of the ‘WASH is Everyone’s Campaign’ at the Sheraton Hotel, Kampala.
The campaign that aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals aims to ensure that women and girls, who are the most affected by the lack of such services, are left behind.
“Inadequate access to gender-responsive WASH services negatively impacts women and girls. This has partly contributed to school dropouts among female learners and exposed women to gender-based violence as they spend excessive time collecting water,” said VP Alupo.
Alupo noted that these barriers hinder women’s participation in productive economic activities and called for collective action from all stakeholders to address the infrastructure deficits and cultural norms in our communities and institutions.
“WASH will call for our collective action from both the government and the development partners to address issues of infrastructure deficits and cultural norms in our communities and institutions,” Alupo noted.
The campaign was launched under the theme ‘WASH Away Inequality: Access to Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene for Every Woman and Girl’, which seeks to mobilize resources and foster partnerships aimed at improving WASH infrastructure and services across Uganda.
