Zillur_Lahiri-Dutt Paper on Bangladesh

8/7/2019 Zillur_Lahiri-Dutt Paper on Bangladesh

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1 Ensuring Water Security in Rural Areas of Bangladesh under

Climate Change and Non-climatic Drivers of Change

Mohammed Rahman Zillur and Kuntala Lahiri-Dutt

1.1 Introduction

This chapter addresses the question of security 1 and

sustainability 2 of water resource management (WRM)

in Bangladesh due to climate change and complex

social and political factors including weak govern-ance. It suggests that social networks should play an

important role in ensuring security at the micro levels,

and the promotion of people-centred water manage-

ment. Bangladesh, a highly populated country located

on the floodplains of the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna Rivers, receives abundant monsoonal rain

which is concentrated between June and September.

Rapid population growth, economic growth impera-

tives, changing farming practices and the weak coordi-

nation of WRM have increased the gap between the

demand and supply of water leading to a water crisisthat threatens the stability of the country. It is increas-

ingly being understood that climate change poses a

serious challenge for future water resource manage-

ment in South Asia as a whole and exacerbates exist-

ing environmental problems. Babel and Wahid (2008)

showed that Bangladesh is highly vulnerable to declin-

ing freshwater supplies. Mirza and Ahmad (2003)

showed that the melting of the Himalayan glaciers

will change the volume and frequency of monsoonal

floods due to changed river regimes and affect Bang-

ladesh more severely than other parts of South Asia.

Other changes in the country’s water resources

include large-scale sedimentation, changing water

quality, saline intrusion in coastal areas, land-use con-

version and degradation of water ecosystems.Threats to the security of water resources and vul-

nerabilities,3 however, are not caused only by climate

change; there are a number of non-climatic drivers or

human-induced activities involved. For instance, dis-

charging household and industrial sewage and waste-water into canals and rivers without any treatment,

illegal encroachment of river course and construction

inside river channels, imbalanced use and control of

water by upstream users causing a reduction on the

volume of flow, are important human-driven factors.

These affect water availability in major rivers causing water resource pollution and posing threats for

human health throughout the rural areas in Bangla-

desh.

Sustainable economic development and poverty

reduction still remain top priorities for Bangladesh,

while the effects of climate change and impacts of

non-climatic drivers on its water resources affect hu-

man activities and settlements, making farmers in ru-

ral areas in particular and poor people in general

highly vulnerable. Increased water insecurities havethe potential to undermine the nation’s development

goals, in particular to erode its sustainability.

Although the predictive power of water resources

and climate change models has improved significantly,

so far little has been done to link climate change to

rural social factors, which are crucial in determining

1 Environmental security is an increasing issue in worldaffairs. Currently there is little coherence around theworld on its definition, threats, and policy responsibili-ties. For the present purpose of this chapter, we use Bar-nett’s definition: environmental security is the proactiveminimization of anthropogenic threats to the functionalintegrity of the biosphere and thus to its interdependenthuman component (Barnett 2001).

2 For the purposes of this chapter, we follow the defini-tion of sustainability or sustainable development by theWorld Commission on Environment and Development(1987 ), defining sustainability as “forms of progress thatmeet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.”

3 The best, pro-poor, definition of vulnerabiulity has beenproposed by Wisner, Blaikie, Cannon and Davis (1994:16): ”By vulnerability, we mean the characteristics of a person or a group and their situation that influencetheir capacity to anticipate, cope with, resist and recoverfrom the impact of a natural hazard.”



2 Mohammed Rahman Zillur and Kuntala Lahiri-Dutt

water resources management practices in Bangladesh.

In linking both, this chapter assumes that the study

applies to WRM and security issues by enhancing our

knowledge of sustainability under changing climatic

and non-climatic conditions. Given its weak govern-

ance structures this chapter may have some policy rel-evance for Bangladesh and could be used by other

countries whose water resources are also severely

affected.

1.2 Background

Local to global water resources, environment and eco-

system are being heavily influenced by both climate

change and non-climatic drivers such as human activi-

ties. In the following sections we shall discuss how cli-

mate change (climatic drivers) and human activities

(non-climatic drivers) impact on water resource and

increase the vulnerabilities of the environment, of

human beings and society in Bangladesh.

