Pressure on the world’s water resources is greater than ever, but so is the resolve of the global development community to do something about it. This is the clear message of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), most of the national climate plans prepared for the Climate Conference in Paris, the High Level Panel on Water set up by the UN and World Bank, and a flurry of recent water conferences. Against this background, the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) forged ahead in 2016, delivering research findings that help translate heightened resolve into effective action.
Research momentum
As shown in this annual report, IWMI contributes innovative water solutions for a world of rapid social, economic and environmental change. Last December, for example, we launched an index-based flood insurance product in India, which greatly increases the speed and transparency of the process by which farmers receive money for claims. The product does so by using satellite data for damage assessment together with mobile technology to facilitate all steps in the process. IWMI research also provided new insights on the vital role of “natural” infrastructure (such as wetlands) in Kenya’s Tana and West Africa’s Volta river basins for achieving food, water and energy security.
To keep up the pace of our work, we embarked on new projects and entered into new institutional agreements. For example, building on successful experience in our host country, Sri Lanka, we signed a memorandum of understanding with the UN Office for Project Services to deploy cutting-edge knowledge in South Asia for the recovery of resources from wastewater treatment through business approaches. In addition, together with WaterAid India, we embarked on a new project (supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation) that will create a viable business model for improved management of fecal sludge in a community along the Yamuna River near New Delhi.
Similarly, in the high-profile setting of World Water Week in Stockholm, we launched the Groundwater Solutions Initiative for Policy and Practice (GRIPP). The chief aims of this global, multi-partner effort are to raise awareness of the pressures on a vital “hidden” water resource, while calling attention to successes in the adoption of practices for sustainable groundwater management. In Stockholm, we were encouraged by the announcement that IWMI will serve as a collaborating partner in World Water Week 2017, the theme of which is “water and waste – reduce and reuse.”
Maximum visibility
To gain maximum visibility and high-level support for IWMI’s work, we engaged with prominent political and development leaders throughout the year. Mentioned below are just a few of many such instances.
IWMI took part in the first High Level Scientific Consultation Panel and Ministerial Roundtable for the Adaptation of African Agriculture to Climate Change, in Marrakech, Morocco. Its purpose is to secure a key place for agriculture on the climate agenda, thus ensuring that adaptation initiatives are eligible for climate financing.
We were also pleased to accompany Anandiben Patel, Chief Minister of Gujarat, India, at the state’s annual agriculture festival. During this event, the world’s first solar irrigation cooperative received an award, recognizing a novel approach whereby farmers have the option of selling unused solar power and thus a clear incentive to use groundwater prudently. IWMI developed the approach in collaboration with the Tata Trusts and with the participation of two CGIAR Research Programs: Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE), which IWMI leads, and Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS).
IWMI scientists drew attention to key research findings and perspectives through active publishing, increasingly in open-access journals. Totaling 259, our outputs included a major contribution to the Global Gender and Environment Outlook (a first-of-its-kind publication from UN Environment).
Focused on development challenges
With the aim of focusing IWMI’s research more sharply on high-profile development challenges, in late 2016, we began to reorient our work around three strategic programs and related global challenges: Building Resilience, Sustainable Growth and Rural-Urban Linkages. The programs are supported by various research groups, which provide the knowledge and solutions needed to deliver development outcomes. A key advantage of the new programs is that they will better enable IWMI to bring water management expertise to bear on emerging challenges, such as resource implications of rapid urbanization, new models of economic transformation and the increased vulnerability of rural communities to water-related risks and disasters.
IWMI research accounts for a large part of WLE, which completed its first phase in 2016. The program registered another solid performance this year, synthesizing results from multiple CGIAR research centers and hundreds of partners to achieve notable impact. A second phase, starting in early 2017, focuses on equitable development opportunities for women and youth, restoration of degraded soils, reducing risk and building resilience in major agri-food systems through improved water management, and managing the influence of urbanization on rural landscapes.
Like many other international organizations, IWMI faced significant financial challenges this year, resulting from shifts in the global funding environment. The Institute’s finances remain sound, and our new challenge-oriented program structure and strong regional networks provide a firm foundation for action that can make improved water management a central driving force for sustainable, climate-resilient development.
