The new Nicaraguan water law in context: Institutions and challenges for water management and governance
The Nicaraguan Water Law, enacted in September 2007, is the first attempt to implement a new water law in the country. This is not an isolated legislative process in Central America, as other countries initiated similar reforms based on the Dublin principles. Although all new water laws need time to...
| Autores principales: | , |
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| Formato: | Artículo preliminar |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
International Food Policy Research Institute
2010
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/155029 |
| _version_ | 1855537672449163264 |
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| author | Novo, Paula Garrido, Alberto |
| author_browse | Garrido, Alberto Novo, Paula |
| author_facet | Novo, Paula Garrido, Alberto |
| author_sort | Novo, Paula |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | The Nicaraguan Water Law, enacted in September 2007, is the first attempt to implement a new water law in the country. This is not an isolated legislative process in Central America, as other countries initiated similar reforms based on the Dublin principles. Although all new water laws need time to be implemented, the progress in Nicaragua has so far been meager. This paper provides a diagnosis about the Nicaraguan Water Law by identifying the major factors that may impede or delay its future implementation and enforcement. Its empirical underpinning is provided by 41 in-depth interviews among a sample of representative policy actors and stakeholders. The results show that the law's potential for solving water conflicts has yet to be seen in practice. Major barriers are found in the transaction costs of inter-institutional coordination, information gathering, property rights protection and enforcement, and strategic costs. For example, the institutional remapping grants new roles to old actors as well as old roles to new entities. In addition, sugarcane mills, rice, and coffee lobbies have presence in the legislative and block the appointment of managers in the newly created institutions. This paper argues that at the root of the problems is the inconsistency of setting advanced water objectives that land on weak institutions. Based on this, a number of prioritization, sequencing, and timing policy recommendations are drawn. |
| format | Artículo preliminar |
| id | CGSpace155029 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2010 |
| publishDateRange | 2010 |
| publishDateSort | 2010 |
| publisher | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| publisherStr | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1550292025-11-06T07:20:06Z The new Nicaraguan water law in context: Institutions and challenges for water management and governance Novo, Paula Garrido, Alberto water use regulations water law socioecological systems The Nicaraguan Water Law, enacted in September 2007, is the first attempt to implement a new water law in the country. This is not an isolated legislative process in Central America, as other countries initiated similar reforms based on the Dublin principles. Although all new water laws need time to be implemented, the progress in Nicaragua has so far been meager. This paper provides a diagnosis about the Nicaraguan Water Law by identifying the major factors that may impede or delay its future implementation and enforcement. Its empirical underpinning is provided by 41 in-depth interviews among a sample of representative policy actors and stakeholders. The results show that the law's potential for solving water conflicts has yet to be seen in practice. Major barriers are found in the transaction costs of inter-institutional coordination, information gathering, property rights protection and enforcement, and strategic costs. For example, the institutional remapping grants new roles to old actors as well as old roles to new entities. In addition, sugarcane mills, rice, and coffee lobbies have presence in the legislative and block the appointment of managers in the newly created institutions. This paper argues that at the root of the problems is the inconsistency of setting advanced water objectives that land on weak institutions. Based on this, a number of prioritization, sequencing, and timing policy recommendations are drawn. 2010 2024-10-01T14:05:41Z 2024-10-01T14:05:41Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/155029 en Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Novo, Paula; Garrido, Alberto. 2010. The new Nicaraguan water law in context: Institutions and challenges for water management and governance. IFPRI Discussion Paper 1005. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/155029 |
| spellingShingle | water use regulations water law socioecological systems Novo, Paula Garrido, Alberto The new Nicaraguan water law in context: Institutions and challenges for water management and governance |
| title | The new Nicaraguan water law in context: Institutions and challenges for water management and governance |
| title_full | The new Nicaraguan water law in context: Institutions and challenges for water management and governance |
| title_fullStr | The new Nicaraguan water law in context: Institutions and challenges for water management and governance |
| title_full_unstemmed | The new Nicaraguan water law in context: Institutions and challenges for water management and governance |
| title_short | The new Nicaraguan water law in context: Institutions and challenges for water management and governance |
| title_sort | new nicaraguan water law in context institutions and challenges for water management and governance |
| topic | water use regulations water law socioecological systems |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/155029 |
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