1.2.1 Climatic Drivers: Impacts and

Vulnerabilities

Alam and Murray (2005: 3) observed that climate

change would impose significant stress on resources

throughout Asia, but “water resources, coastal ecosys-

tems and human settlements” are amongst those that

are “thought to be highly vulnerable to climate

change.” The fourth assessment report (AR4) of the

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC

2007 a) indicates that one of the most important chal-

lenges for Bangladesh’s potential for sustainable de-

velopment is the impact of climate change on its wa-

Figure 1.1: Possible Climate Change Related Impacts in Tropical Asia. Source: IPCC (1998: 392). Reprinted with

permission of the IPCC.



Ensuring Water Security in Rural Areas of Bangladesh under Climate Change 3

ter resources. Hydro-geological, human health andsocio-economic factors in Bangladesh are highly vul-

nerable to the severe impacts of climate change. Incoastal zones, for example, there would be a com-

bined effect of climate change, sea level rise, subsid-

ence and changes of upstream river discharge, cyclone

and coastal embankments. Bangladesh’s dynamic

coastal morphological processes would experience

change in the tidal and seasonal variations as well as

experience increased frequency and intensity of ex-

treme events (World Bank 2000). According to

Ahmed (2006), a number of factors are contributing

to the increase of these vulnerabilities, such as the ge-

ographical location of the country, the low elevation

of the land and the deltaic and tidal landscape, con-centrated and heavy monsoon rains within a short pe-

riod, high population density and a high dependence

on agriculture that is dependent on monsoonal watersupplies. The key impacts of climate change on water

resources in Bangladesh and the increased vulnerabil-

ities raise the question(s): who or what is vulnerable

to climate change and how and why they are vulnera-

ble? We discuss these questions this next section.

In short, the key climate change impacts in Bang-

ladesh are:

• increases of rainfall leading to an unusual flow of

abundant water between June and September andvery limited water flows from November to May;

• increases of water temperature and evapotranspi-

ration rates lead to a decline in water quality in

most parts of country;• increased temperatures in the Himalayan glaciers

lead to water shortages in Bangladesh;

• acceleration of the ice discharges from Greenland

and Antarctic ice sheets contribute to a rise in sea-

level, posing threats to costal areas in Bangladesh.

• which impact on aquatic ecosystems raising con-

cerns on water-related biodiversity.

1.2.1.1 Important Vulnerabilities

People living in rural and costal areas in Bangladesh

are more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change

on water resources. Urban livelihoods and national

economic activities directly and indirectly rely on the

production (agriculture, fishing, cattle) in rural areas.

Thus, the climate change impacts on water resources

increase the vulnerabilities not only in rural areas, but

also of urban livelihoods and the economic develop-

ment of the country. For instance, if less rice is pro-

Figure 1.2: Flood types in Bangladesh. Source: Ahmad,

Warrick, Ericksen and Mirza (1996: 13).

Permission by the copyright holder is needed.

Figure 1.3: Five main types of climate-related natural

events for Bangladesh. Source: Ericksen,

Ahmad and Chowdhury (1996: 264).

Permission by the copyright holder is needed.




duced, the government must spend public resources

for imports. Below, we discuss how and why people

in rural and costal areas and national economic devel-

opment are vulnerable to the impacts of climatechange.

Water quality: According to Longfield and Mack-lin (1999), climate change increases the vulnerabilities

of many geomorphic processes in water infrastruc-

tures, such as slope stability, soil moisture, erosion

and sediment transportation. The usual infrastruc-

tures of most rivers, canals and agricultural lands in

Bangladesh are becoming endangered by the unusual

water flows. This further increases the vulnerabilities

from floods, droughts and water quality in most parts

of Bangladesh, posing threats to human health andecosystems. Heavy rainfall and floods bring additional

suspended solids and increase the turbidity in lakes,

ponds, reservoirs and introduce pollutants (pesti-

cides, organic matter, heavy metals) and promote al-

gal blooms and increase bacteria content. Moreover,

Schindler (2001) argues that volatile and non-volatile

compounds such as ammonia, mercury, dioxins andpesticides will spread with surface water bodies to the

atmosphere, putting rural people’s living conditions at

risk.

Key human vulnerabilities are for:

• rural people, especially farmers (using contami-

nated water for irrigation), children and poor men

and women who are directly affected by water

quality (from lack of pure water for drinking andother household purposes);

• urban people who are indirectly vulnerable,

because many sick people in rural areas move to

urban areas and spread diseases. Food supply in

urban areas could decline and urban livelihoods

could thus also be affected.

