Ana Elisa Cascão

Presentation to TWM Lake Victoria

Kigali, Rwanda – 26 October 2009

Hydropolitics: Water, Power and Cooperation (I)

Structure of the Presentation

13:00 - 14:30•What is Hydropolitics•Water, Politics and Power

14:15 - 17:00•Hydropolitical Conflict and Cooperation•Financing cooperation•Water-sharing and and Benefit-sharing paradigms

Exercise 1: Assessing power relations in the Nile River Basin

Exercise 2: If I was a donor...

Hydropolitics: is there a definition?

What can you see in this picture?

PowerWater

Control

Merowe Dam, Sudan

Hydropolitics:

Who?Users: Upstream/downstream/midstream riparians

Uses: Agriculture, Industry and Services sectors

What?Blue water, Groundwater, Green water

Water quality

When? Constant or variable supply and control

Where? Tributaries, flows and infrastructures

How? Political and economic processes influencing water control, utilisation and allocation of water resources

POWER

‘who gets what water, when, where and how?’

Water: a multifaceted resource (1)

Political resource

Natural resource Social resource

Economic resource Cultural resource

Water: a multifaceted resource (2)

Water: a transboundary political resource

Water Resources: Transboundary ≠ Shared

NILE RIVER BASIN

• Transboundary water resources

• But not (equitably) shared water resources

Asymmetric Power Relations

Why?Why?

Asymmetric Power Relations:explanatory factor

Geography Material power

Bargaining power

Ideationalpower

4 PILLARS OF POWER

Framework of Hydro-Hegemony Zeitoun and Warner 2006

GEOGRAPHICAL POWER

Riparian Position:• Downstream• Midstream• Upstream

Geographical Advantages:• Contribution to river flow• Potential for water utilisation• Suitability for hydraulic infrastructure

MATERIAL POWER

Economic development

Military power

Political stability and influence

BARGANING POWER:in interstate relations and negotiations

WHO CONTROLS THE NEGOTIATIONS?

WHO CONTROLS

THE AGREEMENTS?

WHO CONTROLS

THE NUMBERS?

WHO CONTROLS

THE AGENDA?

WHO CONTROLS

THE LEGITIMACY?

WHO PLAYS BETTER WITH

INTERNATIONAL LAW?

WHO HAS ACCESS TO

INVESTMENT?

IDEATIONAL POWER: Power to influence perceptions

Asymmetric Knowledge

SanctionedDiscourse

Incentives

Playingwith time

Silent

Diplomacy/Cooperation

• Select 4 or 5 Nile riparian states and assess the four dimensions of power for each of them

• Power dimensions to take into account:

• Classify each dimension as Strong, Middle, or Weak

EXERCISE 1: Assessing power relations in the Nile River Basin

Geography:

•Riparian position•Contribution to water availability in the Basin

•Suitability for hydraulic projects

Material Power:

•Economic development•Military power

•Political stability•Political influence

in the region

Bargaining power:

•Water “numbers” and information available

•Power to influence agenda•Power to set what

can or cannot be negotiated•Power to claim legitimacy

(e.g. prior use)•Position concerning

international water law•Access to international funding

IdeationalPower:

•Power to influence knowledgeproduction and sharing

•Power to influence discourse•Available incentives to

influence neighbouring countries•Time factors (it can wait)

•Silence factors (it can be hidden)•Power to play with ambiguity

•Power to influence cooperation process and agenda

• At the end, we must be able to visualise Power Asymmetries between different riparians, e.g.:

• In the Nile Basin, how asymmetric power relations are?• How influential is that in the control, utilisation and allocation of the Nile

water resources?

EXERCISE 1: Assessing power relations in the Nile River Basin

By the end of the 1st session, participants should

be aware:

* What is Hydropolitics

* Water is a multifaceted resource

* Water is a political resource

* Transboundary ≠ Shared

* Power in transboundary basins matters!

Next session:

* Hydropolitical Conflict and Cooperation* Case-studies

* Financing cooperation* Water-Sharing and Benefit-Sharing

Power