Transboundary Water Resources Management
Almost 40 percent of the world’s population lives in more than 200 river basins that are shared by more than two countries. Twenty-two countries around the world are heavily dependent upon the flow of water originating in other upstream nations for a large part of their supply.
Shared watercourses need to be managed to resolve issues before they develop into conflicts, manage the resources for all users and riparian countries, maintain shared ecosystems, and improve water productivity in agriculture.
USAID is participating in a wide range of transboundary-related activities targeted at improving water resources management, consistent with the principles of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM). These activities include regional frameworks for cooperation in selected river basins, increasing stakeholder awareness of river basin management issues, and strengthening the capacity of relevant regional river basin institutions.
USAID is advancing the adoption of IWRM practices in a number of transboundary rivers, including conducting major activities in Central Asia, the South Caucasus, and Southern Africa. These efforts emphasize the application of sound science and the active participation of stakeholders, and include:
- Promotion of water demand management, negotiation, and conflict management;
- Stakeholder-based decision-making to manage competing water demands;
- Improved Sanitation
- Institutional strengthening and capacity-building;
- Training programs for monitoring, analysis, and planning of water resources management;
- Harmonization of national laws with the management of the shared water course;
- Coastal Resources Management; and
- Regional information collection, management, analysis, exchange and application to decision-making.
Illustrative Project Activities
South Caucasus Water Program
The South Caucasus Water Program is working to increase regional cooperation in the management of shared water resources by protecting the environment and ecosystem processes, enhancing the trust and confidence among nations, achieving tangible social and economic benefits to communities, as well as promoting democratization and decentralization of governance systems.
For more information: www.scaucasuswater.org/
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