Coastal areas: Ericson, Vˆrˆsmarty, Dingman, Ward

and Meybeck (2006) have noted that the Ganges,

Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers are highly sensitive to

sea-level rise, where the largest segment consists of deltaic plains. This unique physical property of the re-gion presents great risks to coastal water resources

and for the population, particularly for the poorer com-

munities (Woodroffe/Nicholls/Saito/Chen/Goodbred

2006). Allison, Khan, Goodbred and Kuehl (2003) ar-

gue that salinization of surface water in the coastal re-

gions in the south of Bangladesh increases through

seawater (saltwater) incursion into surface or freshwa-

ter sources, costal aquifers and costal river systems

and that is attributed by a rising sea level in the Bay of

Bengal.Key human vulnerabilities: Coastal farmers will

lose agricultural lands and its productivity due to sea

level rise and saltwater intrusion.

Agricultural productivity: Agriculture and agri-

food production sectors in Bangladesh are most vul-

nerable due to conditions such as heavy rains, floodconditions, weak quality of water and severe drought.

Faisal and Parveen (2004) point out that rice and

wheat productions are more vulnerable than other

crops because of their requirement of water for culti-

vation. They argue that about 8 per cent of rice and

32 per cent of wheat production will drop in Bangla-desh by 2050 due to climate change and its implica-

tion on water sector. From past experiences, almost

every year, all floods had submerged huge agricultural

cultivated lands and damaged large amount of crops.

On the contrary, during the summer season, rural

farmers face challenges to cultivate rice and wheat

crops due to severe drought in the northern part of

Bangladesh.

Key human vulnerabilities:

• Because the rural people will not have the means

to access the commercial market to buy products

Table 1.1: Socio-economic impacts of sea-level rise (IPCC 1996a: 306). Reprinted with permission of the IPCC.

Climate-Related Events

Impact categories Coastal Erosion Flooding/Inundation

SaltwaterIntrusion

SedimentationChanges

Storminess

Human Settlements ! ! !Agriculture ! ! !Freshwater Supply, Quality ! !Fisheries ! ! ! ! !Financial Services ! ! !Human Health ! !




that they could produce, less agricultural produc-

tivity will pose direct threats to their livelihoods.

• Urban people are indirectly vulnerable becausefood supply in urban areas will decline and urban

livelihoods would be affected.

• National economic development is directly vulner-

able because of its agro-based economy.

Water related biodiversity: The impacts of climate

change on inland aquatic ecosystems in Bangladeshare quite large. Water-related biodiversity across the

country remain highly vulnerable because of the ef-fects of rise in water temperature that lowers water

quality; alter mixing patterns of water compounds of

lakes, ponds and rivers. Production of planktonic

communities and their food web, species composition

will change with higher water temperature. As a result

fish yields in many lakes, ponds and rivers in Bangla-

desh have declined and many other species are threat-

ened with extinction (MA 2005). On the other hand,

coastal vegetated wetlands and water-based species

also face this risk due to saline intrusion and erosion

through extreme events such as seal level rise, torna-

dos and cyclones in coastal areas.

Key human vulnerabilities: Less fish production

poses threats to rural people in terms of lack of pro-

tein with their intake. Less fish in rivers and canals

means rural people can not access the commercial

market to buy fishes.

Risk of human health: Human beings are directly and indirectly vulnerable to climate change through

changes in the poor quality of water. Floods, consid-

ered to be one of the most frequent natural weather

disasters in the country, have large impacts on the wa-

ter quality 4 and on health ranging from injuries to

deaths (Ahern/Kovats/Wilkinson/Few/Matthies 2005).

In addition, floods, storms, cyclones and tornados de-

stroy many infrastructures including the sanitation sys-

Table 1.2: Synthesized results of case studies on Bangladesh and Egypt on 1-m sea-level rise in 1990 US$. Source: IPCC

(1996a: 308).

People Affected Capital Value

at Loss

Land at Loss Wetland

at loss

Adaptation/

Protection Loss

Country/Source People

(1000s)

% total Million

US$

% GNP Km2 % total Km2 Million

US$

% GNP

Bangladesh (Huq1995; BangladeshGovernment 1993)

71,000 60 - - 25,000 17.5 5,800 >1000 >0.06

Egypt (DelftHydraulics 1992)

4,700 9 59,000 204 5,800 1.0 - 13,100 0.45

India (Pachauri1994)

7,100 1 - - 5,800 0.4 - - -

Netherlands(Peerbolte 1991)

10,000 67 186,000 69 2,165 6.9 642 12,300 ß.05

Table 1.3: Potential land loss and population exposed in Asian countries to sea-level rise. Sources: IPCC (2001a: 569).

