Women and the production of water services [The case of the female small scale water providers in Maputo]

Water services is a sector in which men and women's roles are represented in a very polarized way. Women are almost always very narrowly portrayed, in their role as users of water for reproductive and unpaid community activities. In opposition, they seem to be completely absent in activities related to the provision of water services, which are mainly connected to masculine imaginaries. However, women participate also in the provision of water services in different ways. With this research, I aim to contribute to cast light on the role of women as producers of water services, and on how gender influences that role, by using the case of female SSIPs in Maputo Metropolitan area. The findings of this research suggest that gendered social rules regarding ownership, access to economic resources, and activities that should be developed by women and men in the household (and in the society) influence the ways in which women and men participate in the SSIP business. The association of masculinity with the role of the main owner/commander of resources in the household as well as with technical prowess and knowledge bring as consequence that men are the main responsible for water provision businesses, while only few women are visible as SSIPs. However, women and men's participation in the business is more complex than that. Even if gender acts as a structural constraint, it does not completely determine people's activities. Women and men (re-) negotiate roles, meanings and identities at household level. SSIPs are not started-up, managed and owned by isolated individuals. By looking at them as household based activities instead, it is possible to see how gender identities are negotiated reflecting in a wider spectrum of women (and men) participation. Ranging from unpaid workers to formal ownership, the level of involvement of women in the development of the daily tasks of the business and in the decision making is broad and changes with the time.