G3-WATER GOVERNANCE AND COMMUNITY BASED MANAGEMENT

Ganges Regional Research Workshop 5 May 2014- Dhaka

PRESENTATION1. What G3 is about? What has been done?

2. Highlights from ‘A Review of Water Management Policies from the 60s to 2000s’

3. Highlights from ‘The Gender Gap between Management and Water Users’

4. G3 findings, messages and recommendations5. Uptake of the messages and recommendations

RESEARCH QUESTIONS• Is community management the best way of

managing coastal polders? If so, under what circumstances does it work?

• If community management is indeed the way forward, what are the constraints that communities face in polder management?

• What kind of policies and institution are needed so that communities can participate in management of polders?

OBJECTIVESUnderstanding the actors,

communities and institutions

STUDY AREA

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

ACTIVITIES AND OUTPUTS

Literature reviews

Students thesis

Official c

onsulta

tions

Gender case study

Infrastr

uctures m

apping

Participatory maps

Community consultations

Expe

rimen

tal g

ames

Qualitative survey

Household and WMO survey

West Bengal case study

Confl

ict c

ase

stud

y

Officials field visits

?

? ?

?

PARTNERSHIPS

BANGLADESH AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY

BANGLADESH WATERDEVELOPMENTBOARD

LOCALGOVERNMENT ENGINEERINGDEPARTMENT INDIVIDUAL

CONSULTANTS FROM BANGLADESH & WEST BENGAL

+

Highlights from…

A REVIEW OF WATER MANAGEMENT POLICIES

FROM 1960S TO 2000SCamelia Dewan

Aditi Mukherji Marie-Charlotte Buisson

• Current ecology of coastal Bangladesh: result of long term evolution of human and natural processes

• Ecology and history / society and environment are interlinked (Mosse, 2003)

Research objectives:How changing water ecology of the coastal zone is tied to

institutional changes reflected in the water policy?

How the institutional changes in water policy have been affected by the global discourses?

INTRODUCTION

Zamindars• Right of revenue collection on the coastal land• Responsible for construction of temporary earthen

embankment, 8 months systems

Community• Involved in the construction of the embankment

through labor

Zamindari system abolished in 1950Disastrous floods in 1954, 1955, 1956Krug Mission Report (UN, 1957) WAPDA/BWDB

BEFORE THE 1960sWater management in the colonial period

Coastal Embankment Project (1961)• 136 polders• Southwest region: 1566 km of embankment, 282 sluice gates

Flood protection + food security purposes

1960sMega-infrastructure projects and top-down

engineering

Positive impacts:• Change in cropping patterns to 1 to 2/3

crops• Increased productivity• More security and population increased

But:• Tides surged farther inland• Siltation / drainage congestion /

water logging• Reduction in water flow

Shift from traditional system of flood management to construction of large scale polders.

Community management or involvement of stakeholders, not mentioned in the 1960s (WAPDA Master Plan, 1964)

• Some criticism of top-down engineering• IBRD reviewed the Mater Plan (1964), recommended a shift

toward small scale projects in flood control, drainage and irrigation.

• From donor side, oil and financial crisis, reduced motivation for long terms repayment periods and mega infrastructure projects

1970sShift to small scale projects and

people’s participation

Early Implementation Project (EIP)• Small scale flood control• Drainage improvement• Irrigation schemes

Evaluation of phase 1 emphasized the need to more social equity Focus of phase II, III

Comilla cooperative model

• Mobilization of social credit, cooperative• Access to subsidized fertilizers and

pesticides• Management committees, membership

contributions

Landless Cooperative Societies and Target Groups• Inclusion of landless and marginalized groups• Focus on social issues and poverty• Creation of employment opportunities• Use of NGOs as social mobilizers, empowerment agenda

1st attempt to include people participation in designing infrastructure projects Awareness raising, giving voice to the poor Acknowledgement of the power inequalities

1980sDemand driven participation with

empowerment objectives

Early Implementation Project IIIDelta Development Project

Participation as an ‘end in itself’