Country Sea-level rise Potential land loss Population exposed

cm km2 % millions %

Bangladesh 45 15,668 10.9 5.5 5.0

100 29,846 20.7 14.8 13.5

India 100 5,763 0.4 7.1 0.8

Indonesia 60 34,000 1.9 2.0 1.1

Japan 50 1,412 0.4 2.9 2.3

Malaysia 100 7,000 2.1 >0.05 >0.3

Pakistan 20 1,700 0.2 n.a. n.a.

Vietnam 100 40,000 12.1 17.1 23.1

4 See EM-DAT: The OFDA/CRED International DisasterDatabase; at: <http://www.em-dat.net> (10 April 2009).




tems of the rural poor. They also contaminate water

supplies with faecal bacteria, with dangerous chemi-

cals, pesticides, metals and hazardous waste. All theseaffect human health through diseases such as vector-

borne (e.g. malaria) and water-borne (e.g. cholera).

One indirect result of poor public health is that the

productive efficiency of rural agricultural activities

and non-farm economic activities are affected by the

shortage of labour and waste of man days.

Livelihood vulnerabilities in the Charlands: The

river systems in the Bengal delta, are in the final

stages of formation. They bring large amounts of silt

from upstream parts in the Himalayas which give rise

to riverine islands within the river beds and channels

that are locally known as the charlands. People living

in charlands are among the poorest and the most vul-

nerable to sudden floods. Baqee (1998: 1–2) has

shown that the large number of chouras, the inhabit-ants of the chars, constitute “some of the most des-perate people in the country,” who live in a most un-

certain and fragile environment. Thus, chars have

been at the epicentre of resource management and of

policy debates in Bangladesh because of the impor-

tance of the riparian zones to the country’s life and

economy and the large number of people living and

using these lands (Chowdhury 2000). Lahiri-Dutt and

Samanta (2006) noted that people who live in char-lands and who are coping with perceived insecurities,

due to certain livelihood benefits as well as lack of al-ternative opportunities, and social capital play an im-

portant role in mobilizing community support and en-

hancing resilience to cope with sudden disasters. The

impacts of climate change on water resources, in par-

ticular the seasonal floods, riverbank erosion and

shifting river channels, are expected to make theselarge numbers of chouras physically, socially and eco-

nomically more vulnerable and displace many of

them, forcing them to become environmental mi-

grants unless people-oriented water management

practices are promoted.

Socio-economic vulnerabilities due to climatechange can occur in different forms in Bangladesh;

for instance, damages can occur in an inequitable

manner leading to even permanent displacement of

the rural poor due to floods, droughts (or perceived

droughts, such as the lack of water in Padma River),

tornados and cyclones. Rural and coastal communi-

ties in Bangladesh are mostly victims of these changes

because of their limited resources, opportunities and

protection. Traditional livelihoods of local people are

threatened by their lacking ability to irrigate crops due

to water shortage or their lacking resources to buy

other products due to the crop damages from natural

hazards. Affected people are mentally stressed losing crops, property, infrastructures and livestock. But cer-

tain segments of the population, especially children,

the elderly, daily paid workers (working for other

farmers) and marginalized groups are even more vul-

nerable Further, diseases emanating from the poor

quality of water make some local people socially vul-

nerable because they do not get proper treatment due

to a lack of money. As a result, social stability will be

affected because most rural people will lose their in-

come, become unemployed and live with high mental

stress. The education of children and of the young

from affected families will be interrupted and they

will be socially vulnerable due to lower economic pro-

ductivity. Finally, the national economic development

is directly affected by these changes.

1.2.2 Human-induced Drivers, Impacts and

Vulnerabilities

Water resources in Bangladesh are not only threat-

ened by the impacts of climate change, but also by

non-climatic drivers or human-induced activities, such

as:

• Household sewage and wastewater are discharged

untreated into canals and rivers causing water pol-

lution.

• Due to a lack of tight regulations and effectivemonitoring systems water sources are at risk from

industrial effluents discharged into rivers. Textiles,

tanneries, pulp and paper mills, fertilizer, chemicalindustry and refineries are the most harmful indus-

tries for the water sector in Bangladesh. According

to Cegis (2003) these industries also discharge haz-

ardous chemicals, both organic and inorganic,

without treatment.

• Imbalanced use and control of water by upstream

users (e.g. India) are affecting water availability in

major rivers in Bangladesh (e.g. in the Padma River).

