Catalog

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p. 12 of 13 BACK | NEXT I. The Context II. The Need For a Comprehensive Water Policy III. The Policy IV. The Policy and ADB's Poverty Reduction Strategy V. Getting the Policy to Work

Water For All: The Water Policy of the Asian Development Bank

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IV. The Policy and ADB's Poverty Reduction Strategy

59. ADB’s poverty reduction strategy describes poverty as a deprivation of essential assets and opportunities (footnote 9). These include basic needs such as shelter, education, water and sanitation, and health care. About 850 million people in Asia lack access to safe drinking water, and several million die annually of water-related diseases. It is the poor who suffer most from water shortages, and their access to water is rarely a priority for providers. The strategy also recognizes that the natural environment, including water, is of crucial importance to the poor –and especially the rural poor – because so many are forced to live on fragile lands and waters that lack sensitive resource management. This water policy recognizes the critical impacts – on the poor in particular – of water scarcity, water pollution, and degradation of watersheds, and highlights the importance of better management of this resource.

60. The key elements of the strategy’s framework for poverty reduction are (i) pro-poor sustainable growth, (ii) social development, and (iii) good governance. Poverty reduction strategies need to be accompanied by policies and actions that enhance the quality and productivity of the environment and natural resources, to support pro-poor sustainable growth. Strategies for social capital development that will increase the opportunities for the poor to participate in the workings of society include, as an important first step, the promotion of community-based groups to undertake activities such as natural resource management. Social development strategies will also promote the full participation of women in poverty reduction programs, including those involving water and sanitation, and environmental restoration. Good governance is critical to reducing poverty; it can facilitate participatory, pro-poor policies; ensure the transparent use of public funds; and promote the effective delivery of public services. The delivery of basic services (such as safe drinking water) matters most to the poor, and requires accountable institutional structures and participation by the poor. A long-term objective is, therefore, to empower the poor and develop institutional arrangements that foster participation and accountability at the local level.

61. The water policy addresses each of these elements, and defines a framework for water sector interventions to be implemented by operational and support departments. It complements the poverty reduction strategy by defining a sector approach to addressing issues that impact on poverty reduction.

62. Thus, the policy seeks to enhance the quality and productivity of water resources, by promoting national water sector reforms through a river basin approach to integrated water resource management. This approach is also extended to a subregional and regional basis, in the case of transboundary river basins, recognizing that careful management of water resources is essential to achieve and sustain equitable, pro-poor economic growth.

63. The policy notes that communities need to be empowered, educated, and involved in the process of water management, to provide more equitable access to water for the poor. ADB will promote granting of entitlements in water or usage rights, so that the poor have a claim to a basic human need. These rights are to be protected by regulatory agencies whose establishment is supported by the policy. ADB will encourage a participatory approach to the conservation and protection of water resources, and the replication of good practices that have demonstrated the effective management and delivery of water. Water users’ associations that manage small irrigation schemes are one such example of how communities have, with the right kind of support, organized themselves to improve equity in water distribution, resolve water disputes, collect water charges, monitor water quality, and maintain tertiary networks, resulting in lower poverty levels. Water user and sanitation committees in rural and urban areas similarly manage their own water and sanitation schemes. The policy will mandate stakeholder consultation and participation at all levels, to increase and improve access to basic water services for the poor.

64. Governments should be enablers and regulators of community action for the efficient delivery of water, not water service providers; they should target subsidies to the poorest, enforce the overall links in the water delivery system, and protect the environment. Good governance is also a focus of the policy, not only to promote sector reforms at a national level, but also to provide for decentralized institutions, public-private partnerships, participatory approaches allowing for greater accountability and transparency, and institutional development. In the context of autonomy for water service providers, for instance, the policy emphasizes ADB’s assistance in developing contracting modalities that address social equity concerns and improve water services to the poor. The policy provides for dialogue with governments to increasingly adopt functions of a regulatory nature, and build capacity at appropriate levels to manage resources and deliver services with greater efficiency and effectiveness. This will ultimately benefit the poor, who are often at the end of the “empty pipe” of poor services.

65. In operational terms, the policy will enable ADB to help the DMCs undertake comprehensive water sector assessments and develop national water policies and programs. The roles of the poor in determining equitable access to water, their rights, and the obligations of service providers and regulators alike will be clearly identified in the assessments and established in the legal framework, the policies, and regulations that govern the sector. The DMCs will be consistently encouraged to review and monitor provisions that affect the poor and to make revisions to plans and programs to ensure that the poor are effectively mainstreamed into the processes of planning optimal uses of water and using it.

66. The implementation of the policy will help the poor to protect and develop their assets. Improved irrigation efficiencies will mean better use of scarce land resources. Better-managed watersheds will allow land to be more productive. Flood protection will give relief to the poor. Opportunities will be gained through time saved in accessing clean water and being put to productive use. Health will improve; fewer sick days will translate into higher productivity. The cumulative impacts of these benefits on the poor will be significant and represent a crucial synergy with the poverty reduction strategy.

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