In El Salvador, homes in the Jiboa Valley use various means of supplying their water needs. All them have as main protagonist women, who have an active role in the supply and use, but not precisely in governance or decision making. The study from El Salvador (in Spanish) is focused on the municipalities of Jerusalem, Apastepeque and San Ildefonso, located in the Valle de Jiboa (central El Salvador). One of the challenges that is identified in the study is that there is a need for a revision of existing water-related frameworks and laws, to incorporate the gender approach. Another is a need for climate change training with the inclusion of women. The study is a follow-up of the rainwater harvesting trainings and installation of systems in El Salvador in 2017, that were promoted as an alternative to water shortages and to strengthen the role of women in water management in their communities.
In Nicaragua, women are the ones in charge of ensuring the availability of water at home. Despite this link, they have little power for active participation and decision-making in community water management. The case study (in Spanish) addresses the main gender gaps and the degree of empowerment that women have achieved after a training program on community water management for women in 2014. The training was promoted by a group of organisations, including La Cuculmeca, a GWP partner. The objective was to train women so that they could aspire to employment in the Water and Sanitation Committees (CAPS), which are stipulated in the National CAPS Law. The study focused on the municipalities of Jinotega located in north-eastern Nicaragua; León and Achuapa, located in western Nicaragua.