1.2.2.1 Important Vulnerabilities from Non-

climatic Drivers

The quality of water is depleting due to industrial ef-

fluents, household sewage and wastewater discharged

into rivers. As a result, fishes and other aquatic species

are becoming vulnerable to water pollution. Direct or

indirect effects of these pollutions are also contribut-

ing to people’s health and livelihoods. Loss of biodi-

versity, reduction of fisheries (a major source of pro-




tein for the people) and reduction of agricultural

production near river banks also increase the vulnera-

bility of local poor farmers for sustenance.The water flow of small rivers, canals and lakes

distributing the waters from or depending on the

Ganges becomes vulnerable due to the diversion and

unbalance use of water resource by upstream users in

India. The construction of the Farakka barrage over

the Indian part of the distributaries of the Ganges

River has undoubtedly worsened the water availability

during the winter months in Bangladesh. Moreover,

the chronic reduction over the recent years in the

flows of rivers falling into the Bay of Bengal has un-

duly created misunderstanding between the upperand lower riparian countries in this part of South

Asia. The physical effects have also led to further so-

cio-economic vulnerabilities in the rural areas of the

Ganges-Padma basin in Bangladesh. Finally, due to in-

creasing industrialization and urbanization, agricul-

tural lands are shrinking in all over the region, and it

is feared that reduced availability of farming land is

making the poor more vulnerable. This was apparent

from the recent outburst of public anger across the

border in West Bengal in India over the acquisition of

cultivable land for industrial use, leading to wide-

spread public perception of a looming decline in food

security.

1.2.2.2 Weak Governance

According to UNESCAP (2007 ), most developing so-

cieties are facing enormous challenges due to ineffi-

ciency and poor accountability which are symptoms

of weak governance. Pande, Tropp, Sharma and

Khatiwada (2006), in their report on human develop-

ment and good governance on Nepal, argue that ig-

noring the interest and priorities of the people in the

execution of plans by the government reflects weak

governance. This challenges principles of human dig-

nity (inclusiveness, liberty, equality and cooperation)and at the end societies become vulnerable to weak policies. Weak governance is a key non-climatic driver

with adverse impacts on WRM. Although climate

change impacts are also related to governance issues,

the direct impacts of weak governance on the sustain-

ability of water resources in Bangladesh are obvious.

For the WRM in Bangladesh, the influence of

weak regulations, lack of cooperation and monitoring

systems are acknowledged when major industries (tex-

tiles, tanneries, pulp and paper mills, fertilizer, chemi-

cal industrial and refineries) ignore their environmen-

Figure 1.4: Urbanization in Bangladesh. Source: Ericksen,

Ahmad and Chowdhury (1996: 239). Permission

is needed.

Figure 1.5: Migration in Bangladesh. Source: Ericksen,

Ahmad and Chowdhury (1996: 245).Permission

is needed.




tal consequences that affect the people’s livelihood by

polluting water resources through industrial effluents.

An example of weak governance is the well-known

common occurrence of encroachment and illegal con-

structions on rivers.The security of water resources in Bangladesh is

not only threatened by industrial pollution, but also

from the narrowing-down of the water system by ille-

gal encroachment of river channels and river banks

for building activities. A recent report in the Daily It-tefaq of 16 June 2009 suggests that the Buriganga

River in Dhaka will no longer be considered a legiti-

mate river with a regular flow if the construction ac-

tivities around it are not immediately stopped. Such a dramatically reduced water flow does not only under-

mine environmental sustainability but also threatensthe security of the water resources. One may question

the legitimacy of such constructions on common

property resources or on public lands, but more im-

portantly, the excessive demands for land are threat-

ening the natural river flows with long-term conse-

quences for human well-being. One may argue that

the lack of accountability, transparency and respon-

siveness of the public authorities are responsible for

the failure of the protection of water systems in Bang-

ladesh.

The influence of the national government on local

governments is another aspect of weak governanceand of poor WRM. Although there is a great demand

from civil society organizations, from non-governmen-tal organizations (NGOs) and academics for a decen-

tralization of governance, little progress towards a real

decentralization of administration and political power

has so far taken place. A reduced control of the cen-

tral government over local authorities would lead to a

loss of power to interfere in local matters.5

Unfortunately, the lack of accountability encour-

ages many central administrators to use their author-

ity for personal benefits (figure 1.6). This systematic

top-down control is a reflection of weak governance

and the process directly and indirectly impacts nega-

tively on the country’s water resources. However,

there are certain aspects contributing to this prevail-

ing weak governance and affecting the paradigm of WRM (figure 1.7 ).

Figure 1.4 illustrates the close linkages among

these factors and how these factors are contributing

to the risk of water resources due to the formulation

of weak governance. For instance, to put pressure on

the authorities for certain legal issues, a strong public

opinion is necessary. However, it is difficult to con-

sider these public issues given the low literacy rate (ca.