• Maintenance issues Introduction of the need for participation• Evolution in the donor community from social mobilization to

service delivery• Decentralization and privatization trends

Shift from politicized empowerment of communities to depoliticized participation of communities with

Water Management Organization (WMOs).Participation as a ‘mean to an end’

1990s-PRESENTDecentralization and depoliticized

participation

System Rehabilitation Project Khulna-Jessore Rehabilitation Project

Small Scale Water Resources Development ProjectIntegrated Planning for Sustainable Water Management

National Water Policy (MoWR, 1999)Guidelines for Participatory Water Management (MoWR, 2001)• All stakeholders ‘actively and fruitfully participate in water management

decision-making at all stages’.• Stakeholders: ‘inhabitants of an area who are directly or indirectly affected by

water management’. All the segments of the society clubbed together to form

Water Management Organizations.

• Apolitical water management• Myth of homogenous community• Quasi-ignorance of Local Government Institutions (LGIs),

apolitical vs democratic decentralization

1990s-PRESENTDecentralization and depoliticized

participation

CONCLUSION - SYNTHESIS

Highlights from…

THE GENDER GAP BETWEEN MANAGEMENT

AND WATER USERSMarie-Charlotte Buisson

Jayne CurnowFarhat Naz

Research objectives:• To which extend the inclusive policy help to

increase the representation of women in water management issues or increase their influence in decision making?

INTRODUCTIONGuidelines for Participatory Water Management

• WMO membership is open to ‘women and men belonging to the households of farmers, fishermen, small traders, craftsmen, boatmen, aqua-culturist, landless people, destitute women, project affected person, ect’.

• Executive Committee elected for a 2 years term• 3 over the 12 seats reserved for landless, fishers and

destitute women• At least 30% of women representation

Frameworks:• Moser framework (Moser, 2003)- Triple role of women:

reproductive, productive and community management.• Kabeer framework (Kabeer, 1994) – Social relation

approach: rules, resources, people, activities and power.

METHODOLOGY

Qualitative data• 57 FGDs, 8 with women

only groups• 92 KIIs, 16 with women

Quantitative data• 1000 households from 44

villages• 30% of women respondents• 3% of female headed

householdsGender case study

WATER AND REPRODUCTIVE ROLES

‘Supplying drinking water is the role of women.’ Blanket assumption, static perception

But: In 10.6% of the cases men are responsible for fetching water.• Distance is the main reason for men to be

involved• Degradation of the environment, salinity• Positive or not? Seclusion of women?

Debunking the myth of static gender roles.

WATER AND PRODUCTIVE ROLESProductive roles: activities generating cash or kind.

Water fundamental for all the activities conducted by men and women.

Women have multiple productive use of water, especially for small-

scale productive activities.

Agriculture and Aquaculture• Male decision-making, land ownership• Women well aware of agricultural decisions• Women family labour• Women daily labour

Homestead aquaculture• 31% of the households own a

pond• Around 40% of the women are

involved in homestead aquaculturePoultry and livestock

• Cattle (60%), goat (26%), poultry (80%), women responsibility - Eggs and milk

• Safety net • Degradation of the environment

Homestead vegetables• Production within the bari,

self-consumption• 54% of the homestead

plots managed by women• Gender differences in the

source of irrigation

WATER AND COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT ROLES

RULES – How things have to be done?

All community members able to become members

of the WMO

• 17% of the members are women

• Lack of awareness

30% of women members in the EC

• 80% of the WMOs have less than 3 women in the EC

• No women holds president or treasurer position, only one is secretary.

WMOs don’t fill full the rules and the quotas established by the policy.

WATER AND COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT ROLES

PEOPLE – Who is out? Who does what?• Female WMOs

members are from households with a higher socio-economic status.

• Relatives from political elites without water management concerns.

WMOs are not representative

or responsive to female water

users.

Self-exclusion of women• Illiterate, poor and women• Waste of time• Inappropriate feminine behaviour

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%

100%

Large farmer (more than 2.5 acres)Medium farmer (1.5 - 2.49 acres)Small farmer (0.5 - 1.49 acres)Marginal farmer (less than 0.5 acres)

WATER AND COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT ROLES

ACTIVITIES – What is done?

