General Index

Reallication of water resources
(Report of Committes I)

Although the stated objective of Committee I was to formulate projects designed to improve water resources allocation, the Committee broadened its mandate to cover overall water resources management, including legislation and enforcement mechanisms, and some aspects of water resources protection. The projects formulated by Committee I include activities to create or improve the legal framework for water resources management, compilation and publications of case studies and other bacground documentation, and development of a guidance document for water resources management.

Project I
Establishment of an appropriate legal framework
for water resources management

Description

This technical assitance project is designed to help the goberments of a number of countries to establish an appropriate legislative and administrative framework, and to identify suitable enforcement mechanisms for water resources allocation and management. The approach followed in each country will be documented so that other countries can have the benefit of lessons learned. Target countries are to be identified in different geographical regions. In each country, the target groups will be goverment, the private sector, and the users.

For each country, the project will have a duration of one year; follow-up activities will be required in order to assist in the implementation phase.

Justification

A legislative framework is essential to enable adoquate planning of allocation and reallocation of water resources and to ensure that the requirements of domestic water supply to satisfy the basic needs of the population are given adequate priority. This framework needs to take into account the traditional and customary regulations already in place and match these with the trend followed by an increasing number of goberments, to declare all water to bo goverment propiety. Proper legislation is particularly important to safeguard the rights of domestic users. However other groups such as goverment and private sector agencies will see their task greatly facilitated by the enactment of realistic and enforceable legislation.

Activities

For each country, the project will include the following activities:

• inventory and review of existing legislation: the systematic approach which has been designed by FAO can be followed to facilitate and accelerate this process;
• review of the administrative procedures and arrangements for implementation of the legislation;
• assessment of enforcement of existing legislation;
• development of proposals for adaptation of the legislative framework, procedure and enforcement of approaches, by using experiences from other countries.
• report on the process and its results, informal publication;
• support to the development of an enabling environment to facilitate the implementation of the legislative framework.

Inputs and outputs

The project team should be composed of national and expatriate advisers as well as goverment staff dealing with water resources management. The team should be multidisciplinary, as it should include water legislation experts as well as water supply and sanitation specialists, specialists of other sectors and behavioral scientists. The core group should consist of the following:

• one expatriate legal expert for 5 m/m'
• one expatriate expert in water resources management and policy for 3 m/m.
• one local legal expert for 12 m/m.
• one local water resources management specialist for 8 m/m.

The output will be the proposed legislative framework for water, together with an administrative framework for implementation, and a documented overview of the process and results of the approach.

The foreign exchange component of this project would amount to US$ 96 000 for each one of the countries for which a complete legislative and administrative framework is to be developed. The local cost would be of the order of US$ 40 000 in staff. A realistic total budget would be of the orrder of US$ 150 000 to US$ 200 000 per country including a small training component and the publication of documentation on the experience gained (at a cost of US$ 5 000 to US$ 10 000 for 3 to 4 countries).

Project II
Catalogue of experience of selected law
enforcement mechanisms

Description

The project consists in review and dissemination of experiences that facilitate compliance with water allocation and distribution legislation (including enforcement). Where legislation exists but is not well enforced, it may prove ineffective in achieving its stated objectives, and result in misallocation, over exploitation, inequitable distribution and environmental deterioration of water resources.

The project will have a duration of one year.

Justification

There is a need to highlight and give examples of compliance mechanisms that have proved effective in achieving the orderly allocation and development of water resources.

This overview should be published in the form of a "Lessons learned" document to assist lawmakers, policy makers and administrators at the appropriate levels to evolve mechanisms and approaches conducive to compliance by all concerned with water allocation and development laws and regulations and administrative decisions made under them.

Activities

A series of country studies will be prepared which will review and analyze selected experiences with mechanisms and approaches conducive to compliance. The studies will cover, in particular:

• creation of public awareness through support to NGO's, action groups on the environment, other targed groups;
• feedback information from public through public meetings and consumer groups;
• advocacy and media campaigns;
• fees, financial incentives and penalties;
• physical penalties (disconnections, reduced allocations);
• criminal procedures.

These country studies will form the basis of a report containing a comparative analysis and drawing conclusions and recomendations. At the inception of the project a workshop could be convened with the participation of all the prospective contributors to design a standard format of country studies.

