............. . . . . . .

United Nations
Educational, Scientiﬁc andCultural Organization

International
Hydrological Programmeof UNESCO

A contribution to the United
Nations World Water Assessment
Programme

IWRM

GUIDELINESPART 1 Principles

atRiver Basin Level

PART 2-1 The Guidelines for IWRM Coordination

PART 2-3
PART 2-2 The Guidelines for Flood Management>>> PART 2-3 Invitation to IWRM for Irrigation Practitioners <<<INVITATION TO IWRM
FOR IRRIGATION PRACTITIONERSThis set of Guidelines is a ‘Living Document’.
If you have implemented IWRM in your basin, and if you have found a ‘Key for Success’please provide feedback so that your work can be included in future updates.
As IWRM is an evolving process, these guidelines also have to evolve.
UNESCO IHP Secretariat URL http://www.unesco.org/water/

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MESSAGE FOR YOU
This booklet is an invitation to irrigation practitioners interested in IWRM.
Why should irrigation practitioners be interested in IWRM?
When you (as an irrigation practitioner) prepare an irrigation plan for your water basin,
you are required to think about the other water users in the basin. Moreover, by thinking
about other water users you improve your irrigation plan, which will bring you enormous
beneﬁts.
This booklet clearly illustrates the points you need to carefully consider in your irrigation
plan, which affect water resources in the basin. As the person responsible for planning,
designing and implementing irrigation plans, start by using this booklet to make your own
keys. If so required, we recommend that you later explore other parts of the guidelines
such as Part 1– Principles, Part 2-1 – The Guidelines for IWRM Coordination, and Part
2-2 – The Guidelines for Flood Management.
Through your efforts, your irrigation plan will be more successful, not only for you but
for all the stakeholders that share your basin.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 FEATURES AND STRUCTURE
OF THE GUIDELINES ........................................ 4
2 SECTORAL PERSPECTIVES IN IWRM ........ 6

3.3 Coordinating and detail planning .................... 26
3.3.1 Building a coordination mechanism ............. 26
3.3.2 Coordination ....................................................... 27
3.3.3 Preliminary agreement .................................... 28

2.1 Good understanding of sectoral
perspectives and their relationships
is key for IWRM .......................................................... 6

3.4 Implementing, monitoring and evaluating ..... 30

2.2 Water users’ perspectives .................................. 6

3.4.1 Implementation ................................................. 30

2.2.1 Agricultural sector ................................................6

3.4.2 Monitoring and evaluation ............................. 32

2.2.2 Domestic water supply sector ..........................8

3.5 Policies/national strategies, legislative
frameworks and ﬁnancing ....................................... 33

2.2.3 Industrial water sector ........................................92.2.4 Hydropower sector ........................................... 10
2.2.5 Sewerage (sanitation)/drainage sector ........ 11
2.3 Environmental sector’s perspective ............... 12
2.4 Flood management sector’s perspectives ..... 14
2.5 Overall coordination perspectives ................. 17
3 KEY FOR SUCCESS IN IMPLEMENTINGIWRM ................................................................. 18

3.1 Recognizing and identifying .............................. 19
3.1.1 Recognition ......................................................... 19
3.1.2 Identiﬁcation of problems and needs .......... 20
3.1.3 Public awareness and accountability............ 21

3.3.4 Finalizing the plan ............................................ 29

3.5.1 Policies and national strategies...................... 33
3.5.2 Legislative framework ...................................... 33
3.5.3 Financing ............................................................. 34
4 IWRM PROCESS ..................................... 35
4.1 Phase 1: Recognizing and identifying .............. 36
4.2 Phase 2: Conceptualization .............................. 37
4.3 Phase 3: Coordinating and detail planning .... 38
4.4 Phase 4: Implementing, monitoringand evaluating............................................................. 39
4.5 Phase 5: Policies/national strategies,
legislative framework, ﬁnancing .............................. 40

3.1.4 Capacity development ..................................... 22
3.2 Conceptualizing .................................................. 22
3.2.1 Assessment.......................................................... 22
3.2.2 Conceptualization ............................................. 25
3.2.3 Draft planning.................................................... 25

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1 – FEATURES AND STRUCTURE

1. Features and Structure of the Guidelines

The ‘Invitation to IWRM for Irrigation Practitioners’(herein after ‘the Invitation’) is intended for IWRM
practitioners tackling irrigation planning.
IWRM is a step-by-step process and takes time. By
responding to changing social, economic and environmental needs or impacts, one can gradually achieve
better and sustainable water resources management
as if moving up a spiral, through such means as progressively developing water resources in the basin,building a more integrated institutional framework,or improving environmental sustainability. This setof Guidelines illustrates the dynamic and evolving
process of IWRM in a river basin using a conceptual‘IWRM Spiral’ model as shown in Fig. 1.1.

Chapter 2/Sectoral Perspectives in IWRM
This section illustrates the principles of actions andinterests of water-related sectors in water management and IWRM. Each sector values water andinteracts with water differently. This section provides

One turn of the spiral is equal to typical implementation of an IWRM approach: the ‘IWRM Process’. One
moves up the spiral by implementing the IWRM process in the basin.
Detailed descriptions of the IWRM Spiral and the
IWRM Process is provided in Chapter 4, Part 2-1 ofthe guidelines, which can be referred to at any time.
The Invitation consists of three parts: 1) sectoral perspectives, 2) key for success, and 3) IWRM process.
Fig. 1.1 IWRM spiral
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information on how individual water-related sectors
tend to think and act, how these sectors typicallyrelate to water management and IWRM, and what
they might want to convey to other sectors.
Chapter 3/Key for Success in Implementing
IWRM
A ‘Key for Success’ is a key that can be used in practice to help make IWRM succeed. It is a key to enablebreakthroughs in challenging situations, opening thedoor to better IWRM. Many of them have alreadydemonstrated their worth in practice. Some are
generic, i.e. they apply to every successful examples
of IWRM, others may apply only to speciﬁc situations,and some may not be in place as yet. It helps to ﬁnd
the key appropriate for the given circumstances ofyour basin’s IWRM process.

Chapter 4/IWRM Process‘IWRM Process’ describes a typical process for IWRM
implementation. It also illustrates keys for successrelevant to each phase or step of the process. These
help you to orient yourself through the process andserve as a map for ﬁnding directions or the correct‘key’ for enhancing water resources management.

IMPORTANT NOTE
You do not have to read the entire document.This
set of Guidelines is designed to enable you to skip
to speciﬁc sections depending on your needs.

Fig. 1.2 Structure of the Invitation

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2 – SECTORAL PERSPECTIVES

2. Sectoral Perspectives in IWRM

This chapter illustrates some of the typical perspectives of water-related sectors. The perspectives included here are not complete, however, they
cover much of the information useful for IWRM
coordination.
This chapter provides information on how individual
water-related sectors tend to think and act, how thesector relates to water management and IWRM, andwhat the sector wants to convey to other sectors andthe organization or person responsible for coordinating IWRM efforts.
It is important to know the perspectives of other sectors when implementing IWRM. The same 1 m3 ofwater is valued differently depending on the sector
because each sector treats and uses water in different
own ways. Water is also valued differently dependingon when and where it can be obtained, and at what
quality.

2.1 GOOD UNDERSTANDING OF
SECTORAL PERSPECTIVES AND
THEIR RELATIONSHIPS IS KEY
FOR IWRM
Implementation of IWRM means proposing a plan
to individual sectors – who tend to think of theirown beneﬁts as their ﬁrst priority – that is close to
their ideal plans, and obtain compromises by making
proposals that present advantages to them. It is also

important that as many sectors as possible are satisﬁed with the plan before a consensus is reached.
For this, managers in charge of coordination should
not force his/her story on the sectors but should takea horizontal approach to obtain the perspectives of
the coordinated sectors, so as to deepen their levelof understanding. The coordinators must understandthe goals of the activities undertaken by the sectors or stakeholders, and how they relate to water
resources and the basin in order to appropriately
implement IWRM. Furthermore, good understandingby the coordinators on the beneﬁts of IWRM to theindividual sectors will facilitate efﬁcient, appropriate
and socially justiﬁable consensus-building. Thus, it isimportant to establish a good understanding of ‘sectoral perspectives’ in implementing IWRM.

