Double-Edged Hydropolitics on the Nile - Center for Security Studies ...

Introduction
and Ashton 2004). General trends towards privatization, decentralization,
and civil society involvement have somewhat eroded the state’s autonomy
as the single most important driver of water policy developments.
The Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) framework
relates to issues of water sharing in transboundary river basins both with
direct reference to conflicts between water users at different levels and by
giving attention to alternative, internationally more compatible water management
strategies (Al Baz et al. 2002). For instance, a clear focus on
demand management measures can release pressure from international
water allocation disputes. Large-scale infrastructure projects (e.g., dams and
diversions) are among the most disputed water management interventions
for their potential to both spark international tensions and offer mutually
beneficial solutions to water supply and regulation challenges (WCD 2000;
World Bank 2004 a; Allan 2005). IWRM provisions on stakeholder involvement
and environmental sustainability significantly alter the terms for the
implementation of such infrastructure projects.
In contrast to the ‘management’ perspective on transboundary rivers,
‘water conflict’ narratives emphasize the potential threats to security stemming
from competition over shared water resources and highlight the need
for conflict transformation measures. Two conceptual developments are
particularly important in the evolution of the ‘water conflict’ perspective.
First, the notion of ‘security’ has been broadened from a narrow focus on
inter-state war to include a greater spectrum of potential harms to human
well-being (‘human security’). Second, empirical findings have indicated that
international ‘water wars’ are not a very likely consequence of competition
over river water. Violence over water utilization may erupt at the local level,
but the main damage from international water-related disputes likely accrues
from the lack of cooperation and the resulting inefficient water use and lack
of economic integration.
In view of these paradigm shifts, the search for approaches to mitigating
water conflict increasingly focuses on the improvement and harmonization
of national water policies and water management institutions. More effective
strategies to provide sufficient water and protect the natural resource base
have a positive impact on the ‘human security’ of water user groups, and
may reduce pressure from the river in the transboundary context. The level
35