WATER FOR DEVELOPMENT Review of Integrated Water Resource Management in European Commission Development Programming August 2009 "When the well is dry, we know the worth of water" Benjamin Franklin This document has been financed by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). SIDA does not necessarily share the views expressed in this material. Responsibility for its contents rests entirely on the author. Published August 2009 by WWF-World Wide Fund for Nature (formerly World Wildlife Fund). Any reproduction in full or in part of this publication must mention the title and credit the above- mentioned publisher as the copyright owner. © text 2009 WWF. All rights reserved. Researched by Stefanie Lang Editors: Sally Nicholson and Sergey Moroz, WWF European Policy Office, Brussels Design : www.okidokidesign.net Printed on recycled paper by Imprimerie Les Editions Européennes. Table of Contents Abbreviations ……………………………………………………………………………………………..…………..3 Executive summary …………………………………………………………………………………….…………….5 1. Introduction and objectives of the review ………………………………………………………….. ………… 9 2. Background ………………………………………………………………………………………….... …………11 3. The principles of IWRM and its relevance for development aid ……………………………….... …………13 4. The water and poverty link ……………………………………………………………………….....................17 5. EC policies and IWRM …………………………………………………………………………………………..19 6. Case studies: …………………………………………………………………………………………................23 Brazil …………………………………………………………………………………………………................ 25 Peru ………………………………………………………………………………………………..................... 29 Bolivia …………………………………………………………………………………………………............... 33 Vietnam ...………………………………………………………………………………………………............. 38 Cambodia ……………………………………………………………………………………….……............... 41 Thailand ………………………………………………………………………………………………............... 45 Senegal …………………………………………………………………………………………………............ 47 Democratic Republic of Congo ……………………………………………………………..….…………….. 50 Kenya ………………………………………………………………………………………..…….................... 53 Cameroon ………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 57 Zambia ….………………………………………………………………………………………………………..60 7. Key case study Mozambique ……………………………………………………………………….................64 8. Overall summary of findings and conclusions ……………………………………………….....................79 9. Recommendations ……………………………………………………………………………………………….81 Bibliography ………………………………………………………………………………………………...............83 Annexes: Annex I -Water in EC development policies and programmes: ……………………………………………...86 Annex I (a) Water in development cooperation in Africa ……………………………………………………....86 Annex I (b) Water in development cooperation in Asia ………………………………………………………..86 Annex I (c) Water in development cooperation in Latin America ………………………………………………87 Annex II The Latin American Regional Cooperation Strategy ………………………………………………… 87 Annex III The Andean Regional Cooperation Strategy ………………………………………………………..87 Annex IV DCI Thematic Programme on Environment …………………………………………………………..88 Annex V The EU Water Initiative ………………………………………………………………………………….90 V (a) The Africa component of the EUWI ………………………………………………………..…...90 V (b) The Latin American component of EUWI ...………………………………………………..……91 2 Abreviations ACP Africa, Caribbean & Pacific AMCOW African Ministerial Council for Water AU African Union CBA Cost-Benefit Analysis CEP Country Environmental Profile CSP Country Strategy Paper of the EU DANIDA Danish International Development Agency DCI Development Co-operation Instrument of the EU DFID Department for Internationanal Development of UK DG Directorate General DGIS Directorate General for International Cooperation DRC Democratic Republic of Congo DSRP Poverty Reduction Strategy EC European Commission EDF European Development Fund EIA Environmental Impact Assessment EIB European Investment Bank ENRTP Thematic Programme for Environment, Sustainable Use of Natural Resources and Energy EU European Union EUWI European Water Initiative FLEGT Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade FSC Forest Stewardship Council FTA Free Trade Agreement FWG Finance Working Group (of the EU Water Initiative) GBS General Budget Support GCM Global Climate Model GEF Global Environment Fund GTZ German Society for Technical Cooperation GWP Global Water Partnership HDR Human Development Report (UNDP) IRBM Integrated River Basin Management IWRM Integrated Water Resource Management MDG Millennium Development Goal MEAs Multilateral Environment Agreement M&E Monitoring and Evaluation MONRE Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (Vietnam) MWWS Municipal water and wastewater services MS Member State (of the European Union) NDP National Development Plan NEPAD New Partnership for Africa’s Development NGO Non-Governmental Organisation NWRM National