41 per cent) and as many people live below poverty line.

The sensitive politics of transboundary water shar-ing is another aspect of water security for the rural

areas of Bangladesh. Different policies on the water

use in international river basins by one country, e.g. by

India, Nepal and China affect the water availability in

Bangladesh. The Dublin principles6 emphasize the

importance of upstream and downstream users of

water as:

Figure 1.6: The central or national (top-down) control system and influences on the local level of government.Source:

Zillur (2007).

5 S. Kazi and K Alam, 2006: “Empowering Local Govern-ment in Bangladesh”; at: <http://nation.ittefaq. com/artman/publish/article_29731.shtm> (30 June 200?).

6 Four principles for IWRM were developed in Dublin(1992) by a conference on water and environmentPrinciple No. 1 : Fresh water is a finite and vulnerableresource, essential to sustain life, development and theenvironment;• Principle No. 2 : Water development and manage-

ment should be based on a participatory approach,involving users, planners and policy-makers at all lev-els;

• Principle No. 3 : Women play a central part in theprovision, management and safeguarding of water;

• Principle No. 4 ; Water has an economic value in allits competing uses and should be recognized as aneconomic good (<www.gwpforum.org>).




Upstream users must recognize the legitimate demands

of downstream users to share the available water resour-ces and sustain usability. Excessive consumptive use orpollution of water by upstream users may deprive thedownstream users of their legitimate use of the sharedresource (Jonch-Clausen 2000: 15).

Bangladesh has complained about declining water

flows during the dry season (November to May) due

to the construction of Farakka Barrage on the Ganges

by India. India has started to build barrages upstream

to use the waters of two other large rivers, the Brah-maputra and Meghna. These rivers comprise the main

sources of water for many small rivers and canals inBangladesh and such constructions may impede their

natural flows with dire consequences for the down-

stream ecology (Rahman 2005). The first and second

Dublin Principle on Integrated Water Resource Man-agement (IWRM) emphasize that a “holistic manage-

ment approach”7 and effective participation by all

countries – Bangladesh, India and Nepal – are re-

quired for an efficient management of transboundary

rivers. The geopolitics of the region is undoubtedly

dominated by India and water issues continue to pro-

voke strong tensions (Hill 2008). The impacts of re-

duced flows are far-reaching downstream. Samarak-

oon (2004) has shown that besides the environmental

effects, some social and economic challenges in Bang-

ladesh can sometimes be traced to decreased water

flows in the Padma River, particularly during the dry

season when other canals and rivers also become vul-

nerable to reduced flows.

1.2.2.3 Crisis of Water Availability or

Governance

Experts have referred to weak governance as the main

problem in South Asia. For Moench, Dikshit, Rathore

and Srinivas (2003: 3–4) governance is the “core water

challenge in South Asia.” The fundamental challenge

posed by the water crisis in South Asia is not about

the capacity of key stakeholders (governments, NGOs

or communities) to select technical solutions or plan-

ning mechanisms. Since water challenges heavily de-

pend on the ‘constitutional foundations’ to which all

decisions are linked, the authors argue for a deeper

analysis of such foundations and if necessary the re-

thinking of these constitutions. Major questions exist

as to who does the integration of water resourcesplanning, whose interests are reflected in the integra-

tion process and how this process is governed to en-

sure that the interests of all stakeholders are equitably

reflected, how disputes are resolved, and above all,

which issues must be addressed through integrated

approaches (Lahiri-Dutt 2008: xxxvii). Similar opin-

ions are voiced by completely different schools of

thought. For example, whilst Shiva (2002: 1) argued

that “the water crisis is the most pervasive, most se-

vere, and most invisible dimension of the ecological

devastation of the earth” and she stressed that the wa-

Figure 1.7: Interlinked factors behind weak governance posing threats for water security in Bangladesh.Sources: Zillur

(2007).

