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Natural Resource Governance in Light of the 2030 Agenda: ...
Natural Resource Governance in Light of the 2030 Agenda: The case of competition over groundwater in Azraq, Jordan
Project Overview
This project explores the competition over the groundwater available in the region of Azraq, in Eastern Jordan; this is a starting point to assess natural resource governance in light of the 2030 Agenda. The 2030 Agenda with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is built on five core principles: universality, leave no one behind, interconnectedness and indivisibility, multi-stakeholder partnerships, and inclusiveness. An integrated implementation of the Agenda guided by these principles, remains challenging and requires the mobilisation of synergies and the mitigation of trade-offs between economic, social and ecological dimensions of sustainable development. Yet, through a Global Vision for 2030, the project aims to present a way forward to achieve good governance.
The project is implemented by the German Development Institute (DIE) in cooperation with Inter-Islamic Network on Water Resources Development and Management (INWRDAM) and the West Asia – North Africa (WANA) Institute.
Project Objective
The project aims to understand factors that influence decisions and actions of different groundwater users and the conditions under which they farm. Azraq was selected as a case study due to the numerous water needs that compete for a limited groundwater resource – agricultural, domestic and environmental uses (the wetland). Thus, better managing groundwater means investigating the decisions and behaviour of various stakeholders.
Methodology
To map this complexity and to advance governance in light of the 2030 Agenda’s principles, the study deploys a two-step approach, the project partners will:
- Map out the institutional factors that influence decisions of groundwater users, building on the Institutional Analysis and Development Framework (IAD) by Ostrom (2005).
- Conduct an analysis of how far the Agenda´s core principles are reflected in Azraq´s groundwater governance.
Accordingly, opportunities are identified for improving natural resource governance in the light of the 2030 Agenda. Methodologically, this study deploys an iterative mixed method approach using a social network analysis, semi-structured interviews and focus groups to answer the research questions. Additionally, to ensure local community engagement at all levels and to validate findings, a focus group meeting is conducted with selected farmers and a roundtable meeting convening governmental entities and donor agencies.