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South Africa is confronting a moment where the safety and well-being of its women hangs in the balance. The new AWSISA Women’s Forum is urging collective responsibility, stating that the safety of one woman is intertwined with that of others. Every statistic behind femicide represents a daughter, mother, sister, and community deprived of a vital contributor.

Women are key custodians of cultural heritage, passing down traditions, knowledge, and values across generations. Losing a woman to violence means losing more than a life; it disrupts the chain of wisdom, care, and belonging that defines a society. This raises the question of whether we are merely losing citizens or eroding the human infrastructure of our future.

The principle of "I am my sister's keeper" demands more than just physical protection; it calls for safeguarding the knowledge and traditions women carry. Water infrastructure, crucial for sustenance and livelihood, is also a matter of social justice. Female-headed households are more likely to fetch water from unsafe sources, spending considerable time collecting water, which hinders their safety and opportunities.

South Africa's National Water Month highlighted this connection, emphasizing the need for women's leadership and participation in water decision-making. The Women’s Forum should be a platform to elevate women's voices across the water and sanitation sector, prompting questions about women's safety in water projects, their representation in governance, and the accessibility and dignity of sanitation facilities.

The forum should explore how water infrastructure can reduce gender inequality and contribute to the fight against violence against women. AWSISA must act through partnership, evidence-based action, mentorship, leadership development, and championing safer infrastructure. This is not about placing the burden of solving femicide on women; it means refusing to abandon one another and holding society accountable.

Grief must transform into action, and the AWSISA Women’s Forum presents a crucial opportunity for the water sector to lead this transformative change.