Comments on the '5 classes of water-related poverty'

Comments from Akther, received by email

The note on “Water, food and poverty in river basins” is a useful synopsis of an extremely important but complex issue. Many thanks for this initiative. I have a few comments and suggestions.

• Since the title includes “food”, a couple of sentences could be added on the relationships between water and food, and poverty and food. In the present note the word “food” is not mentioned in the text.

• It seems to me that the note is written for those with relatively greater orientation in water-related issues than that of poverty or welfare issues. It would be helpful for the later group of audience if a little more clarification could be provided for some technical terminologies used in the note, such as water productivity (Type-4). Presumably the term refers to the productivity of agricultural output per unit of water, right? How is it measured? Is crop output or value of agricultural production the numerator? Is water availability (how measured) or cost of water/irrigation the denominator? By contrast, the discussion on water scarcity (Type-1) in the first paragraph is very clear. However, in the second paragraph, an explanation/definition of “ecosystem service” would be helpful for non-informed readers.

• Consider deleting the word “Inequitable” from the Type-2 sub-title. Secured access to water, particularly for irrigation, is one of the most important determinants of prosperity (or poverty reduction) for rural farm households in developing countries. However, the term “users” in this section refers to “sectors” such as agriculture, as opposed to individuals or households. Since poverty is measured at the household level, “access to water” should essentially mean “household access to water.” Here, it is worthwhile to raise the critical issue of landlessness and poverty. Landlessness is highly correlated with extreme poverty, particularly in Asia. For example, Bangladesh is one of the poorest countries in the world where more than half of all rural households are landless, living in a country with abundant water availability. Irrigation in Bangladesh is quite unique because the system mainly uses groundwater. Access to irrigation is a major determinant of agricultural productivity and hence reduced poverty in Bangladesh, but only a few landless benefit directly from irrigation through land tenure arrangements. To some extent this phenomenon holds in other South and South-East Asian countries as well. Could innovative policies/programs be designed to provide the landless with access to irrigation? Here, the implications of access to groundwater versus surface water could also be highlighted.

Another important issue that is missing in the note is gender. Women’s access to water is crucial for household welfare as women and girls are the main providers of water for domestic use, who often have to carry water from distant sources. The linkages between the role of women with respect to household water and sanitation, the burden of disease and malnutrition and hence poor health; the need for secured access to water for women for poverty reduction need to be recognized.

• In Type-3, the hazards caused by floods need to be highlighted. Devastating floods have been increasingly occurring in many countries— probably due to climate change—causing loss of lives and assets, mainly of the poor.

• References should be provided for several statements in the note.