2.2 WATER USERS’ PERSPECTIVES
2.2.1 Agricultural sector- Primary concern is food production. Water is justan instrument.

1. Interests of the agricultural sector(Water for agricultural production)
Water, together with land, is only an instrument for
agricultural production. The production outputs arefood and ultimately revenues for the farmers. For
farmers, water is a means of ensuring their living on
their land.

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(Sense of entitlement as a precedence user)
Agricultural sector has a history of investing andacquiring water before the concept of ‘water management’ even existed. Thus, there is a strong sense ofentitlement that they can use their water exclusively.
(From close water sources to far water sources)
Agricultural water supplies used to acquire waterfrom close-by water sources; however, they eventually began to search for other water sources further
from the farmland, which led to water resources
development through dam-building.
In the monsoon regions of Asia, the amount of rainfall
varies greatly during the wet season. Thus, in orderto prepare for sudden droughts, they utilize groundwater, reservoirs or nearby rivers, and if they needmore water they build dams upstream of the river. In
arid and semi-arid regions, there is always a need formore water, but the search always begins with nearby
water sources before seeking further away as water
demand increases.
Thus, nearby water sources are utilized in most developing countries, but as development proceeds in thebasin, larger infrastructures such as wide-area watertransfers become necessary for obtaining adequate
agricultural water.
(Agriculture as the fundamental industry of thecountry)
The agricultural sector contributes to national security through food production.The agricultural managers of the country and the region consider providing
a stable supply of food the region’s most important
objective. In developing countries, some consider
that agriculture should be promoted in order tosecure jobs and revenues in rural regions and prevent population concentration in urban cities. Thiscannot be realized without securing the water necessary for agriculture. The agricultural sector is alsostrongly inﬂuenced by national policies. Thus, it must
be kept in mind that local coordination is sometimes
not enough.

2. How other sectors may impact the agricultural sector(Impacts by other water users)• There is the possibility that irrigation users may
not be able to obtain sufﬁcient water if otherwater users draw water upstream. If a structure,such as an intake weir, is to be constructed byanother water user upstream, that user will havephysical advantages in drawing water, and thus theirrigation user will be opposed to such action.
(Impacts by ﬂood management)• When there is a risk of ﬂooding due to an increasein river discharge, drainage from agricultural land
may be regulated, and prolonged inundation of theﬁelds may cause damage to the crops. The scale ofanticipated damage is dependent on the durationof inundation, land use and type of crops. Coordination of drainage operation rules accounting forsuch factors will be necessary.
• When ﬂoodwater is temporarily stored in a reservoir to lower the ﬂood discharge level, turbidity ofwater may persist even after the ﬂood has subsided,
depending on the nature of upstream sediment. If
river water is used as irrigation water immediately
after a ﬂood event it may impact water use.
(Impacts by the environmental sector)• The environmental sector demands that the agricultural sector minimize the impacts of agricultural
production activity to the environment or requests
alternate measures. For example, concrete channels for irrigation are conventionally designed inways that are efﬁcient from the economic standpoint. However, the environmental sector demands
channels using more natural materials such as
soil, rocks and wood. Considering environmental
conservation may increase costs or maintenanceneeds.
(Impacts by the hydropower sector)• Hydropower generation using dams discharges
water according to electricity demands. Thus, it

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2 – SECTORAL PERSPECTIVES

may cause large ﬂuctuations in river ﬂow downstream of the dam. It can also impact the stableintake or water quality of irrigation water.
3. Agricultural sector in relation to IWRM andthe advantages of IWRM
• If the agricultural sector wishes to conduct a large
infrastructure development, there is the possibilityof signiﬁcant cost reduction if the venture is jointly
implemented with other sectors. Furthermore, theagricultural sector may gain forms of compensation if it reaches compromise with other sectors
regarding the securing of water resources.
• By compromising on making decisions regarding
water resources the agricultural sector may be able
to receive compensation in another form, with thepossibility of covering potential losses. Thus, it isimportant to issue proposals regarding agricultural
production from a comprehensive standpoint.
• By uniting individual organizations or individuals in
the agriculture sector, the sector can represent asigniﬁcant amount of water resources. It can, therefore, facilitate the consensus-building process for
IWRM implementation and enhance the beneﬁts
achieved by the entire agricultural sector.
2.2.2 Domestic water supply sector- Requires water quality on top of water quantity

1. Interests of the domestic water supply sector(Sanitation and domestic water supply)
Domestic water supply provides clean water to people
in a stable manner and is highly public in its nature. Provision of safe drinking water may be normal in developed countries or cities but it is still a fundamental
demand for sustaining the lives of people in developing
counties and rural areas. Furthermore, water supply
in these areas will lead to improvements in the social
environment, such as less time fetching water, etc.
Provision of water supply in cities was originallydeveloped from the viewpoint of crisis management
in order to prevent water-related diseases. Supplied

water may be ‘drinkable’ or ‘not appropriate for drinking’. It is rare that water is ‘drinkable’ but in order tomeet the needs of improving the sanitary environment, the provision of water that is not necessarily
drinkable can be sufﬁcient.
(No alternative for domestic water supply utility)
Current domestic water supply in cities does not provide an opportunity for users to choose their service.
People have to use the only available water supply inthe area. There is probably no region where multiple
water supply utilities compete (or a user can choose
the water service).
Water pricing to collect initial investment and operation and maintenance costs depends on the area or
utility; however, the water source available is often
limited and regional differences in water pricing are
inevitable and of little interest to the water supply
sector. However, this issue is a primary concern for
most water users.
(Privatization and water supply)
In the past there were movements to privatize water
utilities to enhance proﬁts. However, such movements have been revised to balance the public aspectof water utilities in meeting the social needs together
with the business aspect of operation effectivenessand cost reduction.
(Water treatment technology and water source/water quality)
Before water treatment technology was developed
to its current level, an important consideration forwater sources for domestic water use was not only
‘quantity’, but ‘quality’. Thus, groundwater was often
utilized. River water was used if groundwater alone
could not meet the demand. Before treatment technology was developed to its current level, the sector sought better quality water upstream of rivers.
This often induced conﬂicts with existing water users
downstream, but for the water sector it was important that good quality water was obtained as a water
source. Furthermore, conventional water treatment
by rapid ﬁltration cannot treat dissolved substances.

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In recent years – however – with advances in treatment technologies, water quality is no longer a major
issue. It has now become possible to create drinking
water from treated wastewater.
2. How other sectors may impact the domestic water supply sector(Impacts by other water users)• There is the possibility that a domestic water supplier may not be able to obtain sufﬁcient water ifother water users draw water upstream. If a structure, such as an intake weir, is to be constructed byanother water user upstream, that user will havephysical advantages in drawing water, and thus thedomestic water supplier will be opposed to suchaction.
(Impacts by ﬂood management)• When ﬂoodwater is temporarily stored in a reservoir to lower the ﬂood discharge level, turbidity ofwater may persist even after the ﬂood has subsided,
depending on the nature of upstream sediment. If
river water is used for irrigation water immediately after a ﬂood event it may impact water use.
(Impacts by the sewerage and drainage sector)• A domestic water supplier will be affected if adrainage channel is connected, or efﬂuent from awastewater treatment plant is discharged close to
the intake location.
• Discharge water is often contaminated, thus thedomestic water supplier sector would demandthat any such discharge facility for drainage or awastewater treatment plant be situated downstream of the intake location.
• Treated wastewater could in some cases be recycled and utilized for domestic water supply.
3. Domestic water supply sector in relation to
IWRM and the advantages of IWRM
• When demands for water supply increase due tothe development of a new city, population growth
or a change in social situation, the domestic watersupply sector will have to locate new water sources,and be faced with the need to implement IWRM.
• When introducing IWRM, conformity with plansby other municipalities or water use sectors canbe ensured by accounting for upstream and downstream, right and left banks, and coordination
among municipalities or water utilities. Furthermore, infrastructure such as dams, intake weirs
and treatment plants can be jointly developed anda joint management framework can be established.
These can present substantial advantages to thedomestic water supply sector.
• If there is shortage of water due to population
growth or rapid urbanization, water transfers fromother uses, particularly the agriculture sector, canbecome an option, together with the developmentof new water resources infrastructure such as dams.
[New technologies and domestic water supply]With the advancement of water treatment technologies such as membranes, the cost of water
treatment is decreasing. With advanced andaffordable technologies becoming newly available,
water supply systems in developing countries now
have the possibility of taking completely different
approaches compared to developed countries
where water resources have typically been secured
through the construction of storage in upstream
regions, etc

