1. Which sectors should be included and what is the task of water governance?

• Water governance refers to the range of political, social, economic and administrative systems that are in place to develop and manage water resources, and the delivery of water services, at different levels of society.

 

2. Why is water governance so important for IWRM?

• Because it provides the political and legal framework for the implementation of IWRM.

 

3. Understanding democratic political behaviour is to understand that parliamentarians are “single-minded seekers of re-election”. What does it mean and what is the problem?

• Parliamentarians try to improve the welfare of their constituents in the shortest possible time frame in order to ensure their reelection.
• Robust governance systems are needed to capture the benefits and avoid the problems of such short-term interests.

 

4. Besides written laws there are also systems of social rights and responsibilities that remain traditional and uncodified but they are less strong because they are just manifested in cultural expectations rather than in written rules. (True or false?)

• False

 

5. Good law for sustainable sanitation and water management recognises and acknowledges existing uses and rights, including international norms. At the same time, it is flexible enough to permit reform in response to technological change and socio-economic need. (True or false?)

• True

 

6. What objectives should be address by legal frameworks and laws to achieve optimal regulations to promote a sustainable management of water resources?

• Water rights and allocation
• Water quality
• Water services
• Land use
• Protecting freshwater ecosystem resources

 

7. Why is the enforcement of laws as important as the formulation of these laws itself and why do enforcement bodies need command and control tools based on laws as statutes for their work as well?

• Because laws as well as command and control tools are not working independently. They need to be adhered.
• Because otherwise the enforcement bodies might be misled to act corruptly and arbitrarily.

 

8. Water law is mostly about property rights. Discussions of water rights usually focus upon the rights of the property right holder. What is thereby often ignored?

• The contingent of responsibilities which that holder has with regard to others in society who do not share the rights.

 

9. What does river basin management comprises?

• Managing a whole basin or watershed instead of finding single solutions for individual regions or countries which are part of this watershed. In other words, national policies, as well as international agreements and regional conventions for transboundary waters, are applied to natural basins.

 

10. What are some of the key elements to a successful integrated river basin management? Name at least four.

• A long-term vision for the river basin, agreed to by all the major stakeholders.
• Integration of policies, decisions and costs across sectoral interests such as industry, agriculture, urban development, navigation, fisheries management and conservation, including through poverty reduction strategies.
• Strategic decision-making at the river basin scale, which guides actions at sub-basin or local levels.
• Effective timing, taking advantage of opportunities as they arise while working within a strategic framework.
• Active participation by all relevant stakeholders in well-informed and transparent planning and decision-making.
• Adequate investment by governments, the private sector, and civil society organisations in capacity for river basin planning and participation processes.
• A solid foundation of knowledge of the river basin and the natural and socio-economic forces that influence it.

 

11. What are main institutional challenges for a river basin (watershed) management? Name at least two.

• Re-ordering water management institutions around the river basin/catchment
• Integrating various sectors of water management within the river basin
• Cooperating across political/administrative boundaries
• Depending on actors, institutions and instruments of other policy fields that are not organised around river basin

 

12.   Give an example of a transboundary conflict caused by a negative externality directed downstream and a negative externality directed upstream.

• Negative externality directed downstream: reduced flow through water abstraction or pollution through wastewater discharge
• Negative externality directed upstream: hampered fish migration by river works or flooding induced by dam construction downstream

 

13. Capacity development plays a key role in target/problem-oriented research and the sustainable implementation of research results. Which targets/problems can customized capacity development help to achieved/overcome? Name at least three.

• Local authorities and stakeholders receive all needed information, knowhow and training for decision making processes with regard to the developed technologies and management tools.
• Local capacity increases receiving further trainings in operation and maintenance of facilities or further training on academic level with regard to sustainability beyond project ends.
• Local population is properly taken into account to enhance public awareness and change behaviour with a view to future essential skills and abilities.

 

14. What are the three central functions of participation which increase the effectiveness of making decision in IWRM?

• Participation increases the knowledge level of the actors with regard to the sustainable handling of water resources.
• Participation supports the integration of interests: An intensive exchange of information requires the involvement of concerned actors and lays the foundations for the necessary cooperation.
• Participation is one condition for ownership: Often, it is only through participation that decisions are made understandable and acceptable and can thus be implemented.

 

15.   The World Bank views gender equality as smart economics. According to this statement what would the failure of empowering half the world’s population lead to? Give at least two examples.

• Lower productivity
• Lower economic growth
• Weaker development

 

16. Gender in mainstream is a strategy for making women’s as well as men’s concerns and experiences an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes in all political, economic and societal spheres so that women and men benefit equally. (True or False?)

• True

 

17. Focusing on gender relations analyses mainly draw attention to women because the position of women can better be understood by the isolation the issue from the broader relationships between women and man. (True or False?)

• False

 

18. Observations by global water and sanitation practitioners have recognized the importance of incorporating a gender perspective. Name at least five results of these observations.

• Women and girls are most often the primary users, providers and managers of water in their households and are the guardians of household hygiene.
• If a water system falls into disrepair, women are the ones forced to travel long distances over many hours to meet their families’ water needs.
• The water and sanitation sector can contribute to redressing inequality and can impact positively on the social, political and economic position of women.
• Well targeted services can improve the health and security of women and their families.
• Common societal practices that determine men as property owners, heads of households and main decision makers in the public sphere often result in marginalizing the views and preferences of women and girls.
• A gendered approach can create a framework of cooperation between men and women, so that the insights and abilities of both men and women are available to shape programs and meet sector objectives.
• Equal involvement of men and women is positively correlated with improved sustainability of water supplies, as well as improved transparency and governance in management.
• Sanitation and hygiene improvements are often low on the list of family investments, and women and girls suffer more indignity as a result. (Children especially, have needs and concerns that should be taken into account when creating sanitation interventions to be used by them.)
• Water for production relates to wealth creation, yet access to the means of production and control over resources often excludes women in some communities. (A gender sensitive strategy aims to ensure that women benefit by enabling their participation as decision makers and investors.)
• Gender stereotypes concerning abilities and interests of men and women, often create non-equitable and non-representative decision making in the sector.

 

 19. What goals require changes in water policies and institutions? Name at least four.

• Advancing water security
• Advancing water quality
• Reducing poverty
• Reducing environmental degradation
• Ensuring that water is a key part of national development amid growing competition for water
• Addressing development challenges concerning water such as climate change

 

20. Reforms in the sense of changing institutional mandates, policies and legislation is always what is needed to achieve change in water governance. (True or False? - and explain your answer.)

• False
• Because sometimes the focus needs to be on implementation of policies or strategies already agreed upon and removing obstacles that prevent organizations from realizing their mandate, legislation from being enacted, or policies from being put into practice.