7 According to the EU, a holistic approach of waterresources management that is combined, ‘environmen-tally-sound water management; food security especially for the poor; private sector involvement; reduction of subsidies; decentralization of decision-making to thelowest appropriate administrative level; user participa-tion in services; institutional reform and regulatory fra-meworks; and cost recovery and pricing’ (EU 1999).The definition has been taken from the paper of “Wet-lands: water, life, and culture”, 8th Meeting of the Con-ference of the Contracting Parties to the Convention onWetlands (Ramsar, Iran, 1971), Valencia, Spain, 18–26November 2002.




ter crisis is mostly a human-created crisis or water

management crisis instead of a natural crisis.8 From a

more technocentric perspective, Biswas9 (2006) ar-

gued similarly that the South Asian region faces “a cri-

sis of bad water management.” The Asian Develop-ment Bank (ADB) also argued that “the concept of

governance is concerned directly with the manage-

ment of the development process” (ADB 2005).10

Recently Turton, Hattingh, Roux, Claassen,

Maree and Strydom (2007 ) have described strong governance as depending on a ‘trialogue’ between the

state or governments, the civil society and the scien-

tific or technocratic experts. Their hypothesis is that

the trialogue model, consisting of six essential ele-

ments, effectively reveals the degree of successful gov-ernance. It denotes the balance between the three el-

ements because governance requires the existence of

effective science, government and society processes.

Governance also requires effective interfaces between

each of the three processes, namely society and sci-

ence, government and society, and society and sci-ence. Thus, irrespective of the philosophical perspec-

tive of the experts, rethinking its management seems

to be the direction towards future water security for

not only the South Asian region, but also for Bangla-

desh. Thus, the crisis of water management may also

be defined as the crisis of governance by several equa-

tions (figure 1.8).

These equations stress the significant relationship

of non-climatic conditions for water security with

regard to governance.

1.3 Prospect of Social Networks toForm Local Good Governance:Better Water ResourcesManagement

Although it is difficult to draw a clear-cut boundary line between ‘good’ and bad’ governance of water, fol-

lowing UNESCAP, eight major characteristics are out-

lined: 1) participation, 2) transparency, 3) consensusoriented, 4) responsiveness, 5) equity and inclusive-

ness, 6) effectiveness and efficiency, 7 ) the rule of law

and 8) accountability of what is commonly seen as

good governance (UNESCAP, 2007 ). Coming from

another perspective, Bohle (2009) considered these

factors as the key to sustainable livelihoods security.

With regard to social networks, our thesis is that

they are invaluable in mobilizing good water resource

management in Bangladesh under a scenario of

change driven by both climate and non-climatic fac-

tors. Despite a large state bureaucracy on water, non-

state actors continue to operate and manage water in

the informal sphere based on traditional social institu-tions. The following section briefly outlines social

institutions, social capital and social network theories

to explore how they generate good governance from

the local to the national level for the security of water

resources in Bangladesh.

1.3.1 Social Institutions

The term ‘institution’ includes social activities, values,

norms, social structures and cultural systems (White/Mohr 2008). It may also be used for ‘social institu-

tions’, which represent several interlocking social net-

works. The theory of social institutions examines cul-

tural networks (shared stories, shared narratives,

systems of value) and relational structures (linking meanings, values, and stories together), which are sig-

nificant to organize social life that is directly or indi-

rectly related to the development of local governance

and WRM in Bangladesh. Social institutions theory

also analyses different linkages that occur across vari-

ous orders of social phenomena (Varvasovszky/

Figure 1.8: title is needed. Source: Zillur (2007).

8 Shiva, Vandana, 2006: “World without Water”, in:Channel 4 [True Vision Productions broadcast, UK], 29 April.

9 Asit K. Biswas is the founder of the Third World Centrefor Water Management and of the International Jour-nal of Water Resources Development. He received the2006 Stockholm Water Prize.

10 “Governance” simply means, “the process of decision-making and the process by which decisions are imple-mented (or not implemented)” (UNESCAP 2007 : 1).




Brugha 2000). Such analyses are highly applicable to

rural areas in Bangladesh, where a duality of styles

and institutions exists, often somewhat separating theformal and informal spheres. Both styles represent dif-

ferent sets of values that correlate with the principles

of social institutions. In Bangladesh the actors in

WRM operate through social institutions through

their values based on their behaviour.

1.3.2 Social Capital

Social capital is about values and social relationships

that facilitate human beings to act collectively. The

concept of social capital is not about “what you know,

it’s who you know” (Woolcock/Narayan, 2000: 225).

This statement recognizes the benefit of social rela-

tions. For instant, individuals who form interactions

and networks with others, mostly increase theirchance of benefit. Lin (2001) argues that ‘information

and influence’ are some of core reasons to study so-

cial capital in social networks. Sharing information

with others through social ties thus enhances the out-

comes of organizations or the activities of individuals.

By using the theory of social capital, it will be possible

to explain the investment in social ties that increases

the level of information and would then influence theactors, the key players in decision-making or holding

strategic positions who can influence developing

good governance to improve WRM in Bangladesh.