2.2.3 Industrial water sector- Primary deciding factor is cost

1. Interests of the industrial water sector(Low-cost water and industrial water)
The primary concern of the industrial water sector
is how to obtain and provide low-cost water and discharge waterwater in the least expensive way. Cost is
the primary deciding factor.
Compared to the domestic water supply sector,
which does not provide an alternative option for

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2 – SECTORAL PERSPECTIVES

users, the industrial water sector is much more sensitive to the demand for cost-effectiveness. The industries themselves are greatly inﬂuenced by aspects
other than water (logistics, employment, environment,etc.), thus, it is difﬁcult to develop long-term demand
projections compared to domestic water supply.
(Groundwater utilization and industrial water)Industrial water in earlier days was abstracted mostly
from groundwater.This is because groundwater was acheap and stable water source with high water quality. Drawing water from rivers requires water use
rights, infrastructure development and water quality
adjustment (treatment), thus, the use of river water
for industrial use is discouraged if possible.
Excessive abstraction of groundwater in alluvial plains
may induce ground subsidence or groundwater salination, resulting in deterioration of groundwater quality.
Users of industrial water are mostly private entities,
and thus such problems are likely to occur if there isno adequate regulation.
(Water quantity, water quality and industrial water)Industries that use large amounts of water such as
steel, oil, chemical or paper industries select locations with easy access to water. Industrial water,
unlike domestic water, demands varying levels ofwater quantity or quality depending on the usage. For
example, advanced IT-related companies purify water
themselves and thus the industrial water supplier may
only need to provide raw water.
Discharging used industrial water directly into theriver may cause severe contamination downstream.
Industrial water users understand this but generally
consider it only necessary to meet the regulatory
standards for industrial water discharge.
2. How other sectors may impact the industrial water sector(Impacts by other water users)• There is the possibility that an industrial water
user/supplier may not be able to obtain sufﬁcientwater if other water users abstract water upstream.

If a structure, such as an intake weir, is to be constructed by another water user upstream, that user
will have physical advantages in drawing water, andthus the industrial water user/supplier will oppose
to such action.
3. Industrial water sector in relation to IWRM
and the advantages of IWRM
• If the industrial water sector wishes to conduct alarge infrastructure development there could be apossibility of signiﬁcant cost reduction if it is jointly
implemented with other sectors.
2.2.4 Hydropower sector- How to generate the maximum amount of energy
from water

1. Interests of the hydropower sector
Electricity is indispensable for the development of theregion and the country, and both the private sector
and governments have promoted power generation
projects. Power development generally implemented
over a wide area has high added value. It contributes toindustrial development and creates employment, andthus often forms a primary focus for developing countries as the foundation for regional industrial activities
and people’s lives.
(Characteristics of electricity)• Electricity cannot be stored, thus facility capacity
generally exceeds demand peak.
• The same can be said for instant supply and demand,and lack of ﬂexibility in supply often leads to inefﬁcient operation.
• There is often no alternative service for power supply and thus the price of power has a public utility
cost.
• Infrastructure investment and cost collection plans
are long-term.
• It can be distributed over a wider area, compared towater (and is possible to transmit long-distance).
Generally, hydropower generation in its early stages wasused to provide power for local consumption, such as
factories. Although usually commencing in the form of

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private projects, it soon expands to general implementation in combination with other electricity sources
to provide economic and efﬁcient electricity supply
nationwide. In many countries hydropower development began before irrigation water development.
Hydropower generation often has lower runningcosts than thermal power generation, thus generating
more electricity through hydropower and less throughthermal power is ideal. Hydropower generation does
not consume water as compared to other water-use
sectors. However, hydropower generation upstreamof a river harnesses the potential energy of water to
its maximum extent. The hydropower sector plans
to exploit this potential energy by utilizing as muchwater as possible, and building multiple power generation facilities. Its priority is efﬁcient power generation;
if that causes rivers to run dry, that is considered aninevitable cost.
Hydropower generation uses dams to generate power
depending on demand, and thus the discharged water
quantity ﬂuctuates. This also inﬂuences water temperature. Thus, consideration for other sectors andenvironment would be necessary. The hydropower
sector may take measures to reduce its inﬂuence
downstream by controlling discharges, but the sector
is not proactive in this regard without the effect ofinvestment.
Thus, the hydropower sector considers investment
and the efﬁciency of power generation among its priorities, and river ﬂow and the environment are only
considered when required, through environmental
assessments, etc.
2. How other sectors may impact the hydropower sector(Impacts by other water users)• If other water users increase their water intake
upstream of a hydropower plant, the water available
for hydropower generation will be reduced. This
will also reduce the power generation capacity ofthe plant. Power generation is directly linked to therevenue of the hydropower sector, thus the sector

will oppose any newly permitted forms of abstraction by new water users or otherwise may seek
compensation.
3. Hydropower sector in relation to IWRM andthe advantages of IWRM
• In developed countries where public awarenesson environmental conservation is high and there
is a high level of public participation, it is difﬁcult
to plan new hydropower projects without overall
coordination. If the hydropower sector actively participates in IWRM and facilitates consensus building
with relevant stakeholders with a special focus onenvironmental conservation, this will facilitate project planning and implementation, and will become
an advantage for the sector.

[Hydropower planning and management][High priority on investment efﬁciency in hydropower project planning]
When a hydropower project is planned, investment
efﬁciency (proﬁt) is the obvious factor in decisionmaking.
[Hydropower management]
Hydropower practitioners secure funding needed
for water through the collection of electricity
charges. Hydropower facilities are mechanical andcan manage discharge relatively precisely by measuring the electricity generated.

2.2.5 Sewerage (sanitation)/drainage sector- How to collect wastewater efﬁciently and whereto discharge it

1. Interests of the sewerage/drainage sector(Maintaining sanitary environment and crisis management)
Providing access to sanitation is as important as asafe water supply in maintaining public hygiene andproviding a sanitary environment. For example, thesewerage system must account for stormwaterotherwise urban areas can ﬂood due to a lack of

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2 – SECTORAL PERSPECTIVES

stormwater discharge capacity and lead to backﬂow
of sewage or wastewater causing extremely unsanitaryconditions. This could cause the spreading of waterrelated diseases.
If wastewater is discharged upstream of a river due toan underdeveloped sewerage system, the downstream
river becomes inappropriate as a water source fordomestic water supply. In many regions of the world
large cities are often situated downstream of large rivers. Wastewater disposal upstream can bring about acrisis situation in such cities.
For a city, development of a sewerage system in the
upstream region of a river that ﬂows down through acity is a crisis management issue.
(Recycling of wastewater)
Wastewater, if treated to an appropriate level, can beeffectively reused for water-use purposes. A sewerage system is thus very important in order to recycle
wastewater and to utilize it as a water resource.
(Urban drainage)
Drainage facilities in urban cities are sometimes notdeveloped fast enough and heavy rains can cause inundations in the lowlands of cities resulting in severe
damage to underground spaces. Garbage thrown intodrainage channels often prevents drainage and intensiﬁes the damage caused by inundations.
(Public nature)
Sewerage and drainage systems are highly public innature. The efﬁcient collection of wastewater, treatedto the level requested by society, then discharged
downstream as quickly as possible are of paramountimportance.
2. How other sectors may impact the sewerage/drainage sector(Impacts by other water users)• National and regional managers in the sewerage ordrainage sector have to decide upon the discharge
location by negotiating with other water-use sectors
and the environmental sector. If the discharge loca-

tion is set immediately upstream of the water-intake
location of a water-use sector, it can cause a conﬂict.
From the economic perspective, to be able to discharge at the closest location possible is ideal, butfrom the water users’ perspectives it is necessary
to discharge downstream or in another river. The
bypassing of water using a wide-area sewerage network also raises questions.
(Impacts by environmental sector)• Water quality is also an important issue for consideration. It is technically possible to treat wastewater to the appropriate level. This also presents theadvantage of reusing water for other purposes. On
the other hand, it costs more, as the treatment level
gets higher. The issue of who covers this cost is ofgreat interest to this sector.
(Impacts by ﬂood management)• Rapid drainage of stormwater into rivers may cause
an increase of river ﬂow and may intensify ﬂood
risks downstream. Flood managers will, thus, demand
coordinated implementation of drainage operations
and ﬂood control.
3. Sewerage and drainage sector in relation to
IWRM and the advantages of IWRM
• The drainage location and drainage water quality are
the important aspects that need coordination andconsensus building with other sectors. Furthermore,participating in IWRM from the aspect of securing
water quantity will enhance interaction with stakeholders. By improving drainage water quality, one
may be able to set a closer drainage location. It canlead to overall economic beneﬁts, ensuring adequate
river ﬂow and recycling of wastewater, etc.

