| Chapter 1: | Water Resources Development and Management in Sub-Saharan Africa |
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From Development to Management of Water Resources
Corresponding with the shift away from water resources development on the ground, water laws and policies have experienced a shift that has seen the development agenda replaced by increased emphasis on allocation of water resources, on ensuring water quality, and on the joint management of shared water resources, at both national and international levels (Giordano, 2003; Mostert, 2003; Lautze & Giordano, 2007). Thus, while the number of transboundary agreements dealing with water management doubled between the 1950s and 1990s, the number of agreements focused on water development decreased more than five fold (Lautze & Giordano, 2007). Although water development and water management are not exclusive categories, these changes are significant and may reflect an evolving set of hydrologic, economic, and environmental realities. In the specific field of water resources, there is now a growing body of literature documenting the policy shift from development to utilization and then to allocation, management, and environmental conservation as new supplies become increasingly scarce and priorities change (Shah, Makin, & Sakthivadivel, 2005; Mostert, 2003; Molden, Sakthivadivel, Samad, & Burton, 2005).
New approaches in water management reflecting this shifting paradigm include changing policy priorities to protect watersheds, floodplains, and wetlands and establish flow requirements for the environment; providing universal access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation by supporting community-based initiatives; developing strong regulatory frameworks that ensure equitable access to services; striving for conservation; enabling access to affordable, small-plot irrigation in conjunction with community-based watershed restoration and rainwater harvesting to improve food security and reduce poverty; increasing water productivity through greater efficiency in irrigation; and good water governance that is guided by the principles of stewardship, sharing, sustainability, and accountability (Postel, 2002; Rockström, et al., 2009). Increasing agricultural productivity in the degraded African lands is increasingly considered as a more water-efficient approach to achieving many of these objectives than the development of new areas for agriculture (InterAcademy Council, 2009).