Strengthening Socio-Economic Approaches and Governance to Water Management

Communities in Africa face severe risks of endangering human wellbeing and livelihood. This is enhanced by rather weak institutions and insufficient capacity to manage risks. In addition to the weather and climate-related factors, socio-economic components are often related to the so-called “rootcauses” such as poverty and conflicts. Therefore, assessment schemes need to integrate natural and social sciences. Governance and economic aspects are overarching and cross-cutting issues, as they have ramifications in different domains. Allocable frameworks, concepts, and methodologies appropriate for Africa need to be developed and utilized. The specific research topics includes but not limited to:

• Strengthening socio-economic approaches to water management
• Improving water governance