2.3 ENVIRONMENTAL SECTOR’SPERSPECTIVE- Ensuring ecological diversity and social consensus
1. Interests of the environmental sector(Maintenance of sustainable environment)
The principal interest of environmental managers is to

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ensure a sustainable environment over a long-term
perspective. They prevent excessive, shortsighted
development and call for the restoration of the natural environment. They demand and display requests
to other water-related sectors. If these demands aresocial demands the coordinator will have to determine if social consensus can be attained for suchdemands including its cost allocation.
(Maintaining the natural ecological state)
The environmental sector pursues the maintenanceof the environment in its natural ecological state,
striving for the preservation of forests or rivers without human inﬂuence.
From their perspective, over-extraction of water ordrainage from and to rivers causing insufﬁcient water
for the environment, or dams or weirs changing ﬂowvariability in rivers, are considered to be problems.
(Environmental conservation in harmony with humanactivities)
In areas where communities developed slowly
around irrigation agriculture, environmental ecology has established within the interaction between
nature and human activities. Such an environment
is not without human inﬂuence but a harmony or abalance exists between human activities and nature.
There are opinions that such environments withsome level of human inﬂuences should be conservedin their present state.
For example, shallow riparian waters, tributaries andstreams, or networks of irrigation channels and thesurrounding agricultural land can be considered asforms of ecological habitats for fauna and ﬂora.
(Added value of the environment)
In recent years focus on the added value of theenvironment has increased through the concept of
ecosystem services. It is in the interest of the environmental sector to raise the overall value of theenvironment in a basin-wide manner, together with
eco-tourism and environmental education.

2. How other sectors may impact the environment
Environmental conservation is an important objective of IWRM for developing a sustainable society.
Environmental perspectives should exist in every
sector and should be coordinated within the waterrelated sectors in order to realize IWRM.
(Impacts by water-use sectors)• Abstraction of water from rivers impacts theenvironment downstream of the intake location.
Excessive water abstraction, for example for ricecultivation or hydropower generation will preventthe river downstream from receiving adequate
amounts of water ﬂow, which may cause drying
up of the river or worsening of water quality, leading to deterioration of the aquatic environment.
Discharge of wastewater or used water into rivers will increase ﬂow quantity but may deteriorate
river water quality.
• Over-abstraction of groundwater by water-use
sectors will lead to ground subsidence, groundwater salination or changes in groundwater quality.
• Structures placed in rivers for water-use purposes
may impact the environment, for example, bydirectly disrupting the surrounding environment,
preventing ﬁsh passing, or reducing the river ﬂow
downstream. Construction of large-scale structures such as dams or intake weirs, in particular,
will alter the natural environment signiﬁcantly. The
environmental sector demands that all water-use
sectors minimize their impacts to the environment or implement alternate measures. For example, installation of an intake weir for water uses
will prevent ﬁsh species from moving upstream
or downstream. The environmental sector will
demand the installation of ﬁsh ladders, or ensurethat passage of ﬁsh is adequately secured.
• Overuse or improper use of pesticides and fertilizers in agricultural practices may negatively impact
water quality or ecological habitats.

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3.The environment in relation to IWRM andthe advantages of IWRM
• IWRM cannot exist without the introduction ofenvironmental perspectives, thus, the implementation of IWRM is a deﬁnite advantage for the environmental sector. However, the economic perspective is also important in gaining the consensus of
relevant sectors, thus the importance of the environment has to prioritized in social demands.

2.4 FLOOD MANAGEMENTSECTOR’S PERSPECTIVES- Protecting the lives and properties of residents living in the river basin
1. Interests of the ﬂood management sector(Minimizing ﬂood damage)The primary concern for ﬂood managers is to protect
people and their properties in the river basin fromﬂoods and to minimize damage in a basin-wide manner. Promptly realizing the beneﬁts of ﬂood control
measures is the priority of ﬂood managers. In thisregard, ﬂood managers consider it necessary to collaborate closely with managers responsible for IWRM
in order to ensure complete coordination with othersectors and stakeholders as efﬁciently as possible.
2. How other sectors may impact ﬂood management(Impacts by water use sectors)• In withdrawing water from rivers, water-use sectors want their water-intake facilities and locations
to enable efﬁcient water diversion.
Water intake structures may block ﬂoodwater
ﬂow. Fewer and smaller structures are desired.
• When developing multi-purpose water storage
facilities such as dams, water-use sectors want tosecure as much capacity as possible for water utilization.
Due to the limitations of dam capacity, thismay interfere with ﬂood-control capacity andefﬁcient ﬂood control operations.

• During ﬂood events, the agricultural sector tries
to drain stormwater from their agricultural landas early as possible in order to avoid prolonged
ﬂooding of crops and resulting negative impacts toagricultural production.
The timing and quantity of drainage needs tobe controlled taking into account river waterlevels.
• When a structure that crosses a river channel(such as a distribution line for domestic, industrial
or agricultural water) is being planned or designed
by a water-use sector, they would normally try toﬁnd a location, direction or structural design for
their structure (bridge, siphon or tunnel) that can
distribute water in the most economical way.
In order to prevent such structures fromblocking ﬂood ﬂow or negatively impacting
ﬂood control facilities such as levees, thewater-use sector plan regarding the location/direction of the structure needs to bechanged accounting for levels of impacts suchas ﬂood-ﬂow interference or impacts on ﬂood
control facilities, etc. It should also accountfor river improvement/construction plans forlevees, facilities, water courses, etc.
(Impacts by the drainage and sewerage sector)• Drainage and sewerage sectors want their drainage
facilities and locations to enable fast and efﬁcientstormwater drainage into rivers via urban or sewerdrainage systems in order to prevent inland ﬂooding.
In areas where drainage facilities for inland ﬂood
control are extensively developed, but the river
channel does not have adequate ﬂood control
measures implemented, drainage activities orconstruction of further drainage facilities could
cause the ﬂood discharge capacity of the river
to be exceeded. Prohibiting or restricting drainage operations/activities during ﬂood eventsshould be discussed with ﬂood managers. It isnecessary to set drainage locations in a manner that minimizes ﬂood risk of the basin byaccounting for areas that need to be protectedor are vulnerable to ﬂood risks.

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(Impacts by the environmental sector)• The environmental sector is concerned about theenvironmental impacts of constructing or improving ﬂood control infrastructure.
There could be total opposition from theenvironmental sector, as well as requests
for revising plans, further implementation ofenvironmental impact reduction measures,or detailed investigations and reassessments
based on the ﬁndings of investigations, etc.
These could lead to delays in the realizationof beneﬁts from ﬂood control measures.
• The environmental sector considers it desirable
that habitats for fauna and ﬂora be maintained intheir natural condition. They consider that native
vegetation species including trees in river channels
should be conserved.
Tree growth in river channels can interferewith ﬂood discharge, or negatively impact
ﬂood control facilities such as levees andgates.
(Impacts by municipalities and developers)• Local municipalities may consider developing housing and industries in the basin with public convenience, and industry as their priorities.
Such developments will increase ﬂood risks
and could interfere with river improvement
projects.
• They may seek to make effective use of available
land by promoting the development of natural andunused land.
This will reduce the inﬁltration and water
retention capacities of the basin areas, resulting in higher basin runoff and higher risk of
ﬂooding.
• Local municipalities and developers may wish toutilize and develop land in the basin to optimize
use of the land resources.
Increased usage of waterfront areas will
increase ﬂooding risks. It may also interferewith river channel improvement. Develop-

