Water as an Asset for Peace: Atlas of Risks and Opportunities
Publisher: Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
Date: 2017
Topics: Basic Services, Cooperation, Renewable Resources
Over the past decade, discussions about water have not only featured more prominently in the media and political circles; water has also increasingly become associated with words like stress, crisis, conflict and even war. Grim predictions about looming conflicts, extreme drought and the catastrophic impacts of climate change paint a bleak picture of the future for many regions. But while there is indeed evidence that water can increase tensions and even contribute to conflicts between states and communities, the full story is more nuanced. Water stress alone is a weak predictor of tensions, and can even help cement cooperation when opposing parties have a shared need for water. The structure of conflicts is also changing, with a shift in focus from relatively linear conflicts between states to a more complex picture of intrastate conflicts involving multiple, often non-state, actors. Such conflicts can involve competition between sectors – in which the agricultural, industrial and municipal sectors all vie for the same water resource – or within sectors – in which herders and farmers struggle for control over a single water source. More multi-faceted conflicts pitting local communities against supranational corporations are also becoming increasingly common as globalized production threatens the environmental rights and livelihoods of local communities.