IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jijerp/v18y2021i23p12534-d690035.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A Qualitative Exploration in Causes of Water Insecurity Experiences, and Gender and Nutritional Consequences in South-Punjab, Pakistan

Author

Listed:
  • Farooq Ahmed

    (Department of Anthropology, Quaid-I-Azam University, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan
    Department of Anthropology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98105, USA)

  • Muhammad Shahid

    (School of Insurance and Economics, University of International Business and Economics (UIBE), Beijing 100029, China)

  • Yang Cao

    (School of Insurance and Economics, University of International Business and Economics (UIBE), Beijing 100029, China)

  • Madeeha Gohar Qureshi

    (Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan)

  • Sidra Zia

    (Independent Researcher, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan)

  • Saireen Fatima

    (Fazaia Medical College, Air University, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan)

  • Jing Guo

    (Department of Health Policy and Management, School of Public Health, Peking University, Beijing 100091, China)

Abstract

Although water insecurity has been discussed in general, its impacts on mothers’ physical and mental health, and infants’ and young children’s feeding (IYCF), has largely been ignored. This study explores household water insecurity experiences and their association with optimal health and nutrition of women and children in the Rajanpur district of Punjab Province. Using focus group discussions (FGDs) and key informants (KIIs) interviews from an area with high maternal-child malnutrition prevalence, a qualitative study was conducted to describe local experiences of water acquirement and arrangement, and of the consequences of water insecurity. The findings highlight that rural Western marginalized populations of the Rajanpur district rely on brackish, canal, or flood surface water as the water supply is absent, which intensifies mothers’ work burden and stress, and often makes them victims of violence, stigma, and sickness. Water fetching impacts women in unforeseen ways, impacting the psychosocial and physical health of mothers engaged in maternal breastfeeding. Water insecurity, originally rooted in regional disparities, compounds with gender inequities, which leads to maternal stress and child sickness. Justice in water resources is imperative and urgent in the deprived South of Punjab province for improving public health nutrition.