Inputs and outputs

Local expertise from selected target countries and international-level expertise wwill be required.

The output of the project will consist of a publication containing the country studies, and their comparative analysis (lessons learned).

The foreign exchange component of the project should be of tthe order of US$ 12 000 (not including the workshop), representing the input of an international expert to the analysis report. The local component should amount to US$ 24 000 (2 man-months of six experts from six countries).

Project III
Development of guidelines for the establishment
of legislation and administering institutions and processes
in the field of water resources management

Description

The guidance document should contain:

1. Water legislation

1.1 methods to review existing legislation including traditional and customary law; 1.2 key issues for possible improvement.

2. Water rights administration:

2.1 organizational arrangements required; 2.2 staff needs; 2.3 techniques for data collection and handling. 2.4 possibilities for gradual process, dealing initially with large users and high risks areas; 2.5 measures to address the judicious usage of water resources.

3. Law enforcement and promotion:

3.1 promotional effort orientated the agencies and the public; 3.2 training requirements and organization.

The project will have a duration of four months.

Justification

The uncontrolled over-abstraction of water, in some cases leading to water scarcity, is a severe ecological problem. In order to ensure a sound use of available water resourses, it is fundamental to regulate water use, and to create an efficient and effective water rights administration.

Such an administration however can not be developed in isolation. It is part of a series of issues including water legislation and environmentally sound water master plans, and users awareness and willingness to follow the regulations.

Experience exists on the development of these different components, but it has not been brought together into a comprehensive document to serve countries now embarking on the establishment of a legal framework, and the adoption of practical instruments for sound use of available water resources.

The objectives of the project is to bring together key experiences concerning the development of:

• water legislation taking into account ecological requirements;
• water rights administration;
• promotional efforts to support enforcement of the above.

Activities

The main activities of the project would be as follows:

• formation of a small task force to prepare a detailed outline;
• development of different chapters by key authors;
• compilation of draft guides and documents;
• review meetings;
• finalization after external review;
• publication.

Inputs and outputs

The inputs component will consist of two specialists - a lawyer and an expert in institutions/administrative processes, at a cost (net of meetings and reproduction of report) of some US$ 40 000. The total cost, including meetings and report publication and reproduction, would be of the order of US$ 80 000.

The expected output consists of a publication containing guidelines for use by lawmakers, policymakers and administrators in the framing of water resources management legislation and in the designing of institutional arrangements and administrative processes for the administration and implementation of such legislation.

Project IV
Legislation on the protection of the sources of
public water supplies - an analysis of
selected experiences with implementation
and enforcement

Adequate legislation is a key instrument to ensure the protection of the sources of public water supplies. Implementation and, above all, enforcement of the legislation are major problems in both developed and developing countries. In a majority of countries, the existing legislation is not adapted to the needs, as a result of the large variety of local conditions. Most of the legislation is in fact copied from texts applied in other countries.

A comprehensive approach is required to enhance water sources protection as a key element of public health and environmental protection. The objective of the project is therefore to review the lessons learned in relation to the existing water source protection legislation in a number of selected countries, and, in particular, in relation to the implementation and enforcement of such legislation.

The project will have a dduration of six months.

The beneficiaries will be water users, water sector investors, investors in other sectors of the economy and the general public.

Activities

The main activities of the project will be the following:

• development of a case study format;
• inventory and assessment of existing legislation in relation to water sources protection;
• review of traditional and customary laws pertaining to the protection of the water sources and their legal status;
• review and assessment of the effectiveness of current law enforcement practices;
• analysis of confliets involving competing uses or impairment of the quality and dependability of water sources;
• preparation of case studies covering the above;
• organization of a workshop to review case studies and the lessons which can be learned.

Inputs and outputs

The inputs will consist of international and national consultants for preparation of case studies, and the organization of workshops and seminars to exchange experience and information.

The primary output of the project will be a publication containing (a) country studies, (b) an assessment of the role of customary law, and (c) guidelines for the framing of workable and enforceable legislation on water source protection. A related output is training both in service and through seminars and workshops.

The budgetary implications of the project (net of training and reproduction of the publication) will depend on the number of countries selected for the study. Country studies will cost about than US$ 5 000 each, while an international expert should be available to draw the guidelines component for a fee of US$ 10 000. The total cost should be of the order of US$ 28 000 FOR 3 to 4 countries.