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Balancing the multiple demands and uses of

water and social inclusion: Lessons

from Asia

Sonali Senaratna Sellamuttu

4th April 2016

Associate Event on SDG 6 at Asia-

Pacific Forum on Sustainable

Development

Bangkok, Thailand

Introduction

• Availability of water is central to

the future security of food,

energy, domestic and industrial

water supply and the

environment.

• Nexus between a set of

competing demands for water.

• Reflecting multiple dimensions,

cross-sectoral and across scales.

• Providing everyone with access

to water – is vital to achieving the

SDGs on health, livelihoods and

economic growth.

Governments/policy makers need to design water

schemes for multiple uses and ensure that trade-offs

do not further marginalize particular social groups

• The Mekong River Basin faces

massive development investment with regard to hydropower.

• Little attention given to how dams can be constructed and operated in ways that optimize benefits for all water users, including riparian communities.

• Involuntary displacements mean local people are often unable to engage in their original livelihood activities.

Laos PDR

• Shift from Rice-Fallow to Rice-Fish

system - Pilots use the access to water

for integrated rice-fish culture

• Creating artificial wetlands associated

with the reservoir for livelihoods.

• Gender studies: Companies focus on

material aspects in livelihood

packages. But other factors including

underlying gendered values, norms

and practices, should be given

consideration.

4 S Senaratna Sellamuttu et al

• MUS – consider people (women/men) and their multiple water needs as the starting point for design/implementation.

• Nepal – over 280 MUS systems. More sustainable than single use systems.

• Benefits (women): Time saved, enhanced diet (vegetable production), knowledge and control income (petty cash) from vegetable sale.

• MUS in itself does not guarantee social inclusion (e.g., location, social norms)

Multiple Use Water Services (MUS) – integrated

management for domestic & productive use

F Clement et al

Nepal

• Waste water used for agriculture in urban and peri-urban settings.

• Users often urban poor, migrants and women.

• Wastewater irrigated agriculture not formally recognized.

• Unregulated use of waste water give economic benefits but may have health risks.

Irrigated agriculture along the Musi river

City of Hyderabad

Periurban zone 1562 HH (6808) Rural zone 1109 HH (5081)

P. Amarasinghe et al

Waste water irrigated

agriculture in cities India

Key Messages • Governments and policy makers need to design

water schemes for multiple uses and ensure that trade-offs do not further marginalize particular social groups.

• Move beyond stereotype that women’s water needs are limited to domestic uses, especially if contributing to achieving the SDGs. Design and implement gender inclusive policies to boost productivity.

• Target the individuals and their needs in water management systems. Assess the needs, constraints and values of men and women farmers from different socio-economic groups prior to designing or recommending water management interventions.

Thank You Amerasinghe, P.; Bhardwaj, R.M.; Scott, C.; Jella, K.; Marshall, F. 2013.

Urban wastewater and agricultural reuse challenges in India.

Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI).

36p. (IWMI Research Report 147).

Clement, Floriane; Pokhrel, Paras; Sherpa, Tashi Yang Chung.

2015. Sustainability and replicability of multiple-use water systems

(MUS). Prepared for USAID

http://www.iwmi.cgiar.org/Publications/Other/Reports/PDF/iwmi_sustai

nability_musreport.pdf

Senaratna Sellamuttu, S., Joffre, O., Nguyen Duy P., Pant, J.,

Bouahom, B. and A Keophoxay (2014). Hydropower development and

livelihoods: A quest for a balanced approach through research and

partnerships. Proceedings of the Fifth International Conference on

Water Resources and Hydropower Development in Asia, Colombo, Sri

Lanka. March 2014.