Rural Water Management in Africa: The Impact of Customary Institutions in Tanzania
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Rural Water Management in Africa: The Impact of Customary Institu ...

Chapter 1:  Introduction
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First, the failure to recognize different systems of understanding may in itself be discriminatory or exclusionary, and hence inequitable. Second, there are often very good reasons why many people chose to use informal or customary systems which should be considered and understood. Third, there is ample evidence that ignoring or trying to stamp out customary practices is not working, and in some cases is having serious negative implications. Fourth, ignoring traditional systems and believing that top-down reform strategies will eventually change practice at the local level may mean that ongoing discriminatory practices and the oppression of marginalized groups in the local context goes unchallenged. Finally, focusing purely on state regimes and access to formal systems in some ways assumes that such systems can be made accessible to all, while clearly even in the most developed countries this is not the case.32

1.3. Justification of the Study

Researchers have tried to understand how customary institutions affect natural resource management, but only few have analyzed how customary institutions might complement the efforts of local governments and the state. While many studies have examined the weaknesses of statutory institutions, few have examined the weaknesses of customary institutions. Understanding the weaknesses of customary institutions is important because they remain the de facto institutions for most poor rural areas on issues such as land tenure, intrahousehold resource allocation, and conflict resolution. This understanding could potentially help policy makers to enact laws and design policies that address these weaknesses.

This study contributes to the literature by filling three major gaps that past researchers have not adequately addressed. First, the literature fails to appreciate the differential impact of customary institutions on drinking and irrigation water management.