Water Solutions for Sustainable Development: mobilizing science, systems thinking and evidence-based approaches

Sonali Senaratna Sellamuttu

Country Representative – Southeast Asia and Myanmar

Tackling Global Water Challenges

Key Water Challenges and IWMI’s Response

PROCESS

• Advances in Earth Observation and Big Data processing are revolutionizing water resource monitoring and reporting

• A new framework provides explicit spatial information on water depletion and withdrawal processes

• Applications in Southeast Asia, South Asia and Central Asia

OUTCOMES

• Consistent and coherent datasets that integrate hydrological processes with water management and the services and benefits from water consumption

• A tool to evaluate and plan water resources management, monitor changes in water resources and assess the impacts of future interventions

• Promoting WA in practice from Basin to field level application and training

WATER ACCOUNTING +To achieve equitable and transparent water governance for all water users

PROCESS

• Innovative use of technology - develop products integrating remote sensing datasets, flood hazard model and crop loss module to support upscaling IBFI

• Pilot tested; 200 households (2017) and 408 households (2018) in Bihar, India.

• Equity aspects –investigating how IBFI can benefit the most vulnerable, including women and other marginalized groups.

OUTCOMES

• Implement and evaluate IBFI products at developmental scale

• Identifying local socio-economic and structural barriers and strategies to overcome these obstacles.

• Identifying institutions to make the product more inclusive

INDEX BASED FLOOD INSURANCE (IBFI) Supporting equity and inclusive development

PROCESS

• Management innovations to maximize use of available water sources, hydro-economic analyses, consultative and flexible approach to strengthen participatory irrigation management and capacity building.

OUTCOMES

• Newly developed institutional structure for WUA in Myanmar’s pump based irrigation schemes (first WUA officially registered)

• Handbook for establishing WUA published.

• Development of management tools and introduction of high value crops to increase financial revenues for pump based irrigation schemes

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IMPROVING SMALLHOLDER RESILIENCE THROUGH REVITALIZING IRRIGATIONContributing to improved livelihoods & investment decisions

• There is a demand for innovative, scientifically tested water management solutions for sustainable development.

• Addressing key water challenges involves working across scales and requires system-wide innovation, interlinking technological, institutional and policy change.

• Strategic partnerships at multiple scales to co-design and co-implement demand-driven research for development, helps achieve impact at scale.

• Interdisciplinary teams and extensive field-based presence.

Take away

http://www.iwmi.cgiar.org/

Gratefully acknowledge all contributions made by IWMI colleagues Amarnath Giriraj, Lisa-Maria Rebelo, Mohamed Aheeyar, Paul Pavelic, Petra Schmitter and Sanjiv de Silva