ment in the basin reduces stormwater permeability and the storage capacities of thebasin. Flood runoff increases and heightens
ﬂood risks in the area.
• Local municipalities and developers may wish toutilize the waterfront area of rivers and lakes andpromote the use of facilities situated in such areas,such as sports facilities, parks, promenades, etc.
They may wish to promote greater uses of theriver and water recreational spaces.
More use of waterfront areas of river andlakes during ﬂood events increases ﬂood
risks in the area. Locating facilities along thewaterfront will also increase ﬂood risks.
(Relevance to society as a whole)• Society recognizes the threats of ﬂoods and theimportance of ﬂood risk management when hit
by a large ﬂood disaster, but as time passes thatawareness fades. This is particularly prominent inareas where people do not suffer directly fromﬂoods.
Flood managers are concerned by this andwant society to remain alert to potential
ﬂood risks as these can occur at any time.
(Impacts by other sectors)• Fisheries are dependent on the existing environment of rivers. The ﬁshery sector will oppose
destruction of ﬁsh habitats for ﬂood management.
They will also wish to be able to make use of theirvessels and construct infrastructure, such as ports,
in locations efﬁcient for their business.
Flood control measures that cause signiﬁcantriver and basin alteration may be restrictedfrom the standpoint of ﬁsheries conservation. Fisheries infrastructure may interferewith ﬂood ﬂow or ﬂood control facility construction. Furthermore, decreasing normal
ﬂow will also interfere with their navigation.
• When a structure that crosses a river channel(such as roads, railways and lifeline infrastructure)
is being planned or designed by other sectors, they

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would normally try to ﬁnd a location, direction or
structural design for their structure that is most
efﬁcient and economical.
In order to prevent such structures fromblocking ﬂood ﬂow or negatively impacting
ﬂood control facilities such as levees, coordination is necessary with other sectors
regarding the location/direction of the structure and levels of impacts such as ﬂood-ﬂow
interference or impacts on ﬂood control
facilities, etc. It should also account for river
improvement/construction plans for levees,
facilities, water courses, etc.
• Navigation sectors or those who transport goods
and people using boats may try to construct docks
or mooring facilities in a convenient location andtry to moor on water for efﬁcient transport. They
may also dredge channels in order to ensure adequate navigable space and the preferred route fornavigation.
Such activities may interfere with ﬂood ﬂow.
The facility locations and their size have tobe accounted for and there must be coordination with their representative in order toprevent such impacts. Dredging may increase
the discharge capacity of the channel but
over-dredging or dredging close to structures
could cause river ﬂow to scour river facilities
and cause negative impacts.
• People living in poverty may be living or cultivatingon the ﬂood channel plain of a river.
This increases ﬂood risks. Coordination withother policy measures needs to be considered in order to prevent proliferation of new
settlements into areas of ﬂood risk and to
facilitate the smooth relocation of existing
inhabitants.

municipalities as well as residents. Flood managers
are generally found on the coordination end of
IWRM, with the relevant stakeholders and managers responsible for overall IWRM coordination.
• Flood risk management contributes to meetingoverall IWRM objectives in the basin by preventing disastrous damage caused by ﬂoods, and hence
enhancing the social and economic welfare of thebasin. Its existing framework for negotiating withbasin stakeholders can also be utilized for overall
IWRM coordination, allowing for efﬁcient stakeholder participation and coordination.
• Flood control not only mitigates ﬂood disasters
but also provides beneﬁts for water-use sectors.
Temporarily stored ﬂoodwater in facilities/reservoirs can be allocated for later water use. This canlead to cost-effective multi-sector collaboration,
where ﬂood managers as well as water-use sectors can all beneﬁt from working together.
• Firmly positioning ﬂood risk management as partof IWRM objectives ensures enhancement of prevention and preparedness capacities of the basin
against future ﬂood risks.
• Flood managers can also beneﬁt from the overall
IWRM arrangement in implementing ﬂood risk
management projects by utilizing the overall participatory/coordination framework. This facilitates
the gaining of consensus from relevant stakeholders and enables project objectives to be achievedin an efﬁcient manner.
• Floods may bring beneﬁts to the basin in termsof fertile soil suitable for cultivation or by supporting the ecological functions of ﬂoodplains or
wetlands.

3. Flood management in relation to IWRM
and the advantages of IWRM
• The management of ﬂood risks needs to be implemented through the involvement of various basinstakeholders, including development sectors,
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2.5 OVERALL COORDINATIONPERSPECTIVES- Are stakeholders convinced? Is it socially justiﬁable?
The last part of this chapter describes how managers
in charge of coordinating IWRM in the basin (such as
in a river basin organizations) think and act.
IWRM is a process that (1) promotes coordinatedmanagement of water resources among all stakeholders, (2) integrates management of water andland resources, and (3) facilitates information-sharing and participation among the people involved.
Managers coordinating the IWRM effort understandthe necessity for IWRM and seek to make progress.
However, that requires a ﬁrm understanding of theinterests and concerns of other water-user sectors,
environmental managers, and ﬂood managers.
The manager leading the coordination may not beaware of the history of water use or ﬂood control
efforts in the basin, or may set unrealistic goals fromthe beginning, or rush to reach a consensus without sufﬁcient assessment or consultations. In thesecases, individual sectors will make their oppositionand case known to the coordinator. It is importantthat such opinions are well understood by thoseleading the coordination process in order to ensurethat it proceeds smoothly and efﬁciently.

Coordinators can sometimes be inﬂuenced by the
supporting organization or opinions of politicaldecision-makers, but unjust coordination will cause
problems later on. For example, if a stakeholder
thinks that he/she suffered from a disadvantage incoordination when developing an infrastructure, itwill become extremely difﬁcult to obtain his/her
consensus when the infrastructure ages and needs
to be rehabilitated/improved.
It is also important that the coordinator is sociallytrusted, and that the content of the IWRM coordination is justiﬁable to all relevant stakeholders andsociety. Thus, ensuring transparency through proactive information dissemination is one of the coordinator’s most important responsibilities.
Moreover, collaboration with sectors other thanthose related to water could enhance IWRM coordination. Land-use management is a good example.
For example, land and water resources can be utilized more efﬁciently by ensuring consistency inriver improvement through urban or agriculturalland-use planning, and developing roads or agricultural infrastructure simultaneously. By establishing
the possibility of coordination with sectors otherthan water sectors, the coordinator will be able togain the trust of other water users.

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3. Key for Success in Implementing IWRM
- Practical Guidelines for Irrigation Practitioners

A ‘Key for Success’ is a key that can be used in practiceto help make IWRM succeed. It is a key to establishingbreakthroughs in potentially challenging situations or
to opening the door to better IWRM. It provides tips
and clues for making progress in the IWRM process.
Many of the keys for success have been proven inpractice. Some are generic, in other words, apply to
successful example of IWRM; others may apply only
to speciﬁc situations, and some may not be in place
as yet.
IWRM planning and its implementation, whether
regarding development of an infrastructure or theestablishment of an institutional or legislative framework, typically follow the process indicated below.
Readers can either follow the process, or jump directly
to the phase that concerns them to identify speciﬁc
solutions to problems or issues.
Although this chapter chieﬂy concerns irrigation,it also mentions drainage issues in relation to irrigation.
It is recommended that the keys for successdetailed in Part 2.1 of ‘The Guidelines for IWRM
Coordination’ be referred to in situations where
the agricultural sector needs to play a leading rolein implementing a new IWRM.

Fig. 3.1 Typical IWRM Process

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3.1 RECOGNIZING AND
IDENTIFYING
The important part of this phase is to ‘recognize’
the need for IWRM and to grasp the overall pictureof existing issues in the basin. Things to note in thisphase are:

• Do you understand the needs and problems? Are
you in need of IWRM?
• Are you aware of past evaluation results and thecurrent situation?
• Are you thinking into the future?