Maintenance• Labour Contracting Societies involve

women for maintenance work• 25% of the work has to be done by

LCS groups• 30% of LCS members have to be

women

• Employment opportunity but no decision making on water management

Operation• Very few women

involved• No decision making

WATER AND COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT ROLES

RESSOURCES – What are used?

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

Non WMO membersMen WMO membersWomen WMO members

Financial contribution0

0.05

0.1

0.15

0.2

0.25

0.3

0.35

Non WMO membersMen WMO membersWomen WMO members

Voluntary labour

contribution

Financial contribution

WATER AND COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT ROLES

POWER – Who decide, whose interests?

• Decision largely determined by power relations among social groups

• Women participation within the WMOs is low and passive

• Token participation• Representative of their

male relative not of women

Reproduction of the religious, political

and economic distribution of power.

Women members don’t question

the power relations in place.

Women non members are excluded or self-

excluded from decision making.

CONCLUSIONWMOs • focus on large-scale productive use of water.• don’t address the small scale productive uses of water and reproductive

use of water

Disjuncture between• Policy and WMOs rules required to be inclusive,• Women who consider that WMOs do not address their needs

Policy has not been able to increase the representatively of women needs on terms of water management not to increase their decision making power.

Recommendations• Acknowledgement of the status of women in Bangladesh, of their

particular needs for water management.• Targeted approach, focus on empowerment• WMOs with shared interests

G3 FINDINGS, MESSAGES AND RECOMMENDATIONS

1st Finding

Poor quality of maintenance induces vulnerability…

…but poor quality of maintenance can be solved through a three tier strategy.

Poor quality of maintenance induces vulnerability…

• Poor quality of the infrastructures is a commonality across the polders and subprojects.• Gates• Canals• Embankments

Reasons• Deferred maintenance• Conflicts• Design of the infrastructures

or of the projects• Weak institutions

Consequences• Communities are at at risk in

case of natural calamity• Infrastructures don’t play

their roles• Costly alternatives for the

farmers (use of groundwater)

Polder 3

Polder 30

Polder 43-2F

Jabush

a

Jainka

ti

Latab

uniaTO

TAL

0.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

40.0

50.0

60.0

70.0

Bad or very bad condi-tion of the embankment

Bad or very bad condi-tion of the gates

Bad or very bad condi-tion of the canals

…but poor quality of maintenance can be solved through a three tier strategy.

Community level

Improving the contributions of the community members• Homogeneous WMOs with shared interests in water

management (conditions for membership)• Relating contributions to benefits (microcredit, fishing rights…)• Income generating activities for the WMOs• Creating strong institutions with ownership of the

infrastructures

UP level Involving the local representative, Union ParishadUsing social safety nets for water infrastructure maintenance

GoB and donors level

Donor-Government Trust Fund for Maintenance of Water related infrastructure in Bangladesh• Allocation per polder and per year of maintenance funds

Poor quality of maintenance induces vulnerability……but poor quality of maintenance can be solved through a three tier strategy.

SUPPORTING EVIDENCE

Infrastructures mapping

Participatory maps

Experimental games

Qualitative survey

Household and WMO survey

• 9 Situation Analysis Reports + Maps• Technical Report from Quantitative Survey• What determines contribution to a common fund for upkeep

of water infrastructures? Evidence from experimental game in coastal Bangladesh

• The Imposition of Participation? The Case of Participatory Water Management in Bangladesh +

2nd Finding

Institutional coordination needs to improve through a clear water

governance framework.

