Year in Review This section highlights some significant areas of research that IWMI has been involved in over the past year and covers the four thematic areas of IWMI’s research in Africa and Asia.
‘Health Impacts of small dams in Morocco: Listening to the community for better planning and management’
Over the past few decades, hundreds of small dams have been constructed all over Africa to impound water for multiple uses. In countries with arid and sub arid climates and erratic patterns of rainfall like Tunisia, Burkina Faso, Morocco, Zimbabwe and Ethiopia, small dams are an important tool in rural poverty alleviation, reduction of rural exodus, aquifer replenishment, prevention of floods and large dam siltation. They are also an important source of water for irrigation, drinking and domestic purposes. However, negative health impacts such as increased transmission of water-related diseases may make investments in dam construction not always result in sustainable development. IWMI and partners are involved in a project in southern Morocco that is developing a participatory methodology to examine the health impacts of small dams.
See Water Figures Issue 1, 2006
The CA: influencing what happens next’
Water scarcity exists in a number of forms, all contributing to persistent poverty in the world today. More water is needed not only to produce more good but also to combat malnutrition and reduce poverty. But putting more water into the service of agriculture threatens environmental sustainability. There are difficult choices to make about how to manage water for food, environmental security and poverty reduction. Overcoming this is critical to meeting the millennium development goals on poverty hunger and environmental sustainability. The Comprehensive Assessment of Water Management in Agriculture (CA) was formed to help resolve this water-food-environment dilemma by bringing a diverse group of people to assess the past 50 years of water development, the water management challenges communities are facing today and the solutions people have developed.
See Water Figures Issue 2, 2006
'GIAM: to help answer questions about water for food and nature’
Satellite remote sensing offers a consistent, timely (and increasingly) free resource to estimate and monitor irrigated areas while meeting high scientific standards. In 2002, the Global Irrigated Area Mapping (GIAM) project was initiated, supported by IWMI core funds and the Comprehensive Assessment of Water Management in Agriculture. Using a wide range of sophisticated remote sensing images and techniques, the project set out to observe changes in vegetation to help make precise definitions of the area and spatial distribution of global irrigation. In areas such as Asia where secondary data on cropping intensities are not accurately recorded, it also helps to identify the extent of multiple cropping.
See Water Figures Issue 3, 2006
‘Global Wetland Inventory and Mapping (GWIM)’
The need for effective wetland mapping and inventory has been raised in many fora and by many organizations over the past decades. Past mapping and inventory has included the production of continental scale inventories in the late 1980s and early 1990s, with spatial analysis of remote sensing data assuming a greater role in the 1990s and more recently. Acknowledging the identified shortcomings in existing inventory, the lack of an accurate and reliable global assessment, and recognizing the many ongoing efforts to address this issue at various scales, IWMI has developed a Global Wetland Inventory and Mapping (GWIM) project to work with partners and through the framework of the Ramsar Convention to undertake a comprehensive, multiple purpose and multi-scale wetland inventory.
See Water Figures Issue 3, 2006
'Water Resources Management and Sanitation
(in cities)—shouldn’t we be thinking beyond the obvious?’
“People by the millions move to cities in order to improve their lives, find better jobs and have access to goods and services that are not available in rural areas. As they attract more people, cities assemble and provide the goods and amenities that these people need and want. Foremost among these is food…“
This article is based on a paper presented by IWMI researcher and wastewater specialist, Dr. Liqa Raschid-Sally, at the 32nd WEDC Conference on Sustainable Development of Water Resources, Water Supply and Environmental Sanitation, held in Colombo, Sri Lanka from the 13-17 November 2006.
See Water Figures Issue 4, 2006
‘Understanding farmers’ strategies and land use change in the Northern Uplands of Vietnam’
Over the past two decades, Vietnam has undergone significant changes with respect to land reforms that have had impact on land use systems throughout the country. Farmers have shifted from collectivised agricultural systems managed by cooperatives to household farm systems that are governed by individual decision-making. Land tenure changes and economic liberalization has led to increases in agricultural productivity and poverty reduction. In the uplands however, economic development has been slow and communities still face periodic food shortages. Policymakers, donors and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have started to focus on rural development in the uplands as a critical issue.
See Water Figures Asia Issue 1, 2006
‘IWRM makes an impact in the Ferghana Valley’
IWMI’s successful Integrated Water Resources Management Project in the Ferghana Valley is now in its third phase. It’s an action research project—located in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan—funded by the Swiss Development Cooperation and jointly implemented by IWMI and its regional partner in Central Asia, the Scientific Information Center of the Interstate Commission for Water Coordination (SIC-ICWC). In its first two phases, the project developed, tested and adopted major approaches, frameworks and methodologies. It is currently set to consolidate, improve and up-scale these achievements.
See Water Figures Asia Issue 1, 2006
