Initiative:

NEXUS Gains

Water productivity and storage

Work Package 2 (Boosting water productivity and integrated storage management at basin scale) maps existing water stores with links to current and future needs by sector; develops a water storage diagnostic tool; and carries out political economy analyses and socio-economic assessments, keeping in mind partner priorities.

The challenge

Climate change, particularly climate extremes, requires integrated management of water, energy, and food systems, particularly in water-stressed regions. Inefficient use of water, particularly in agriculture and siloed development interventions, means that landscapes and basins are not managed sustainably, jeopardizing ecosystem health and undermining water, food, and energy security. Poor management of water storage – critical for ensuring supply when it is needed – exacerbates the situation in many basins. This is a waste of natural resources, including water, which too often leads to competition and conflict between resource users, weakens rural livelihoods, and undermines national economies.

Major constraints for boosting water productivity and sustainable management of water storage are: i) the lack of capacity for nexus thinking and coordination, ii) the difficulty of gathering high-quality data, iii) deeply entrenched gender and social inequalities, and iv) the science-policy gap that is seldom bridged by technical solutions alone. Our Theory of Change assumes that policy makers will be motivated to work more collaboratively across sectors when they have practical and easy-to-use tools and processes that address the day-to-day challenges they face.

Our research

Work Package 2 research has focused on how water use can be optimized to enhance basin water productivity at different scales to equitably benefit rural communities; how to best manage water storage options now and in future; and how to engage planners, policymakers, and investors.

Research questions

  1. How much water storage do we have, how has it been changing, how effectively has it supported productive uses, and how much will we need in the future?
  2. How can WEFE interventions improve water productivity at local/farm, watershed and river basin scale considering whole-system productivity?
  3. What are the implications of alternative investments in water productivity for poor rural women and men?
  4. How can basin-level water resource productivity be optimized for cross-sectoral benefits and enhance climate resilience through understanding the political economy, harmonizing institutions, and formulating effective policies and incentives?

Outcomes

Decision support systems

Decision support systems (DSSs) can improve water productivity and storage in the face of climate change, and NEXUS Gains has developed these in two basins. In the Aral Sea Basin, the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas has designed a DSS based on a menu of practices to improve water productivity which will be validated via consultations and training sessions with stakeholders.

In Haryana State in the Ganges Basin, the International Rice Research Institute is collaborating with Indian partners to investigate the potential for saving water by direct seeding rice, rather than transplanting seedlings. The International Water Management Institute has developed a Water Productivity Atlas that presents water footprints across districts in the Ganges Basin.

Boosting agricultural productivity

In Nepal, NEXUS Gains has identified constraints – and pathways to overcome them – to boost agricultural productivity in three irrigation schemes. Socio-economic and market conditions make up the largest categories of challenges; timely access to and availability of fertilizers, water, and fair market prices are the most significant challenges. This work, co-implemented with the Nepali government, supports the development of the country’s irrigation policy.

Water storage diagnostics

Diagnostics to support integrated water storage have been completed and presented to stakeholders in the Shashe (Limpopo) and Tana-Beles (Blue Nile) basins. In the Shashe, NEXUS Gains is promoting broader thinking, away from reliance on traditional gray infrastructure, to more integrated approaches that combine gray and green infrastructure. A storage assessment was carried out to capture the potential volume of water storage available in dams, groundwater, and soil, and a mapping exercise was conducted to evaluate how much storage is available throughout the basin.

In Tana-Beles, a study projected a growing gap between water storage and demand and advocated a nexus approach to address this. A water storage assessment and a tool to guide storage augmentation are at an advanced stage in the Ramganga Basin, in the Ganges.

Work Package 2 innovations

  • A strategic diagnostic tool to design, evaluate, and implement integrated water storage solutions.
  • Decision support system to boost water productivity at basin scale

Contact us

Jonathan Lautze: j.lautze@cgiar.org

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