Abstract: This research was done in the capacity of a trainee researcher as a part of the fieldwork curriculum. In a span of four months (January - April 2013) two low - income communities, situated in North West and North East Delhi, respectively, was selected and a qualitative study was conducted to assess the women's and adolescent girl’s access to sanitation-related services in these two communities. The sample size was 34, inclusive of both women and girls. A participatory approach was undertaken for data collection, which included methods like Focus Group Discussions (FGD) and Safety Audit Walk. The data collected from these methods were interpreted by thematic analysis. In both communities the adolescent girls undertook the safety audit walk by identifying spaces in their communities, which made them vulnerable. The FGD was held with both the women and the girls and the information gathered from these discussions ranged from the sanitation services available in the communities, conditions of the community toilet, practice of open defecation, concerns of safety and privacy and action taken by the respondents on the same. The interventions were taken in accordance of the respondents. The study was aimed at consciously evoking participation from the women and the girls and making them major stakeholders in the research process so that the menace of inadequate sanitation services are mitigated, which has the most adverse effects on women and girls.
Keywords: Sanitation, Women, Adolescent Girls, Participatory Methods, Community Toilets, Open Defecation, Privacy and Security.
Title: A STUDY ON WOMEN’S ACCESS TO SANITATION SERVICES IN LOW - INCOME COMMUNITIES OF NEW DELHI
Author: Farheen Ali
International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research
ISSN 2348-3156 (Print), ISSN 2348-3164 (online)
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