Suggested Citation

  • Farooq Ahmed & Muhammad Shahid & Yang Cao & Madeeha Gohar Qureshi & Sidra Zia & Saireen Fatima & Jing Guo, 2021. "A Qualitative Exploration in Causes of Water Insecurity Experiences, and Gender and Nutritional Consequences in South-Punjab, Pakistan," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(23), pages 1-14, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:23:p:12534-:d:690035
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/23/12534/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/23/12534/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Workman, Cassandra L. & Ureksoy, Heather, 2017. "Water insecurity in a syndemic context: Understanding the psycho-emotional stress of water insecurity in Lesotho, Africa," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 179(C), pages 52-60.
    2. Bahta Yonas Tesfamariam & Enoch Owusu-Sekyere & Donkor Emmanuel & Tlalang Boipelo Elizabeth, 2018. "The impact of the homestead food garden programme on food security in South Africa," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 10(1), pages 95-110, February.
    3. Scavenius, Michael & van Hulsel, Lonneke & Meijer, Julia & Wendte, Hans & Gurgel, Ricardo, 2007. "In practice, the theory is different: A processual analysis of breastfeeding in northeast Brazil," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 64(3), pages 676-688, February.
    4. Cole, Stroma, 2017. "Water worries: An intersectional feminist political ecology of tourism and water in Labuan Bajo, Indonesia," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 14-24.
    5. Wutich, Amber & Ragsdale, Kathleen, 2008. "Water insecurity and emotional distress: Coping with supply, access, and seasonal variability of water in a Bolivian squatter settlement," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 67(12), pages 2116-2125, December.
    6. Ali Cheema & Lyyla Khalid & Manasa Patnam, 2008. "The Geography of Poverty: Evidence from the Punjab," Lahore Journal of Economics, Department of Economics, The Lahore School of Economics, vol. 13(Special E), pages 163-188, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Muhammad Shahid & Waqar Ameer & Najma Iqbal Malik & Muhammad Babar Alam & Farooq Ahmed & Madeeha Gohar Qureshi & Huiping Zhao & Juan Yang & Sidra Zia, 2022. "Distance to Healthcare Facility and Lady Health Workers’ Visits Reduce Malnutrition in under Five Children: A Case Study of a Disadvantaged Rural District in Pakistan," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(13), pages 1-13, July.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Mushavi, Rumbidzai C. & Burns, Bridget F.O. & Kakuhikire, Bernard & Owembabazi, Moran & Vořechovská, Dagmar & McDonough, Amy Q. & Cooper-Vince, Christine E. & Baguma, Charles & Rasmussen, Justin D. & , 2020. "“When you have no water, it means you have no peace”: A mixed-methods, whole-population study of water insecurity and depression in rural Uganda," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 245(C).
    2. Brewis, Alexandra & Choudhary, Neetu & Wutich, Amber, 2019. "Household water insecurity may influence common mental disorders directly and indirectly through multiple pathways: Evidence from Haiti," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 238(C), pages 1-1.
    3. Joseph Kangmennaang & Elijah Bisung & Susan J. Elliott, 2020. "‘We Are Drinking Diseases’: Perception of Water Insecurity and Emotional Distress in Urban Slums in Accra, Ghana," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(3), pages 1-17, January.
    4. Godfred O Boateng & Shalean M Collins & Patrick Mbullo & Pauline Wekesa & Maricianah Onono & Torsten B Neilands & Sera L Young, 2018. "A novel household water insecurity scale: Procedures and psychometric analysis among postpartum women in western Kenya," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(6), pages 1-28, June.
    5. Rosinger, Asher Y. & Bethancourt, Hilary J. & Young, Sera L. & Schultz, Alan F., 2021. "The embodiment of water insecurity: Injuries and chronic stress in lowland Bolivia," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 291(C).
    6. Young, Sera L., 2021. "Viewpoint: The measurement of water access and use is key for more effective food and nutrition policy," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 104(C).
    7. Maxfield, Amanda, 2020. "Testing the theoretical similarities between food and water insecurity: Buffering hypothesis and effects on mental wellbeing," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 244(C).
    8. Bisung, Elijah & Elliott, Susan J., 2018. "Improvement in access to safe water, household water insecurity, and time savings: A cross-sectional retrospective study in Kenya," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 200(C), pages 1-8.
    9. Boateng, Godfred O. & Balogun, Mobolanle R. & Dada, Festus O. & Armah, Frederick A., 2020. "Household energy insecurity: dimensions and consequences for women, infants and children in low- and middle-income countries," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 258(C).
    10. Achore, Meshack & Bisung, Elijah, 2022. "Experiences of inequalities in access to safe water and psycho-emotional distress in Ghana," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 301(C).
    11. Carole D. Nounkeu & Jigna M. Dharod, 2020. "A Qualitative Examination of Water Access and Related Coping Behaviors to Understand Its Link to Food Insecurity among Rural Households in the West Region in Cameroon," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(13), pages 1-12, July.
    12. Holly Vins & Jesse Bell & Shubhayu Saha & Jeremy J. Hess, 2015. "The Mental Health Outcomes of Drought: A Systematic Review and Causal Process Diagram," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-25, October.
    13. Anna Yusa & Peter Berry & June J.Cheng & Nicholas Ogden & Barrie Bonsal & Ronald Stewart & Ruth Waldick, 2015. "Climate Change, Drought and Human Health in Canada," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-54, July.
    14. Sylvester O. Ogutu & Jonathan Mockshell & James Garrett & Ricardo Labarta & Thea Ritter & Edward Martey & Nedumaran Swamikannu & Elisabetta Gotor & Carolina Gonzalez, 2023. "Home gardens, household nutrition and income in rural farm households in Odisha, India," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 74(3), pages 744-763, September.
    15. Rashida Haq & Azhar Ali, 2014. "Development Disparities and Peculiarities: An Empirical Investigation," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 115(2), pages 715-729, January.
    16. Amadu, Festus O. & McNamara, Paul E. & Davis, Kristin E., 2021. "Soil health and grain yield impacts of climate resilient agriculture projects: Evidence from southern Malawi," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    17. Ahmed Gulzar & Novaira Junaid & Adnan Haider, 2010. "What is Hidden in the Hidden Economy of Pakistan? Size, Causes, Issues, and Implications," The Pakistan Development Review, Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, vol. 49(4), pages 665-704.
    18. Priscila Neves-Silva & Juliana Aurora de Oliveira Lopes & Léo Heller, 2020. "The right to water: Impact on the quality of life of rural workers in a settlement of the Landless Workers Movement, Brazil," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(7), pages 1-13, July.
    19. Xiuling Ding & Qian Lu & Lipeng Li & Apurbo Sarkar & Hua Li, 2023. "Does Labor Transfer Improve Farmers’ Willingness to Withdraw from Farming?—A Bivariate Probit Modeling Approach," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-27, August.
    20. Hamna Ahmed & Sahar Amjad Sheikh, 2014. "Determinants of School Choice: Evidence from Rural Punjab, Pakistan," Lahore Journal of Economics, Department of Economics, The Lahore School of Economics, vol. 19(1), pages 1-30, Jan-June.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:23:p:12534-:d:690035. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.