Voicing water visions in river basins across the developing world
Recent decades have witnessed important gains in the empowerment of women and marginalized people generally, leading to more inclusive governance of water resources, among other benefits. Yet, in many places, better water access and management remain beyond the reach of poor households, holding back their progress toward sustainable development.
Committed to “leaving no one behind” – the theme of World Water Day 2019 – we at the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), leader of the CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE), are engaged in a major effort to elucidate the obstacles to socially just water management. In river basins across Asia and Africa, we are leveraging this new knowledge to help develop and promote better policies and practices.
With the aim of demonstrating the urgency and value of such innovations, we are embarking this month on the Voicing Water Visions campaign. Through a thematic journey across selected river basins, the campaign will show what inclusive water governance really means for the people who have a direct stake in it. Their own voices, opinions and photos will make the issue literally “come alive,” in a call for renewed commitment to the collaborative search for solutions.














Population pressure and increasing water competition in a changing climate require us to take stock of the availability and use of water across scales. Water availability not only influences farmers’ commercial prospects but also irrigation-related enterprises and agri-businesses. Greater water scarcity could jeopardize irrigation and agricultural markets while excessive water use can lead to declining ecosystems, water quality and soil health. IWMI advises development partners and the public and private sectors on all aspects of water resource availability and use through a variety of advanced modeling and remote-sensing products and tools, including
The ability of farmers to engage in or expand irrigation depends on the prevailing socioeconomic, ecological and political contexts, which are often complex, non-linear and changeable. Overcoming systemic barriers to farmer-led irrigation development while taking advantage of existing opportunities
A lack of affordable credit, particularly for women and resource-poor farmers, is one of the main barriers to expanding farmer-led irrigation in low- and middle-income countries. But
Scaling farmer-led irrigation requires strengthening human capacity and knowledge exchange among all actors and stakeholders involved. IWMI takes an action research approach, working with national and international research institutions, governments, extension agents and public and private organizations to co-develop the scaling ecosystem and strengthen capacity to drive scaling networks and collective action. We support the