1.3.3 Social Network

Social network analysts argue that the social environ-

ment is based on the relationships among interacting

units. According to Wasserman and Faust (1994)

social network analysis looks critically at the charac-

teristics of social units and understands how these ties

influence properties of the social structural environ-

ment. In Bangladesh, a significant part of the analysis

is influenced by social relationships. By using social

network analysis, key concepts (such as actor, rational

tie, dyad, triad, subgroup, and group) of the theory

are used to explain how WRM is influenced by social

prestige, groups or clique, social cohesion, social posi-

tion, social role and mutuality in the local areas in

Bangladesh. Selection to use the social network to

represent the relational tie, where actors are linked by

social ties with each other and it establishes a linkage

between two actors or a pair or three actors or groups

of actors. At the local level in Bangladesh, a group isrecognized as a collection of all actors where relation-

ships are considered.

1.3.4 Coping with the 1998 Floods by Social

Networking

As an example of how the social elements play a cru-

cial role during a great crisis the case of the 1998

flood in Bangladesh is discussed below. Heavy mon-

soonal rain, lack of sufficient culverts and insufficientdrainage contributed to an intensive flood where

about 39 out of the 64 districts were flooded, break-

ing all hydrological records (Nasreen 1999). The flood

waters devastated agricultural crops and disrupted

farming activities for several months, and destroyed

the sources of fisheries and farm livestock (Ahmed

1999). Millions of people lost their homes and took shelters on higher grounds, such as the river embank-

ments. Not only were their houses destroyed, roads

and other communication infrastructure were also

damaged. Flood refugees took shelter in nearby schools and colleges around the villages, and it was

extremely difficult to send food and other relief aid

immediately to all remote locations. However, there

was a low number of fatalities; villagers managed to

survive based on mutual support in flood-affected

communities. Many civil society organizations mobi-

lized their strengths and brought assistance to those

in need. Ordinary citizens helped each other, large

amounts of clothes, khicuri (cooked rice and lentil)

and drinking water were provided to them by local un-

affected people. Students from colleges and schools

collected food, money and medicines from bazars.Imams, priests and gurus of mosques, churches and

temples collected food, clothes as gifts to flood af-

fected people. Even those who were affected by the

flood tried to extend their help to others to transport

their goods and cattle to higher locations. Mobiliza-

tion of the civil society helped to avert a major post-

flood disaster. This case of a disaster response illus-

trates the use of social theories in the communities in

Bangladesh.

Looking back at the social mobilization, a noted

Bangladeshi thinker, Sobhan (1999: 41) prescribed:“Efforts by the government to keep track of such

emerging problems would be greatly facilitated by

drawing upon the efforts of civil society that is already

in the field fully involved with the relief process.” The

collection of best practices, examples of difficulties,storing of this information in an easily accessible

form, and easy communication of such information

can play an important role in averting human trage-

dies in a post-flood situation. Bangladesh is a flood-

prone land, where climatic and non-climatic drivers

add to these flood risks. Unless social institutions are




strengthened at the local level and social capital is

mobilized, it will remain impossible to grant security

to ordinary citizens.

1.3.5 Theories of Social Capital and Social

Networks as Inputs for Good

Governance

Participation by all is the first step to create an envi-

ronment of good governance. Social capital and bal-

anced social networks facilitate the willingness of all

people, including the poor and the marginalized, to

participate (core of good governance), and it opens

potentials for development, by using more local

knowledge collectively and increasing the chance of

consensus-oriented activities in the communities.

Strong social networks and ties will develop transpar-

ency to participants since people will be more inter-ested to keep progress in the society. Automatically, it

creates local public accountability.

Therefore, social networks and approaches based

on social capital enhance local participation and pro-

mote inclusiveness, transparency and accountability,

which are the fundamental characteristics of good

governance. Figure 1.9 shows the input of social net-works (social capital) to generate a willingness to par-

ticipate in community activities. This leads to the for-

mation of good local governance. When there is good

governance, there is a good management. This will

then contribute to improve local people’s living condi-

tions thereby encouraging top authorities and politi-

cians to adopt and implement good approaches and

efficient policies for water security in the country.

1.3.6 Social Networks for Creating Good

Governance

Based on the above discussion, increased motivations

of local actors and water users holds the potential to

trigger bottom-up changes in WRM in Bangladeshwith regard to changes by climate-driven and non-cli-

matic factors. Local practices of good governance

may influence local elites, who have good connection

with higher authorities responsible for decision-mak-

Figure 1.9: Participatory approach facilitates creating good governance. Source: Zillur (2007).





Documents

Zillur_Lahiri-Dutt Paper on Bangladesh