3.1.1 Recognition

1.1.1
Be aware that your agricultural water use is related to water resources in the basin, and increase of yourwater use inﬂuences the overall balance of relationships among water users in the basin.
If the scale of your agricultural water use is relatively
small, then it may only depend upon water resourcesin the limited local area. However, if water use exceeds
a certain level, then it will affect the water resourcesin the basin in some manner.
At a larger scale, approaches have been developed tochange the amount of water used in basins in response
to farmers’ demands to resolve water shortages,
and new agricultural national policies intended toincrease food production. These approaches – additional water resources/newly constructed water
intakes etc. – represent the same relationship towater resources in the basin. The situation is also thesame when agricultural water use is scaled down.
If the agricultural sector depends too much on riverwater, there are consequent impacts on other farmers downstream/water uses or intakes of other sectors, the ecology of habitats and the river environment, and water quality in the river downstream. In

the case of dam construction, the impacts will affect
all water users downstream of the dam to someextent.
Moreover, increase of agricultural water use brings
about an increase of discharge from farmlands, inother words, an increase of water released into thedownstream river. The resulting changes from thesedischarges also impact all downstream users.
Other farmers/sectors may point out the impacts
caused by changes in agricultural water use, and callfor resolution/mitigation of the problems.
Therefore, it is necessary to identify and quantify
problems and analyse alternatives and compensation.
It is also necessary to share information among project planners, beneﬁciaries (farmers), and the public
administrations that will pay the cost.

1.1.2
Be aware that water use by other sectors and other users in the agricultural sector in the basin will have an
incidence on your agricultural activities. Change in water use by them will affect the balance in the relationship between your agricultural water use and the water resources.

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Water use by other sectors and other agriculturalusers in the basin, whose use of water exceeds certain levels, will have already affected your agricultural
water use in some way. Additional water use plannedby other sectors, for example, newly developed water
resources as a result of dam construction or newly

constructed intakes upstream, will change the relationship to the water resources in the basin. Commitment to new water resources management due
to changes in the basin will therefore be an inevitablepart of your agricultural water use.

1.1.3
Be aware of the necessity for coordination and cooperation with other sectors to solve conﬂicts resulting
from an existing or changing water resources management framework in the basin.
Coordination in the basin is necessary as change
occurs, whether or not this is your own initiative. It
is important for the agricultural sector to recognizethat it can gain advantage or minimize disadvantage byactively cooperating and coordinating with the othersectors concerned.

3.1.2 Identiﬁcation of problems and needs

1.2.1
Identify the problems to be coordinated with other sectors in the basin concerning your agricultural activities. A future view of agriculture in the whole basin should also be presented at the same time. Possibilities
and issues for cooperation/competition over water utilities in the basin with others in the agricultural sector or other sectors should then be clariﬁed.
Agricultural potential (resources) and the possibility
for its improvement should be clearly identiﬁed witha focus on problems to be solved.
A survey should be conducted on the current condition of agriculture including farmland, water resources,
meteorology, marketing, farm roads, and farming patterns, as well as abstract problems concerning water
utility including maintenance and management. Water
resources and a water use plan should also be considered. Problems relating to coordination with othersectors in the basin should then be extracted.
A future vision of agriculture in the whole basin should
be foreseen with an associated analysis of the agricultural condition of the targeted and adjacent regions.
It is important to consider whether effective agricultural activities can be achieved through the devel-

opment of facilities and introducing proper farming
methods either jointly or in cooperation with suchadjacent regions. Furthermore, taking social demand
into account, reformation of water use involving
other sectors – including harmonization of the natural environment – should be considered alongside an
examination of effects and impacts on the water use
system in the basin.
For example, in cases where there is an apparent
conversion or degradation of cultivated/irrigatedagricultural land in urban areas and suburbs, a severe
demand for urban water, and the possibility of achieving more efﬁcient water use in irrigation systems, acertain amount of agricultural water may be converted to urban water by functional improvements in
the irrigation system.

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1.2.2
Consider stakeholders, areas, and timing for coordination.
Stakeholders and areas for coordination should be
identiﬁed by following the process mentioned above
and identifying the scale of project. In the case ofdeveloping water resources through the construction of dams, a number of stakeholders including riveradministrators and other sectors should be involved.

A check should also be made to see if the planmatches higher-level agricultural strategies/plans andplans of other sectors. Moreover, such sectors should
be involved at the earliest possible stage.

3.1.3 Public awareness and accountability

1.3.1
Consider whether or not problems to be coordinated with other sectors are shared within the organization, whether the principles to solve them are fully supported, and whether they are open to compromise
to some extent.
Agricultural areas in which water management is
implemented jointly may have in the past experienced
water conﬂicts between villages, on opposite sides ofriver banks or between upstream and downstream
users. These disputes may re-occur depending on
the results of coordination. Before coordinating withother sectors, potential internal problems such as
current water use conditions in the area, historicalbackground, interests and rights and power struggles

inside the sector should be discussed and acknowledged by members in the sector.
Furthermore, it is important to discuss beforehand towhat extent members in the sector can make compromises or how water value can be evaluated etc.,
in the event that compromise seems to be inevitable
during the course of coordination.

1.3.2
Consider whether or not the problems and their solutions are considered to be socially fair and acceptedby society.
Consider if the agricultural plans, and the problems
pointed out by other stakeholders/sectors and theirsolutions/alternatives/compensations are justiﬁable
and reasonable from the viewpoint of both the agricultural party and the third party, as well as in termsof legislation. Analyse reasonable sets of solutions interms of equity.

It is necessary to create mutual understanding withother stakeholders by sharing information. Always try
to disseminate concrete actions, such as how agricultural water is used and managed and how it contributes to the region. Otherwise, the agricultural sector
may be criticized for being inﬂexible, and wasting its
time on internal matters and domestic disputes.

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3.1.4 Capacity development

1.4.1
Develop the capacity of a leader who can recognize problems, ﬁnd necessary solutions, and implementthem.
• An irrigation practitioner as a coordinator among many stakeholders requires a leadership role. Leading
a coordination effort requires a good understanding of the standpoints of individual stakeholder groups
while keeping sight of the overall picture. One important ability of such a leader is the skill to recognize
problems and ﬁnd necessary solutions.

• When an agricultural sector coordinates withother sectors, the irrigation practitioner as a coordinator is required to have an appropriate understanding of the problems faced by each sector, andan extensive knowledge and understanding of thebasin. However, knowledge alone is not enough.
Ample experience, the ability to understand diverse
perspectives, and the willingness to learn and gain
wisdom backed by knowledge and experience areneeded as well.
o It is important to ﬁrst learn as much as possible from previous examples, by visiting andstudying basins that have experienced similar
situations. Talking with people with a wealthof experience leads to greater knowledge
and insight, turning those experiences into
your own. This helps build quality as a leader.
o Personnel exchanges between sectors to gain
deeper knowledge and know-how of sectors operating in the basin or exchanges withother river basin organizations can also be
effective ways of building capacity.
o Training programmes should be hands-on andpractical, enabling trainees to experience as
many life-based situations as possible. Onthe-job training can also prove useful.

o Actively participating in related meetings andtraining is desirable as it broadens specialist
knowledge.
o Make use of international capacity development initiatives for river basin organizations.
• IWRM coordination is a human-intensive effort,
and requires the capacities as well as the motivations of those involved. Thus, appropriate forms of
incentives should be considered as part of a multifaceted approach. It is important that the value of
involvement in IWRM activities is recognized andthat there is an accompanying sense of fulﬁllment
or satisfaction.

3.2 CONCEPTUALIZINGThe point of this phase is to understand the overall
structure of the problem and conceptualize future
actions. Things to note in this phase are:
• Is it in line with social demands?
• Is it well balanced?
• Do you understand the constraints, and are you
exploring ‘what you can do?’

3.2.1 Assessment

2.1.1
Collect the information necessary to establish the relationship between a new vision of your own agriculture and the water utility.

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Firstly, it is necessary to recognize the direction yourform of agriculture will take. For that purpose, prepare an agricultural plan utilizing fundamental data,such as what crops should be grown and how andwho will grow them, farmers’ motivations, market
needs, accessibility to the market, and so on.

2.1.2
Collect the required data on water resources management including information on other sectors inthe basin.
Grasp basic characteristics such as the boundary of
the basin, precipitation, discharge, ﬂow rate, water
quality, ecological aspects etc, and collect data on
current conditions of water intake/use, existingwater regimes and proposed or potential wateruse plans in the area for coordination. In parallelwith this, collect information on the historical back-ground of the region/basin with a focus on existingwater rights.
Then, conceptualize the target area, the water-use
method, the water resources development plan andpoint of intake etc. and identify problems for coordination.

