Water rights in informal economies in the Limpopo and Volta basins

Most African countries underwent water legislation reform since the 1990s, through which existing plural legal systems were changed into nation-wide permit systems, in which the state acts as custodian of the nation’s water resources. Although globally heralded as the best way to manage water res...

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Autor principal: van Koppen, Barbara
Formato: Informe técnico
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: CGIAR Challenge Program on Water and Food 2010
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/3860
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author van Koppen, Barbara
author_browse van Koppen, Barbara
author_facet van Koppen, Barbara
author_sort van Koppen, Barbara
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Most African countries underwent water legislation reform since the 1990s, through which existing plural legal systems were changed into nation-wide permit systems, in which the state acts as custodian of the nation’s water resources. Although globally heralded as the best way to manage water resources within the broader context of Integrated Water Resource Management, this project examines the problematic implications of the new laws for the majority of the rural and peri-urban poor. Since time immemorial, their water access has been largely governed by self-supply and informal arrangements that have allowed them to survive in often harsh ecological conditions. Water law reform basically dispossesses them from their current and future claims to water, unless they adopt an administrative water rights system that also historically has favored administration-proficient foreign investments. As the new laws have hardly been implemented as yet for various reasons that are further explored in this research, this research provides a timely analysis of the processes at stake and identifies alternative legal tools that recognizes informal water arrangements thereby protecting and encouraging small-scale water users to expand their water use. The generic findings from Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mozambique, and South Africa have generic validity throughout Sub-Saharan Africa.
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spelling CGSpace38602025-11-12T07:34:30Z Water rights in informal economies in the Limpopo and Volta basins van Koppen, Barbara Most African countries underwent water legislation reform since the 1990s, through which existing plural legal systems were changed into nation-wide permit systems, in which the state acts as custodian of the nation’s water resources. Although globally heralded as the best way to manage water resources within the broader context of Integrated Water Resource Management, this project examines the problematic implications of the new laws for the majority of the rural and peri-urban poor. Since time immemorial, their water access has been largely governed by self-supply and informal arrangements that have allowed them to survive in often harsh ecological conditions. Water law reform basically dispossesses them from their current and future claims to water, unless they adopt an administrative water rights system that also historically has favored administration-proficient foreign investments. As the new laws have hardly been implemented as yet for various reasons that are further explored in this research, this research provides a timely analysis of the processes at stake and identifies alternative legal tools that recognizes informal water arrangements thereby protecting and encouraging small-scale water users to expand their water use. The generic findings from Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mozambique, and South Africa have generic validity throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. 2010-01-15 2011-06-07T09:18:52Z 2011-06-07T09:18:52Z Report https://hdl.handle.net/10568/3860 en Open Access application/pdf CGIAR Challenge Program on Water and Food Koppen, B. van. 2010. Water rights in informal economies in the Limpopo and Volta Basins. Colombo, Sri Lanka: CGIAR Challenge Program on Water and Food.
spellingShingle van Koppen, Barbara
Water rights in informal economies in the Limpopo and Volta basins
title Water rights in informal economies in the Limpopo and Volta basins
title_full Water rights in informal economies in the Limpopo and Volta basins
title_fullStr Water rights in informal economies in the Limpopo and Volta basins
title_full_unstemmed Water rights in informal economies in the Limpopo and Volta basins
title_short Water rights in informal economies in the Limpopo and Volta basins
title_sort water rights in informal economies in the limpopo and volta basins
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/3860
work_keys_str_mv AT vankoppenbarbara waterrightsininformaleconomiesinthelimpopoandvoltabasins