Water Resources Management Strategy ODA Official Development Assistance OTCO Amazonian Cooperation Organisation PARPA Action Plan for the Reduction of Absolute Poverty PNRH National Hydrological Resource Plan PCM Project Cycle Management PDFP Partnership Dialogue Facility PEP Poverty Environment Partnership PRSP Poverty Reduction Strategy RAMSAR Convention on Wetlands of International Importance RBO River Basin Organization SEDP Socio-Economic Development Plan SADC Southern African Development Community SIDA Swedish International Development Co-operation Agency 3 SPsP Sector Policy Support Programme SWAP Sector-wide approach UNDP United Nations Development Programme USAID United States Agency for International Development WB The World Bank WF ACP-EU European Union - Africa, Caribbean & Pacific Water Facility W&S Water & Sanitation WSSD World Summit on Sustainable Development WWF World Wide Fund for Nature 4 Executive summary Water is fundamental for all life on the planet and critical for most economic activities. In the developing world, particularly, proper functioning of freshwater ecosystems has a direct impact on the livelihoods, health and security of the poor. The harmful effects of ecosystem service degradation continue to be borne disproportionately by the poor, and this degradation is often a principal driver of increased poverty and social conflict. The impacts of climate change on the availability of freshwater and on rainfall patterns will be felt in the coming decades, including in developing countries. Therefore, the links between water and development aid cannot be ignored - water has been, and continues to be, a key sector for development assistance. Water issues cannot be addressed solely from a sectoral perspective. The concept of Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) has been developed to address the complexity of managing water resources in a more holistic way rather than targeting only sanitation, irrigation or waste water treatment. The following principles are key to IWRM: integrated planning of water and land-use; cross-sectoral co-operation; environmental sustainability; economic efficiency; social equity; and stakeholder participation. This review looks at how the European Commission (EC) is taking into account water resources and IWRM in the programming of development aid. The EC has made strong and repeated commitments to integrate the principles of IWRM into their development co-operation efforts. In many donor programmes, including the EU Water Initiative, the EU-ACP water facility, IWRM is defined as a key objective for interventions in the water sector. The analysis examines the integration of IWRM principles into the EC development programming by reviewing strategic documents and frameworks to determine to what extent aid planning is enabling or promoting IWRM at national or regional/basin levels. Or, to the contrary, whether strategies are neglecting IWRM, paying only lip-service to the principles or even hindering the implementation of IWRM at national and regional river basin levels. The review was conducted in 12 countries which benefit from EC co-operation programmes and also are important for WWF’s global conservation priorities: Bolivia; Brazil; Peru; Cambodia; Vietnam; Thailand; Cameroon; Mozambique; Kenya; Congo; Zambia; and Senegal. While most of the analysis was done as desk research, one field visit to Mozambique took place with the support of the WWF office in Maputo, to look at some issues in more depth and conduct interviews with stakeholders. The following points were distilled from the meetings and discussions in Mozambique. Water is an ever-increasingly important issue for Mozambique Water resources and water availability are not the key starting point for most donors, they tend to concentrate on provision of water, infrastructure etc . The EC has been active in the water sector since the 8 th EDF, but water is no longer a priority for them in Mozambique. Budget support is seen as a critical delivery mechanism by donors in Mozambique Coordination in the water sector requires improvement. A SWAP for water would be highly recommended to bring all donors together and to achieve an overarching framework to implement IWRM IWRM implementation is progressing, but challenges remain The summary for the 12 case studies analysed in this report must be accompanied by several caveats. The timeframe for the analysis was short in view of the huge body of background materials, initiatives, projects and activities, websites and papers available on the topic. But some common trends are visible and some recommendations can be proposed for a general approach to IWRM integration in EC programming. 5 Findings Investments in water access, sanitation, agriculture and rural development