2.1.3
Always keep eyes, ears and mind focused on the real situation in the ﬁeld.
• Focusing only on text and numerical information prevents you from identifying potential issues and realneeds. Building ﬁeld knowledge through frequent site visits improves one’s ability to validate data or
analyse results.
• Direct information obtained on-site can provide agreat many insights into ways to solve problems.
For example, the condition of ageing or deteriorating facilities is easier to see rather than determine
from numerical data or photographs.

• In order to ensure the validity of information
obtained on-site, more than one person at a timeshould conduct site investigations, as individual
persons may interpret the same information differently.

2.1.4
Conducting interviews with relevant people/sectors can prove effective.
• Conducting interviews as part of an assessment is quite effective for identifying problems and possible
solutions in the river basin. It is important to think and act noting that it is an initial contact with thestakeholder, and coordination has already started at this point.
• When conducting interviews, it is important toobtain advance information about the person to beinterviewed, including their position, what sector
group he/she represents, their interests, etc.
• It is important to select an appropriate person tomeet, who can provide you with the information
you need. For example, if you need information

regarding operational issues of water resourcesmanagement in the river basin, meet with an ofﬁcer
working at ﬁeld level rather than a high-level ofﬁcial in the organization. It should be noted, however,that contacting personnel at the ﬁeld level directly
may cause distrust of the partner organization.

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2.1.5
Investigate the existence of farmers’ groups such as water user’s associations, whether or not it functions
properly, and how well the relationship between the farmers’ group and other sectors/stakeholders has
been working.
There are a number of farmers’ associations andcoordination mechanisms among farmers. Such existing organizations or frameworks can be utilized insolving problems depending on the scale and typeof the problems. When developing a new agriculturalactivity, it is necessary to consider the establishmentof a farmers’ organization. It is advisable to investigate
in advance the relationship between farmers’ orga-

nizations and other stakeholders/sectors, for example, farmers in the downstream area of the river, thedomestic water-use sector, and municipalities.
On the other hand, the establishment of a farmers’organization within the area where new collective
irrigation farming has been developed should beconsidered.

2.1.6
Make effective use of conventional technologies and methods applied in the basin or the region.
There are many cases in the agricultural sector
where conventional technologies and methods
have been applied in the targeted region. These
present certain advantages; their applicability andstability has been assured over a long time, rules
regarding water distribution and sequence of drainage are operational, and practical and effective use
can be made of materials easily obtained in theregion. It is necessary to consider applying suchtechnologies and methods to new irrigation plans

to make operation and maintenance both effective
and practical.
A fair and appropriate level of technology for theregion or for the socio-economic condition must be
applied both in terms of software and hardware inorder to effectively implement IWRM. To this end, it
is important to be aware of the technologies used in
the basin and region, and to share this information
among relevant sectors.

2.1.7
Adopt new technologies applicable to the river basin or region.
• IWRM activities in the basin can be enhanced through the adaptation of new technologies. New technologies can include technologies for collecting or analysing more accurate data, or for more precise
facility operation. Adapting new technologies, knowledge and creative ideas helps secure and improvethe management of water resources.
• It is important to make efforts to collect information on new technologies and knowledge. At thesame time, it is necessary to examine the applicability of existing technologies in the basin for IWRMrelated survey, design, construction and management.
• When introducing new technologies to replace a
conventional method currently used, it is necessary
to examine the beneﬁt and cost of applying suchtechnologies including their future feasibility.
• When examining the application of new technologies, it is necessary to take into account maintenance requirements. If facilities or devices introduced are made overseas, repairing or obtaining
spare parts may be costly or difﬁcult. In such cases
the introduced facilities or devices may not be able
to fully function as originally expected.

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3.2.2 Conceptualization
The ‘conceptualization’ step is particularly important in the IWRM process.

2.2.1
Try to search at an early stage for cooperative work with other agricultural projects or other sector’s
projects that have similar concepts to the IWRM your own agricultural sector intends to improve.
It is advisable to research the possibility of coordinating with other stakeholders in the agricultural sector
and other sectors. Proactive exchange of informationand cooperation between stakeholders/sectors isnecessary in order to construct a joint IWRM plan.

2.2.2
Try to set up an organization composed of other sectors sharing similar concepts to IWRM, to promote a
speciﬁc project or plan.
It is advisable to set up a promotion committee comprised of related sectors and stakeholders to promote speciﬁc projects or plans. This can be effective

in sharing information among organization members
and unifying intentions.

2.2.3
Clearly deﬁne the agricultural sector’s standpoint when you start the coordination process.
1. You should observe carefully whether or not thecoordination mechanism is favourable to the agricultural sector’s interests, and satisfying to thesector when coordination is left to other persons/organizations.
2. You should make your position clear beforehand
as to the following items when starting the coordination process:1) The kind of agriculture you want.
2) The amount of and quality of water you need/want.
3) Where is the water and how to secure theuse of it?
4) The kind of agriculture that is possible, considering the available amount of water.
5) The value of the water.

2.2.4
Consider whether or not members in your own group, partners or the coordinator agree on the directionof coordination.
The coordination process and plan should be examined to ensure that they are well balanced and thatconsensus can be reached from three viewpoints: theagricultural sector, partner sectors, and other sectors.
Consensus will not be reached among these actors if
the plan is biased towards a speciﬁc purpose.

3.2.3 Draft planning

2.3.1
Conﬁrm the future course of your own agriculture, taking into account restrictions of time, degree of satisfaction, and consideration of the natural environment.

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Because the agricultural water system is open to its
surroundings, it has a relationship to its surrounding natural environment to a certain extent. A basic
plan along the following points should be clariﬁed andstrengthened, taking into account the condition ofregional resources. The plan should also broadly andcarefully examine the impact on the natural environment as an ecosystem, alongside its performance fromthe point of view of multi-functionality.
1. Examine and outline a future course of agriculture
and its goals and potentially available resources.

2. Prepare a draft plan for a project area, water
resources/water utility, location and method ofwater intake, and so on.
3. The above items should be decided upon after
consideration of costs and beneﬁts, time limitations (aiming too high risks loss of control of
coordination), and these should then be balanced
alongside related matters.
4. Consider a staged development plan if present
social and economic conditions are not sufﬁciently mature.

2.3.2
Draw up possible implementation plans beforehand.
At this step, it is advisable to examine and clarify thebasic framework of the implementation procedure
for enforcement of the plan, taking into account theterm of project implementation, the implementationbody for construction and O&M, applied laws and legislations, provision of funds, and so on.
However, the concrete procedure should not be ﬁxed
ﬁrmly at this juncture, as ﬂexible counter actions

might be necessary in the following coordination process with the stakeholders concerned.
For example, with regards to the implementation
term, a case can be made for getting more beneﬁt
by re-setting the implementation term in the light ofprogress of the coordinator’s or joint stakeholders’planning and coordination process.

3.3 COORDINATING AND DETAILPLANNING
The aim of this phase is to ﬁnalize concepts formulated in Phase 2 into a detailed plan, and coordinate
with stakeholders towards reaching an agreement.

• Is transparency secured (satisfying to the reason)?
• Are stakeholders convinced (satisfying to theheart)?
• Is it socially fair (satisfying to the law)?

3.3.1 Building a coordination mechanism

3.1.1
Pay attention to the coordination mechanism whether or not it properly reﬂects claims by the agricultural
sector, particularly when your own agricultural sector is in a coordinated position.
If the agricultural sector leaves coordination to athird party, you should examine whether or not thethird party is a reliable organization/person; members of participating coordination mechanisms areappropriate.

You should also conﬁrm whether or not the representative from the agricultural sector, government/
local government department in charge of agriculture
are eligible and entitled to be members of the coordination mechanism.

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3.3.2 Coordination

3.2.1
Ensure that the new plan is coordinated in a well-balanced manner for all stakeholders concerned, such as
your own agricultural sector, other stakeholders in the agricultural sector, and other sectors.
Understand and share the sector plans and ﬁnancial
conditions with other stakeholders in the agricultural
sector and other sectors, and establish relationships
between your own plan and other sectors’ plans.

ties concerned after understanding and sharing theinformation mentioned above.
Then, decide on a draft plan after all parties concerned
agree upon each sector’s priority and conditions.