Institutional coordination has to be improved through a clear water governance framework• Myriad of actors in the sector of water management in the

Coastal Zone of Bangladesh

Formal – Informal scale

Top

– D

own

scal

eD

own

Top

Formal Informal

Actors involved in water management in polders (more than 1000 ha), BWDBActors involved in water management in sub-projects (less than 1000 ha), LGEDOther actors

BWDB

LGED

WMA

WMG

WMCA

Gate committees

Gher/beel committees

Union Parishad

Institutional coordination has to be improved through a clear water governance framework

• Recommendations• Revising the water policy to bring more clarity on the

institutional governance framework.• Clear role and responsibility of each actor• Integrated water management• Institutional Coordination have to happen between the

actors

• ConsequencesFragmentations of the roles and responsibilities- Overlaps Conflicts, power dynamics, some stakeholders not taken into

consideration- Gaps Defaulting behaviours and responsibilities, disrepair of the

infrastructures

Fragmentation of the different scales• From gate committee (few hectares) to Water Management Association

(thousand of hectares). • Where is the institutional coordination, the integration of each level?

SUPPORTING EVIDENCE

Qualitative surveyHousehold and WMO survey

• 9 Situation Analysis Reports• Multiple actors, conflicting roles and perverse incentives. The case

of poor operation and maintenance of Coastal polders in Bangladesh

Institutional coordination needs to improve through a clear water governance framework.

Conflict case study

Official consultations

Officials field visits

3rd Finding

The role of local government institutions (Union Parishad) in water

governance needs to be formally recognized.

The role of local government institutions in water governance needs to be formally

recognized.• Currently, no formal role but:• Implication in gate operation,• Implication in conflicts resolution,• Role in case of urgency, natural calamity.

Trust in elected representatives.

Community people24%

WMO2%

UP36%

BWDB28%

LGED9%

Other2%

Who should act to solve the water related problems?

• Advantages• Conflict resolution• Coordination of all the stakeholders• Social safety nets for maintenance of water

infrastructures (gate, canal re-excavation, embankments).

• Not a new institutional layer added• Strengthen capacities of local governments

• ExampleUnion Parishad Coordination Committee

SUPPORTING EVIDENCE

Qualitative surveyHousehold and WMO survey

• 9 Situation Analysis Reports• How did global discourses on participation influence

Bangladesh’s water policies? A review of water management policies from 1960s to 2000s

The role of LGIs (Union Parishad) in water governance needs to be formally recognized.

Literature reviews

Conflict case study

+

4th Finding

Creating Smaller Hydrologic Units can improve the water governance.

Creating Smaller Hydrologic Units can improve the water governance.

• What are SMU?• Dykes, sub division in the polders• Based on coherent hydro ecological sub-basins

• Why is it useful?• Because scale matters, experience from LGED sub-projects• Many conflicts are in fact high/low land conflicts:

shrimp/paddy, water logging, opening/closing the gates, crop calendars…

• Challenge• Rethinking the polders and their infrastructures

• Advantages• Creating units with commonality of interest• Reducing conflicts• Drainage, irrigation for introducing more intensive

cropping patterns(G2)

5th Finding

…policy for community involvement has to be revised.

Community management does not bring efficient, equitable nor sustainable water management…

Community management does not bring efficient, equitable nor sustainable water management…

Lack of equity• Elite capture• Exclusion and self-exclusion of some segments of the

community who however have water uses• Conflicts and competing water uses

Lack of sustainability• Poor quality of the infrastructures• Lack of financial sustainability• Lack of institutional sustainability

Lack of efficiency• Final decision-making power over physical

infrastructures remains largely in the hands of the implementing agency.

• Most if the WMOs are dysfunctional.

Challenges• Rethinking the ‘participatory water policy’.

…policy for community involvement has to be revised.

From inclusiveness to targeted groups policy• Homogeneous groups with shared interest• Sectorial groups• Institutional coordination

INTEGRATIONEXCLUSIONINCLUSION

SUPPORTING EVIDENCE

Qualitative survey

• 9 Situation Analysis Reports• The Imposition of Participation? The Case of Participatory Water

Management in Bangladesh• The Gender Gap between Management and Water Users. Evidence

from Southwest Bangladesh

Community management does not bring efficient, equitable nor sustainable water management…

…policy for community involvement has to be revised.

Literature reviewsConflict case study

Gender case studyParticipatory maps

GBDC MESSAGES

Message 3: To unlock the potential productivity improvement, it is of utmost importance to invest in water management infrastructure – but with a new paradigm with fundamental changes in thinking about the polders and their roles, and special emphasis on drainage.

