International Water Management Institute (IWMI)
Who we are and what we do
Who we are
The International Water Management Institute (IWMI) is a non-profit, scientific research organization focusing on the sustainable use of water and land resources in developing countries.
We are a:
- think tank driving innovative research and ideas for solutions;
- provider of science-based products and tools; and
- facilitator of learning, strengthening capacity and achieving uptake of research findings.
Our vision is ‘A water-secure world’.
IWMI is headquartered in Colombo, Sri Lanka, with regional offices across Asia and Africa. We work in partnership with governments, national and international organizations, civil society and the private sector to develop scalable water and land management solutions that have an impact on poverty reduction, food security and ecosystem health.
What we do
- provide an insight into water and land management from field to basin scales;
- analyze biophysical and socioeconomic processes;
- assess trade-offs of alternative development scenarios, taking a nexus perspective;
- incorporate ecosystem approaches into agricultural systems;
- assess performance and identify solutions for agricultural water management – large- and small-scale;
- improve resilience to climate shocks – provide flood and drought analysis for planning and response, and analysis of big data in real time;
- identify groundwater solutions – reducing overuse and recharging for resilience; and
- promote recovery and the safe reuse of organic waste and wastewater in agriculture.
Past performance
- Winner of the 2012 Stockholm Water Prize.
- Winner of the 2011 Crystal Drop Award.
- Published the widely cited book, Water for Food, Water for Life: A Comprehensive Assessment of Water Management in Agriculture, in 2007, which remains one of the standard texts in the field.
Differentiators
- Cross-disciplinary approach.
- Knowledge sharing: Commitment to open access of publications and data. All outputs are treated as international public goods.
- Undertake research for development with a commitment to fostering impact at multiple scales.
- Wide-ranging country and regional expertise across Asia and Africa.
- Extensive partnerships and networks from research to development practitioners.
- Incorporating gender as a core research theme.
Institutional data
- Founded in 1985.
- Over 150 researchers in 13 country offices.
- Projects in over 30 countries.
- Annual turnover: USD 47 million.
Affiliations
IWMI is:
- a member of CGIAR, a global research partnership for a food-secure future;
- a partner with the United Nations and other international organizations on policy formulation, guidelines, other knowledge products, and specific programs and projects;
- an institutional partner of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands;
- an institutional partner of the World Water Council;
- host partner of three regional offices of the Global Water Partnership (GWP); and
- lead center of the CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE).
Contact details
Head office: 127 Sunil Mawatha, Pelawatte, Battaramulla, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Tel: +94 (0) 11 288 0000
Fax: +94 (0) 11 278 6854
E-mail: iwmi@cgiar.org
Website: www.iwmi.org