River Basin Organizations – State of Research

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River Basin Organizations – State of Research Environmental Change and Adaptation Capacities of River Basin Organizations in Southern Africa von der Fakultät für Sozialwissenschaften und Philosophie der Universität Leipzig genehmigte D I S S E R T A T I O N zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades DOCTOR RERUM POLITICARUM (Dr. rer. pol.) vorgelegt von M.A., Sabine Brigitte Charlotte Schulze geboren am 3. September 1980 in Leipzig Gutachter: Prof. Dr. Ulf Engel Prof. Dr. Zinecker Tag der Verleihung: 19. Mai 2015 Table of Contents Table of Contents ................................................................................................................ 1 List of Tables and Figures .................................................................................................. 5 List of Acronyms ................................................................................................................. 6 Part I: Introducing the Governance of Transboundary Watercourses under Changing Environmental Conditions 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 9 1.1 Governing Transboundary Waters ................................................................................ 9 1.2 A Southern African Perspective .................................................................................. 14 1.3 Hydropolitics: The State of Research .......................................................................... 17 1.3.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 17 1.3.2 Legal Principles and the Application of International Water Law ...................... 20 1.3.3 Economic Approaches: Looking for Ways of Fair Resource Distribution .......... 22 1.3.4 International Relations: Political Perspectives on Water Cooperation .............. 24 1.3.5 Conclusion ...................................................................................................... 37 1.4 International Relations Theory and Neo-institutionalism ............................................. 38 1.4.1 Neo-Institutionalism and its Theoretical Assumptions ...................................... 40 1.4.2 International Environmental Institutions under Investigation ............................ 42 1.4.3 The Performance of International Environmental Institutions ........................... 43 1.5 Summary of Research Question and Relevance ........................................................ 46 1.6 Methodological Approach ........................................................................................... 47 Part II: Theorizing Adaptation Capacities of River Basin Organizations 2 Theoretical Framework .............................................................................................52 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 52 2.2 Defining Transboundary River Basin Organizations .................................................... 53 2.3 River Basin Organizations in Africa and Case Selection ............................................. 55 2.4 Adaptation Capacities of River Basin Organizations ................................................... 59 1 2.4.1 Vulnerability, Resilience, and Adaptive Capacity: Conceptualizations in Natural and Social Science ................................................................................................... 60 2.4.2 Adaptation Capacities of River Basin Organizations: A Conceptualization ...... 67 2.4.3 Assessing Adaptation Capacities .................................................................... 69 2.5 Determinants of River Basin Organizations Adaptation Capacities ............................. 71 2.5.1 Basin Specific Factors ..................................................................................... 72 2.5.2 RBO Specific Factors ...................................................................................... 74 2.5.3 The Interactions of Independent Variables ...................................................... 87 2.6 Summary .................................................................................................................... 89 Part III: Analyzing Case Studies 3 The Orange-Senqu River Basin and ORASECOM ...................................................91 3.1 The Physical Basin Background ................................................................................. 92 3.2 Problem Structure within the Orange-Senqu River Basin ............................................ 95 3.2.1 Water Resource Dependencies and Politics .................................................... 95 3.2.2 Environmental Change in the Orange-Senqu River Basin ............................... 99 3.3 Transboundary Water Governance in the Orange-Senqu River Basin ...................... 106 3.4 Adaptation Capacities of River Basin Governance in the Orange-Senqu Basin ........ 111 3.4.1 Environmental Protection .............................................................................. 111 3.4.2 Livelihood Development ................................................................................ 115 3.5 ORASECOM’s Institutional Determinants for Adaptation Capacities ......................... 117 3.5.1 Institutional Flexibility .................................................................................... 117 3.5.2 Membership Structure ................................................................................... 121 3.5.3 Organizational Goal and Issue Scope ........................................................... 123 3.5.4 Scientific Data and Information ...................................................................... 128 3.5.5 Dispute Resolution ........................................................................................ 133 3.5.6 Non-state Stakeholder Participation .............................................................. 137 3.5.7 Resources and Funding ................................................................................ 140 3.5.8 External Actors .............................................................................................. 143 3.6 Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 147 2 4 The Cubango-Okavango River Basin and OKACOM ............................................ 151 4.1 The Physical Basin Background ............................................................................... 153 4.2 Problem Structure within the Cubango-Okavango River Basin ................................. 155 4.2.1 Water Resource Dependencies and Politics .................................................. 155 4.2.2 Environmental Change in the Cubango-Okavango Basin .............................. 159 4.3 Transboundary Water Governance in the Cubango-Okavango River Basin .............. 166 4.4 Adaptation Capacities of River Basin Governance in the Cubango-Okavango Basin ........................................................................................................................ 168 4.4.1 Environmental Protection .............................................................................. 169 4.4.2 Livelihood Development ................................................................................ 172 4.5 OKACOM’s Institutional Determinants for Adaptation Capacities .............................. 174 4.5.1 Institutional Flexibility .................................................................................... 174 4.5.2 Membership Structure ................................................................................... 177 4.5.3 Organizational Goal and Issue Scope ........................................................... 180 4.5.4 Scientific Data and Information ...................................................................... 184 4.5.5 Dispute Resolution ........................................................................................ 188 4.5.6 Non-state Stakeholder Participation .............................................................. 190 4.5.7 Resources and Funding ................................................................................ 193 4.5.8 External Actors .............................................................................................. 197 4.6 Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 201 Part IV: Conclusion 5 Comparing the Case Study Results ....................................................................... 204 5.1 Adaptation Capacities of River Basin Governance in the Orange-Senqu and Cubango-Okavango Basins ...................................................................................... 204 5.2 What Determines Adaptation Capacities of RBOs? .................................................. 206 5.3 Limitations of the Study and Future Research Prospects .......................................... 213 References ........................................................................................................................ 217 Primary Documents ............................................................................................................ 217 Secondary Literature .......................................................................................................... 223 3 Appendix A: List of Interviews .......................................................................................
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