Message 4: Maintenance of infrastructure is the Achilles heel of water management in the polders of the coastal zone. Deferred maintenance can be solved through a three-tier strategy.

Message 5: A transparent and accountable water governance framework is needed for the polders, that formalizes and enhances the role of local government institution representatives and follows the IWRM river-basin governance principles.

WAYS TOWARD UPTAKE

You can make it REAL

Mustafa Bakuluzzaman, Shushilan

Uptake from…

COMMUNITIESValidation and consultation

workshops

You can

make it

REAL

Workshop objectives

The main aim of these two workshops was to validate the research findings among the people who lived in these 3 polders of BWDB and 3 sub project area of LGED. The overall objectives were to know about what they can perceive about community based water management within polder? And also know what can future direction of community based water management within the polder and how?

Details of Validation Workshop

Sl. Workshop Presented polder

Constructed by Date of workshop

Participants Number

1 Patuakhali Workshop

Jainkathi sub-project

LGED (2001-2002)

9th November, 2013

59

43/2F BWDB (IPSWAM project 2005-2008)

2 Khulna Workshop

Latabunia sub-project

LGED 10th November, 2013

43

Polder3 LGEDJabusa sub-porject LGED 30 (IPSWAM 2004-11)

BWDB

Workshop Participants• Union Parishad’s

chairmen/members,• BWDB, LGED, • Upazila officials (i.e. UNO, UAO, UFO, ULO, UE), • District Commissioners, • WMA’s members, • Farmers, • Shrimp gher owners, • Teachers, and • NGOs officials

Four Emerging Messages

1. Lack of maintenance induces vulnerability… but deferred maintenance can be solved through a three tier strategy.

2. The role of local representatives (Union Parishad) in water governance needs to be formally recognized.

3. Coordination has to be improved through a clear water governance framework.

4. Creating Smaller Hydrologic Units can improve the water governance

Validation Workshop Findings of First Message

CommunityLevel

UP Level

GoB and donors level

Lack of maintenance induces vulnerability… but deferred maintenance can be solved through a three tier strategy.

• Ensure participation of all levels of people in water management committee•Increase contribution of local community by cash or kind

• Empower Local Government (Union Parishad) and WMO• Increase involvement of Union Parishad (UP) for water infrastructure by Social safety net working program

• Form a Trust Fund for water infrastructure maintenance where donated by Government, Donor Agency, NGOs and beneficiaries• Audited of the Fund in coordination with govt representative and Union Parishad (UP) representative

Validation Workshop Findings of Second Message

• Coordinate with different stakeholders (Fisherman, Agriculture, Livestock etc.) by discussion in assisting Union Parishad (UP), WMA and Local Administration.

• Conflict regulation by discussion of different stakeholders(Fisherman, Agriculture, livestock etc.)

• Endowed decision with integrated committee

Union Parishad (UP) would be the integrator or coordinator of different department in water management perspective

•There has to organize a monthly meeting in Union Parishad about Water Policy

•Union Parishad could play the main role in water management perspective

The role of local representatives (Union Parishad) in water governance needs to be formally recognized.

Validation Workshop Findings of Third Message

• Utilize Water Policy at field level

• Give emphasize on local govt, different department of local govt, water management committee to make and update water management policy

• Adapt water policy to the changing situation

Proposed Activities

Role

Coordination has to be improved through a clear water governance framework.

• By stakeholder consultation according to place, time and situation

• Coordination and Integration with different department of local govt, water management committee

Validation Workshop Findings of Fourth Message

• Make small hydrological unit/sub polder -to use existing road, canal and embankment in coordination with

LGED and BWDB-to use land elevation and land use-to use homogenous water use -Common interest among the

beneficiaries• Organize regular discussion and meeting• Strengthening WMO to minimize the conflict

Creating Smaller Hydrologic Units can improve the water governance

ManiruzzamanMd Masud Ahmed

A.H.M. Kausher / Nandish Kenia

You can

make it

REAL

Uptake from…

G3 PARTNERS