Water P-Notes

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These practitioner notes (P-Notes) are published by the Water Sector Board of the Sustainable Development Network of the World Bank Group. P-Notes are a synopsis of larger World Bank documents in the water sector.

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  • Publication
    Overcoming Drought in India : Adaptation Strategies for the State of Andhra Pradesh
    (Washington, DC, 2010-04) World Bank
    The study objectives were designed to enhance the state's capacity to assess long-term effects of drought and increase resilience to drought risks at state, district, and community levels. The process for development of study objectives featured extensive consultation with affected sectors, and with state and national programs that aim to address the effects of drought. The study aimed to: (i) develop a framework for simulating long-term impacts of drought in drought-prone areas and at state levels; (ii) conduct risk assessments of the impacts under different scenarios; and (iii) assist the Government of Andhra Pradesh (GoAP) in development of a strategy for adapting to frequent drought and water deficits. During the study, a model was developed as a powerful tool for thorough drought risk assessments and for investigation of risk coping strategies and climate scenarios on crop yield and production. The model was calibrated using local farming practices and crop selection (that is, rice, maize, jowar (sorghum), sunflower, and groundnut,) in the eight selected districts. The report presents results at the district level. Challenges in determining the economic impacts included: the slow onset of droughts that spread over long periods and large areas; the significant indirect losses; the need to link local impact analysis with statewide analysis; and the linkages between the different sectors and subsectors of the economy, the flow of goods and services and employment.
  • Publication
    Pakistan’s Water Economy : Running Dry
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2008-10) Briscoe, John; Qamar, Usman
    With an average rainfall of under 240 milli-meters a year, Pakistan is one of the world's most arid countries. The population and the economy are heavily dependent on an annual influx of water into the Indus river system that emanates from the neighboring countries and is mostly derived from rainfall and snow-melt in the Himalayas. Throughout history, people have adapted to the low and poorly distributed rainfall by either living along river banks or carefully husbanding and managing local water resources. In the nineteenth century, the advent of large-scale irrigation technology decisively shifted the balance between man and water. In the twentieth century, Pakistan faced several political and natural challenges to its water economy. There were successfully managed through the Indus water treaty with India and the shrewd application of science, technology, and economics, but Pakistan is once again facing a number of very serious water-related threats to its survival.
  • Publication
    Understanding Demand When Reforming Water Supply and Sanitation : A Case Study from Sri Lanka
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2008-06) van den Berg, Caroline; Yang, Jui-Chen; Gunatilake, Herath
    Many countries are weighing urgent reforms to bring safe water supply and sanitation (WSS) services to hundreds of millions of poor city dwellers. Past reforms, unfortunately, have often ignored consumer preferences and perceptions, resulting in overly optimistic projections of the revenue potential of reform projects. When revenues fall short, private partners may seek to renegotiate their contract, resulting in tariff increases and other changes that increase project costs across the board. Such situations can undermine political commitment to reforms in general and to Private Sector Participation (PSP) in particular. Understanding consumers can help avoid such situations. Different groups of consumers have distinct preferences and perceptions that may influence their decisions about new water systems. Unfortunately, studies of consumers' water-related preferences are often deferred because collecting data takes time and costs money. Often there is pressure to complete reforms quickly sometimes to take advantage of a political opportunity so the necessary research is not done. In other cases, the challenge of increasing efficiency and improving governance may seem so daunting that the specific interventions required to make reform beneficial to the poor may be overlooked or consciously deferred.