‘It’s a Right! Without Water, We’ll Die’: World Water Day Protest Demands the Right to Water in the Favelas of Greater Rio.
On March 20, just days before World Water Day, popular movements and members of civil society gathered in front of private water utility Águas do Rio to demand the right to water for favelas and peripheral areas across the state of Rio de Janeiro. The company has been responsible for water and sewerage services in the capital and 26 other municipalities since 2021. According to residents of various favelas in Greater Rio, however, the universalization and improvement of these services in favelas remain a distant reality.
Luiza Helena, a Social Work student at Rio de Janeiro State University (UERJ) and a resident of the favelas of Complexo do Chapadão, in the city’s North Zone, expresses her frustration: despite paying R$60-70 (~US$10-12) per month for the utility’s services, she sometimes goes up to 20 days without water—a situation that has even kept her from attending class.
“The fact that they [Águas do Rio] say they provide a good service to the population is a lie. I’d like to see the contract Águas do Rio [has with the] community… You give them your address… your taxpayer ID, email—and [that counts as] an agreement that you have [had access to] your rights? Where is the contract between the [favela] consumer and the company? It does not exist. I believe they still have a lot to improve, you know? People are not asking for a favor—it’s a right. Sanitation, water—that brings life. Without water, we’ll die. How can anyone live without water? When you’re home, everything you do depends on water. There’s no doing anything without water.” — Luiza Helena
