How it all began

The launch of the International Water Management Institute in 1984 was the culmination of a process set in motion by two significant events that took place as far back as 1969. One was a proposal to the Bellagio Group – an international group of experts and donors – stressing the importance of water management in agriculture and the second was a joint proposal by the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations to carry out multidisciplinary research on irrigation technologies, the economics of water management at national and farmer levels and water policy issues at national and international level.

The need for water management research was evident as issues of water management continued to surface through the 1970’s at Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) meetings of the U.S. based Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), established in 1971, is a strategic partnership of countries, international and regional organizations and private foundations. It currently supports the work of 15 international Centers.

By 1979, water management was one of TAC’s key recommendations to the Bellagio Group for future research funding. Eventually, through the efforts of a CGIAR-appointed team that visited numerous countries and irrigation projects in 1982, recommendations were made by TAC for the establishment of International Irrigation Management Institute (IIMI), funded by the CGIAR.

The CGIAR was reluctant at that time to add to the number of centers already funded by them as the numbers had already increased from 5 centers to 13 centers between 1969 and 1982. However, the CGIAR promoted the establishment of IIMI without formal sponsorship by them. Interested CGIAR members asked the Ford foundation to act as the implementing agency to establish IIMI and Ford sent a team to India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and the Philippines to determine how interested those countries were in hosting the Institute.

Sri Lanka -The Host Country

There was strong support for the IIMI proposal from all four countries. The IIMI Support Group that evolved for the purpose of establishing the Institute authorized the Ford Foundation to enter into negotiations with the Government of Sri Lanka and plans were made to select a Board of Governors and identify candidates for the position of Director General. The World Bank was also confirmed as interim custodian of funds contributed by the Support Group with the total budget requirements for IIMI’s first five years estimated at USD 12 million. The choice of Sri Lanka appears to have been more than just a coincidence. Sri Lanka is a country with a long history of irrigation management, first carried out by its ancient kings and seen in the numerous man-made reservoirs, anicuts and other irrigation structures built across the island. On 1st September 1983 a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed by the Government of Sri Lanka and the Ford Foundation acting on behalf of the Support Group. Shortly afterwards the first Board Meeting was held in Colombo and Ralph W. Cummings was appointed Acting Director General with responsibility to establish the Institute in Sri Lanka and in other countries where IIMI might have cooperating and participating units.

The launch of IIMI

The Charter was ratified on 31st May 1984 by executive action through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. On 15th June of the same year, Dr. Thomas Wickham was appointed Director General and IIMI began formal operations. The headquarters of IIMI were established at the Digana Village, 14 kilometers east of Kandy, in the central highlands. On 30th November 1984, the Parliament of Sri Lanka enacted legislation to formally establish IIMI as a corporate body, international in character with legal status, privileges and immunities. This legislation enabled the implementing agency to relinquish its role and on 1st January 1985, IIMI’s Board and staff assumed full responsibility for the Institute and its operations. IIMI’s initial mandate was to improve irrigation system management. Much of the Institute’s work involved a large technical assistance component and research was sometimes only a by-product of that work. Under the leadership of Dr. Wickham, IIMI established projects and placed staff in 5 countries, namely Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Indonesia, Nepal and the Philippines. IWMI also laid the basis for expansion into more countries.

IIMI Becomes a CGIAR Center

In 1991, IIMI became a member of the CGIAR system and the first External Program and Management Review (EPMR) carried out in 1994 recommended a shift to more strategic research, seeing the potential of IIMI’s work. Dr. Roberto Lenton was the Director General of IWMI at that time. The EPMR recognized IIMI’s impact on national irrigation policy in the two countries where it had its largest and longest established programs- Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Irrigation Management Transfer (IMT) and Participatory Irrigation Management (PIM) were also high on IIMI’s research agenda under its theme of Water Resources, Institutions and Policies. In Pakistan, IIMI’s pioneering research on the problem of salinization led to action at the highest levels of government. By this time IIMI was also working in India and Africa -particularly West Africa. 
1991 also marked the relocation of IIMI Headquarters from the Digana Village in Kandy to Battaramulla which lies on the outskirts of Colombo, the commercial capital of Sri Lanka.  IIMI’s new office building was located in a picturesque setting close to the country's parliament. The building was a gift to the institute from its host country, with the generous assistance of the governments of Canada, Switzerland, and the Ford Foundation

IWMI: The New Name and Paradigm

In 1996 -2000, under the leadership of Dr. David Seckler who was the Director General at that time, IIMI transformed itself into a “strong science-based organization concerned with the more effective and productive use of water as a key resource for improved food production. This saw the birth of the “More Crop per Drop” concept. The Institute also changed its name from the “International Irrigation Management Institute” (IIMI) to the “International Water Management Institute (IWMI) with a new mandate to “contribute to food security and poverty eradication by fostering the sustainable increases in the productivity of water through the management of irrigation and other water uses in the river basin”. The research programs began to address water management and irrigation issues at the basin scale with a focus on regional water scarcity.

Beyond More Crop per Drop

While “more Crop per Drop” focused on water productivity, IWMI began to increasingly view it as inadequate and this was expressed in the 2004 to 2008 Strategic Plan. IWMI’s mandate did not cover issues of multiple uses of water beyond crop production. Under the leadership of Prof. Frank Rijsberman who was IWMI’s Director General from 2000 to 2007, IWMI expanded its mission to “Improve the management of land and water resources for food, livelihoods and nature”. The Institute also refined its research agenda to incorporate 4 themes covering basin water management, land water and livelihoods, agriculture, water and cities and water management and environment. IWMI built up strategic alliances with national and international partners and CG centers, and aimed to become a world class knowledge center on water, food and environment through knowledge generation, dissemination, brokering and application. At the same time, business systems were reengineered and administrative processes streamlined through quality management procedures. An organizational culture of impact, performance and service was established.

IWMI Today

Today IWMI has an expanded mandate which helps contribute to the Millennium Development Goals of reducing poverty and hunger and maintaining a healthy environment. In these three areas, access to water and land are contributing factors. IWMI concentrates on water and related land management challenges that poor rural communities face. IWMI also enjoys greater international and national visibility, as water is high on the world development agenda. It is a modern, robust institute that has adapted to the needs of the 21srt century through organizational transformation.

A new IWMI Director General, Dr. Colin Chartres, an Australian scientist with over 30 years experience in water and land management took office in October 2007.  Around 110 researchers currently work for IWMI and the institute has a presence in more than 10 countries in Africa and Asia. The Institute is well positioned to meet water research challenges of the coming years.