Water Scarcity and Women: Its Impact to the Way of Living of the Female Residents in Barangay Simandagit, Bongao, Tawi-Tawi, Philippines

This study aimed to describe the impact of water scarcity to the way of living of the female residents in Barangay Simandagit. Specifically, this sought to answer the demographic profile of the respondents; the impact of water scarcity to the way of living of the female residents in Barangay Simandagit in terms of physical and socio-economic, and; opinion of females in Barangay Simandagit regarding water collection despite impacts and legal implications. This study employed a quantitative descriptive design which was used to measure the frequency of the responses. This was conducted at the Municipality of Bongao, in the province of Tawi-Tawi, Philippines with the thirty five (35) female residents of Barangay Simandagit who directly experienced the impact of water collection as the respondents. Data gathered from questionnaire were treated statistically using a Percentage Distribution, the Weighted Mean, and the Likert's Five Scale Model. This study revealed the following findings: (1) On physical impact, female residents in this barangay experienced muscle pain, unnecessary muscle formation, mental and physical stress, no rest, and illness. (2) On socio-economic, they experienced difficulty in time allocation, no leisure, extra expenses for water collection, difficulty in allocating budget for the daily needs which includes water for hygiene and sanitary use, vulnerability of young female water collectors to informal courtship, feel inferior from men who are suppose to be doing this heavy work, and security issues. (3) On their opinion regarding water collection despite impacts and legal implications, female residents in this barangay perceived water collection as their responsibility and not a discrimination nor a gender role bias. This is so because they believe that household chores are closely associated with water so providing water by any means is just a normal task. Moreover, they would still continue collecting water despite physical and socio-economic impacts because this is a kind of achievement forthem as a mother, a wife, and/or a sister in the family.