Large dams have enormous consequences for people’s lives and livelihoods. Their far-reaching consequences can affect women and men quite differently. Large dams lead to massive shifts in the ways in which men and women access and control resources across a river basin. In some cases, women might gain access to markets and urban facilities that were not available to them prior to resettlement, thus enhancing their set of economic choices and activities. Positive gender impacts can result from an increased or improved supply of water or electricity that can result from a large dam. However, having access to resources might not mean that women might have control over them. For example, enhanced irrigation possibilities might not lead to women having more control over water if men control water pumps and irrigation channels.
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