IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/taf/ctwqxx/v36y2015i8p1527-1545.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Implementing the human right to water and sanitation: a study of global and local discourses

Author

Listed:
  • Madeline Baer
  • Andrea Gerlak

Abstract

This article explores global and local discourses on how to implement the newly recognised human right to water and sanitation (HRtWS). We analyse the potential limitations of the human rights frame in the context of critiques that human rights are a liberal, Western discourse that does not reflect the lived experiences of non-Western countries. Through two case studies we find that there are two discourses emerging on how to implement the HRtWS. At the global level, as seen in the work of the UN Special Rapporteur on the HRtWS, we find a hegemonic discourse that is state-centric and market-friendly. In Bolivia, a country currently implementing a human rights-based approach to water services, we find a counter-hegemonic discourse on implementation. We argue that the hegemonic discourse is incomplete and does not fully address barriers to fulfilment of the right, such as state corruption and the needs of peri-urban residents.

Suggested Citation

  • Madeline Baer & Andrea Gerlak, 2015. "Implementing the human right to water and sanitation: a study of global and local discourses," Third World Quarterly, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(8), pages 1527-1545, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:ctwqxx:v:36:y:2015:i:8:p:1527-1545
    DOI: 10.1080/01436597.2015.1043993
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/01436597.2015.1043993
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1080/01436597.2015.1043993?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    Citations

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


    Cited by:

    1. Edith Kauffer & Carmen Maganda, 2022. "The adoption of global water norms in Central America: What separates normative coherence from normative hegemony?," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 40(S1), June.
    2. Yates, Julian S. & Harris, Leila M., 2018. "Hybrid regulatory landscapes: The human right to water, variegated neoliberal water governance, and policy transfer in Cape Town, South Africa, and Accra, Ghana," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 75-87.
    3. Pranjal Deekshit & Simran Sumbre, 2022. "AFTER THE RIGHT TO WATER: Rethinking the State and Justice in Mumbai," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(4), pages 711-720, July.
    4. Emmy De Buck & Hans Van Remoortel & Karin Hannes & Thashlin Govender & Selvan Naidoo & Bert Avau & Axel Vande Veegaete & Alfred Musekiwa & Vittoria Lutje & Margaret Cargo & Hans‐Joachim Mosler & Phili, 2017. "Approaches to promote handwashing and sanitation behaviour change in low‐ and middle‐income countries: a mixed method systematic review," Campbell Systematic Reviews, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 13(1), pages 1-447.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:taf:ctwqxx:v:36:y:2015:i:8:p:1527-1545. 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.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using 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: Chris Longhurst (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.tandfonline.com/ctwq .

    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.