Water Rights and Conflict Resolution Processes in Afghanistan: The Case of the Sar-i-Pul Sub-Basin
Publisher: European Commission and Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit
Author(s): Vincent Thomas, Mujib Ahmad Azizi, and Ihsanullah Ghafoori
Date: 2012
Topics: Dispute Resolution/Mediation, Governance, Renewable Resources
Countries: Afghanistan
Over the past decade, research in Afghanistan has paid a great deal of attention to justice and dispute resolution processes related to civil and criminal issues. However, studies dealing with water-related conflicts have been extremely limited. This research is an attempt to fill this gap, and focuses specifically on water rights and the resolution of conflicts related to water-sharing at different hydraulic and social levels within the Sari-Pul sub-basin in northwestern Afghanistan. In doing so, it examines the on-going gulf between actual water management practices and the recent “good water governance” models that have been enshrined in the 2009 Water Law.
The study first analyses water institutions by providing a detailed account of water rights and distribution principles from plot- to inter-provincial level (within the borders of the sub-basin) as well as outlining the key actors engaged in water sharing practices. It then captures and analyse the main types of water-related conflict occurring at different levels of the river or canal system. Based on eight case studies, it describes how local actors and institutions engage in resolving water-related conflicts, with a particular focus on the different decision-making processes and choices involved.