The State of Knowledge: Women and Rivers in the Mekong Region.
Women and girls represent over half of the Mekong region’s population. The Mekong River basin is one of the most important river basins in the world providing a home and livelihood to over 72 million people.
The inter-dependencies between women, rivers, and water, and the role of women in productive, reproductive, and care work within the family and community pose the question of whether enough attention is being paid to the inclusion and leadership of women and their game-changing role in water stewardship and river protection.
The connection that Indigenous People particularly Indigenous women have for the rivers and the waters are such that it forms a significant part of their traditions, cultural practices, and ways of life. The voices and experiences of Indigenous women, which are crucial for both the women's movement and the Indigenous Peoples' movement - are often not heard. This highlights the fact that Indigenous women are generally more marginalized, discriminated against, and disempowered in various aspects of their lives.
It underscores the pressing need to enhance the capacity of Indigenous women and the organizations and institutions that represent them; to play active roles and leadership in all matters that affect them as both women and Indigenous peoples.