African Water Development Report 2006 - United Nations Economic ...

African Water Development Report 2006Real and Perception ValuesFrom the point of view of the two indispensableattributes of water, i.e. water as an economic goodand water as a good of social value, views differ asto what water is really worth given that its value inits totality encompasses the complex interactionsbetween human beings and water as a natural resourcewhich makes it to mean different things topeople from different societal and cultural backgroundsand in different climatic setups. Peopleliving in drought-prone and arid areas, like in theNorth African countries such as Egypt, Libya,Morocco and Tunisia, would place a higher valueon water than those in the wetter Central Africancountries such as the Congos and Cameroon.Moreover, water has a prominent figure in all themajor religions of the world as a sacred gift ofGod. Understanding the religious interpretationsand the rules governing what amounts to ethicallyadequate use of water is therefore imperativesince these factors can heavily influence watermanagement endeavours in Africa where religionstill plays an important role in the everyday life ofsocieties (see Box 12.1).and hence leads to cost recovery considerations;but water per se, even drinking water, is not aproduct in the real sense of the word, and alsonot a normal article of trade, but a heritage andan element of the water cycle (UNESCO IHP,2004). Water has therefore been involved in oneof the most famous intellectual conundrums inthe history of economic thought: the water-diamondparadox. This problem was resolved in theeighteenth century with the concept of a distinctionbetween value in-use and value in-exchange.Although its price is low, water has an enormousvalue in-use to humans since it is a necessity forsurvival, while diamonds have a high value in exchange(Borgoyary M., 2002).Historically, water was available in ample supplyand therefore was treated as a free good, and hasremained so even with increases in population andeconomic growth. Unfortunately, with this growth,many rivers and groundwater sources have becomepolluted and water is now a scarce resource. Waterhas been traditionally provided to meet demand,but it is becoming very expensive to resort to largescaleinfrastructural solutions for providing waterto meet ever-increasing demands.Modern enlightened politicians and experts, includingresearchers and engineers, tend to underminethe religious dimension of the value ofwater. This again can easily lead to conflict whenit comes to water management under conditionsof water stress (UNESCO IHP, 2004). Anotherfactor that influences the value that people attachto water is the level of water service they receive.This can be misleading because those who alreadyenjoy the benefits of something easily forget orcannot imagine what it would be like to live withoutit. The more successfully a good or service isdelivered, the more likely it is that beneficiarieswill take it for granted ( Jack Moss el al, 2003).For example, even though ability to pay for servicesis essential in economic terms, it can lowerthe value given to water, resulting in uncontrolledwater misuse and wastage. Very often, the value ofwater is tied to the economic and financial investmentsput into its development and managementThe range of value perspectives will generallyvary to some extent on a case-by-case basis andon the stakeholder groups involved. (Note thatvalue perspectives are not the same as stakeholderperspectives and, in fact, are often sharedacross stakeholder groups) Below are some examplesof value perspectives given by Jack Mossel al, 2003:(a) Environmental Values;(b) Social Values;(c) Public Health Values;(d) Economic Values;(e) Production (including Agriculture) andProduct Use Values;(f ) Political Values;(g) Gender Values.Effective water resources management requiresthat water be treated as an economic good. Ac-276