In many countries, the challenge of sustaining rural water supplies is entrusted to community organizations, which have difficulties in performing durably the operation, maintenance and cost recovery of rural water supply systems. This paper analyzes how rural communities struggle to ensure a sustainable access to water, while seeking close interaction with outside actors such as the State, NGOs, and politicians. The analysis is based on field observations, interviews and participatory workshops in four community-managed water supply systems in Brazil and Tunisia. To sustain the access to water, communities limit their dependance on community-managed water supply systems and diversify water sources for different uses; they adapt the technical and organizational dimensions of water supply systems through bricolage; and use political leverage to obtain financial and technical support. Understanding how communities adapt the infrastructure and the organization of rural water supply, in close interaction with external actors, may inspire water providers in designing more resilient water systems.
The evolution of family farming cannot be analyzed only from the perspective of production. Since it is also a kinship unit, the family farm reveals social tensions that contribute to the migration of young people, especially for young women. This study presents an analysis of the factors that contribute to this migratory process, considering youth and gender variables. The analysis is based on a participatory diagnosis, multisectoral interviews and surveys in thirty-three communities located in the center of the Ceará State (Northeastern Brazil). The research reveals that the main factor of this migratory process is the lack of appreciation of family farming by the qualified rural youth, who participate little in decision-making. When the analysis of the migration is gender-focused, the invisibility of young women productive and reproductive work stands out as the main driver of migration to urban areas and proves to be greater than for young men. Rural youth migration will shape the rural territory and will probably change the format of family farming. Understanding its factors may help to propose public policies more adapted for family farming.
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