Accessing water through a rights-based approach: problems and prospects regarding children

Abstract

The right to water has been recently recognized as a fundamental human right by the United Nations, thereby clarifying its status as ‘legally binding’, making it ‘justiciable’ and enforceable. This development has been heralded as a key that holds great potential to change the lives of the billions who still lack access to clean water. Many of those deprived of enjoyment of the right are children, who constitute up to a third of the population in the developing world. What is the value added of the rights-based approach for access to water, especially for children? Would recognition of the right to water as legally binding deliver real benefits to children in improving their access to water? Does it really offer anything new that can help them realize their right to water more effectively? These questions will be explored in this paper using empirical evidence from India, where water has been legally interpreted as a fundamental right, and as a welfare state, where there has been consistent effort on part of the state to improve children's access to water.

Water in India: situation and prospects

“…Singh et al, 2012). The Government of India has called for a State regulatory authority to ensure sustainability and meet environmental needs, and 10 key areas for action are identified (Table 2) (Shah, 2013).…”

Farmers’ Perceptions of Climate Change and Adaptation to Poverty Diseases along River Niger in Edo and Kogi States, Nigeria

“…Poverty disease is a term sometimes used to collectively describe diseases, disabilities and health conditions that are more prevalent among the poor than among wealthier people. In many cases, poverty is considered the leading risk factor or determinant for such diseases and in some cases, the diseases themselves are identified as barriers to economic development that would end poverty [3].…”

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“…In many cases, poverty is considered the leading risk factor or determinant for such diseases and in some cases, the diseases themselves are identified as barriers to economic development that would end poverty. [10] At the global level, there are three primary povertyrelated diseases (PRDs): acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), malaria, and tuberculosis (TB). Developing countries account for 95% of the global AIDS prevalence, 98% of active TB infections, and 90% of malaria deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa (Adjei et al, 2012).…”