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Water, poverty and donors

Water, poverty and donors. Kurt Mørck Jensen, Senior Adviser Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs/Danida. Global water-poverty policies and strategies. Are they a common denominator for joint donor action at country and program level?

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Water, poverty and donors

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  1. Water, poverty and donors Kurt Mørck Jensen, Senior Adviser Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs/Danida

  2. Global water-poverty policies and strategies • Are they a common denominator for joint donor action at country and program level? • Are they translated into common understanding/agreement between governments, civil society and other stakeholders at country or program level? • Is the devil in the details?

  3. Global context for water policies- to which all subscribe • Water and Sanitation Decade 1980-1990 • Dublin and Rio 1992 • World Bank Water Resources Policy 1993, 2003 • Global Water Partnership 1996 • World Water Council 1996 • World Water Forums 1997-2006 • UN Millennium Declaration 2000 • Johannesburg WSSD 2002 • UN CSD 12 and 13 2004 and 2005 • UN MDG Water Task Force Report 2005 • Water and Sanitation Program 1979-2006

  4. Global policies trickle down French Senate Supports the "Right to Water”August 30, 2006 Within the framework of the examination of the new French water bill, Senators have adopted an amendment sanctioning the "right to water", as defined during the 4th World Water Forum of Mexico City in March 2006.

  5. Poverty-Environment Partnership 2001 Donor policy documents: • Poverty and Env. Management 2001 • Poverty and Climate Change 2003 • Poverty Env. Fiscal Reform 2005 • Poverty and Water Management 2006 Other environment-water-poverty policy papers by DfID, EC, UNDP and the World Bank

  6. ”Poverty and Water Management” Key lessons and messages: • Good water management can simultaneously reduce poverty and support development • Doing the right infrastructure is important • Finding the finance is crucial • Achieving the sanitation targets is difficult

  7. ”Poverty and Water Management” Contentious policy areas: • Water as an economic and social good • Water as a human right • Balance between environmental and economical/social objectives

  8. ”Poverty and Water Management” The role of IWRM • National IWRM plans by 2005 – WSSD target • IWRM as commonly agreed approach, strategic framework and with operational details in GWP’s Tool Box • But there are many IWRM interpretations: planning mechanism – mechanism for stakeholder participation and water governance

  9. Poverty and Water Management” Policies for reform: ”…defining an agenda for governments of the developing world…” • Integrate water in MDG-based PRS • Reduce fragmentation through IWRM • Strengthen local government • Clarify rights and entitlements of stakeholders and adjust these to ”contemporary realities” • Create enabling environment/regulatory framework for investments • Advocacy and awareness-raising

  10. ”Poverty and Water Management”- the good story • Bi- and multilaterals and NGOs sign on to a broad policy document • The document reflects lessons learned and contentious, unresolved areas • The document serves to maintain vigilance in implementing internat. commitments • The document is a wake-up call or………

  11. ”Poverty and Water Management”- the bad story • … or is it a sleeping pill? • Is it ’SOS’ based on ’cut-and-paste’ and copying others? • Does it really help developing countries and the poor? • Should donors ”…define the agenda for governments of the developing world…”? • How many politically correct documents do we need?

  12. Consensus on global policies and strategies is easy - turning them into practise is difficult • CG meetings • PRSP process • Sector reform • Sector support - SWAP • Basket funding • Policy details and conditionalities - paying for water, privatisation, etc.

  13. Consensus on global policies and strategies is easy - turning them into practise is difficult • Weak states – strong states • Work at country level • Work at river basin level • Work at program and project level • The IWRM Tool Box is a good help (design, good practices etc.) but needs to be supported by recurrent analysis of emerging problems and challenges.

  14. Consensus on global policies and strategies is easy - turning them into practise is difficult • Challenge 1: Consensus between donors at the national, program, etc. level can be difficult • Challenge 2: Consensus between stakeholders at the national and local level is complicated and may never be fully solved • Challenge 3: Few water professionals (practitioners, policy makers, researchers) translate policies and research results into practice and ’get their hands dirty’

  15. From policy to practise: the Mekong River and the Mekong River Commission • Policy agreement among donors, between donors and MRC, between countries • Four very different countries • IWRM and stakeholder involvement • Thailand vs. Vietnam • Infrastructure investments vs. poor peoples livelihoods and the environment

  16. ”National Interests and Transboundary Water Governancein the Mekong” Sydney University, Australian Mekong Resource Centre http://www.mekong.es.usyd.edu.au Danida http://water.dccd.cursum.net

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