Discuss the progress and priority of the plans, and thepossibility of making a joint project plan with the par3.2.2
Examine a new plan objectively as to whether it is supported unfairly only for the sake of the agricultural
sector, or also ensures social equity.
Securing transparency is indispensible for the smooth
implementation of the plan, ensuring doubts are notraised regarding the planning process, and maintaining

compliance. Consensus will not be reached if the planis biased towards speciﬁc stakeholder group(s).

3.2.3
Examine the new plan to see whether or not a contribution to IWRM by your own agriculture is properly
evaluated, and appropriate incentives to join the coordination process that are suitable for regional conditions have been introduced.
In a river basin where water use is almost stretchedto the limit, limitations on water use are necessary tosecure additional uses of water. However, reaching anagreement without incentives for the limitations, suchas facilities improvement, or direct compensation fortransferring water, is difﬁcult.
Incentives must be appropriate to local conditions,taking into consideration social and economic situa-

tions, local history and culture, etc. They must also be
applied in a fair and transparent manner to everyonein the basin.
It is necessary to appeal for a proper appreciation of
the agricultural sector’s contribution when tackling
the task of re-organizing farmers’ water use as thismay possibly lead to future difﬁculties and burdens
within the agricultural sector.

3.2.4
It is advisable for water users to prepare an arrangement for water use during drought periods beforehand.

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Under circumstances when difﬁculties with stablewater supply due to droughts etc. can be easily predicted, it is necessary in advance to consider coordination on how to use water effectively among water
users before the available amount of water declines.
Therefore, it is desirable to prepare a system forcooperation and a plan for securing water in exceptional circumstances. In the event that such a system
is difﬁcult to set up, an agreed rule among water users

regarding the point at which negotiation of a droughtmeasure plan based on water allocation and corresponding load/responsibility will start can be helpful.
It is advisable to introduce a necessary system orframework to ensure that the agricultural sector has
adequate incentives for its difﬁculties and burdens
so that ﬂexible use of water among sectors during
drought periods can be achieved.

3.2.5
Consider extreme events such as disasters from the viewpoint of risk management.
Prepare a framework in advance for coordinating theamount of water use among water users for cases
when available water resources become limited due todisasters and water quality accidents. It is advisable totake into account a system for ﬂexible use of water anda method for securing water in exceptional cases.
There are two categories of such events. One isrelated to human activities, such as a water pollution

accident, which will inﬂuence a speciﬁc area/users.
The other is a natural phenomenon, such as a largescale earthquake, which may cause severe damage
across the whole basin. Countermeasures should beconsidered according to each category.
It is also necessary to conﬁrm that the new plan aligns
with the ﬂood management plan prepared by theﬂood management sector.

3.3.3 Preliminary agreement

3.3.1
Explain the preliminary agreement to stakeholders within the agricultural sector in advance to ensure theiragreement and support.
It is necessary to hold discussions among the various
stakeholders in the agricultural sector as to whether
the agricultural plan is satisfactory, whether it is agree-

able to the other sectors, and to reach a consensus
on the agreement before ﬁnalizing the agreementwith other sectors.

3.3.2
Examine the content of the agreement to see if it might present additional problems in the future, even if
it seems agreeable at present.
Consider if the prerequisite conditions of the planunder process of agreement would alter as a result of
economic changes in the near future, rising populationor an ageing generation, and variation in the water

resources situation in the basin related to climatechange, etc. Then consider if the agricultural sector
would be inﬂuenced when the prerequisite conditions
shift.

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3.3.3
Secure social equity and transparency.
• Lack in social equity and transparency in a plan or in a planning process will bring about dissatisfaction
among stakeholders even after the agreement, and will not be able to fulﬁll public accountability.
• Securing social equity requires not only consensus
among stakeholders but also that the result of thecoordination during the planning or implementation phase is acceptable to the public and society
as a whole.

• Ensuring transparency and accountability is indispensable for avoiding any skepticism of the plans or
the decision-making process and for smooth implementation of the agreed plan.

3.3.4 Finalizing the plan

3.4.1
Conﬁrm matters and issues necessary to implementing IWRM among relevant stakeholders by preparing
documents accurately and fairly.
When ﬁnalizing the agreement, you should conﬁrm
necessary matters and issues in the form of a written

document among the relevant stakeholders.

3.4.2
Determine that cost allocation is acceptable not only to the agricultural sector but to all stakeholders by
ensuring that it is justiﬁable and that the nature of the plan is appropriately accounted for.
What is the main target of the plan? The characteristics or the main options of the plan must be considered. This might include a plan targeting additionaldomestic water supply for rapid increase in urban
area, or a plan targeting environmental conservation,etc. Cost allocation may not be formulated uniformly
but must be justiﬁable in each plan.
It is also necessary that the method of allocation be
acceptable to the public.
The basic rule of cost allocation (for example, priority of use method, separable cost-remaining beneﬁt
method), and ﬁne-tuning to ﬁnalize the share balanceshould be coordinated and agreed between the stakeholders concerned.

Sometimes stakeholders do not bear the cost (forexample, the individual farmer). In such cases, those whoshoulder the cost should be considered as stakeholders in the coordination of cost allocation. For example,
a local government representative should be involved
to represent the share of government subsidy.
In cases where the government pays all costs for project implementation beforehand and requests eachuser to amortize a part of the cost after completionof the project, it is necessary that the government
explains the cost sharing plan and the estimationof the total amount of the amortization, and reachagreement in a documented form.

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3.4.3
Consider the environment and preservation of the ecosystem in planning and designing the project.
At times when the environmental sector is not represented and the agricultural sector needs to act as
the coordinator among sectors, the agricultural sector should accept the responsibility of environmental

preservation as part of agricultural sector’s responsibilities. During coordination with other stakeholders,the agricultural sector should act as the advocate ofenvironmental preservation.

3.4.4
Develop infrastructure with an eye to long-term sustainability.
• If the developed infrastructure is not maintained properly, it will not be able to sustain the intended functions, and the investment made will have been wasted. It is necessary to integrate the concept of ‘time’into infrastructure development, i.e. account for operation, maintenance and replacement for long-termsustainability of the infrastructure.
• Ensure discussions among stakeholders take place
regarding the planning and designing phases of theinfrastructure to ensure the sustainable and appropriate maintenance of the infrastructure. Take into
account the necessary frameworks and humanresources for everyday operation and inspection, fail-safe measures, and the required stock ofreplacement parts.

o It is necessary to promote infrastructure development/maintenance by taking into accountthe life-cycle cost. Introduce appropriate asset
management through such measures as rehabilitation of ageing infrastructure.

3.4 IMPLEMENTING, MONITORINGAND EVALUATINGThe aim of this phase is to implement, develop, manage and operate the agreed scheme or framework(including infrastructure development or establishment of legislation or institutional framework).Things
to note in this phase are:

• Is the implementation programme executed
promptly?
• Is the system adapted and functioning?
• Are there any new problems with the new
approach/scheme?

3.4.1 Implementation

4.1.1
Strive to realize the beneﬁts of the project early.

• In cases of infrastructure investment, efﬁcient ﬁnancing and early completion of the project is essential inorder to realize early beneﬁts of the project and to ensure investment efﬁciency. Fiscal policy and ﬁnancing should aim for early completion of the project.

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• Prioritize budget allocation based on the urgency
and cost effectiveness of the projects.
o For example, a dam construction requires
signiﬁcant funds in the few years before thecompletion of the project. It is important
to develop a budgetary plan that allows forintensive ﬁnancial allocation in those years.
o If multiple facilities, such as dams, weirs, channels or treatment plants, are to be constructed
to deliver new water services, ensure that theconstruction and ﬁnancing schedules allows

facilities to be completed and commissioned
in a consistent manner.
o It may be difﬁcult to make users pay for theconstruction of facilities prior to completionof the project or before users recognize thebeneﬁt of the project. It is advisable to preparea system whereby the project executing bodymakes an advance payment for constructionof the facility and then receives payment fromusers following project completion throughcollection of fees.

4.1.2
Establish a structure for operation, maintenance and management, and prepare a fund raising system for it.
From the project planning stage, consider and set up
the maintenance and management plan for securing
the institution and human resources for daily operation, maintenance and inspection, and repair/renew
accordingly. Then, establish a structure and prepare
a fund arrangement system for management at the
beginning of the operation.
Participatory Irrigation Management (PIM) is a system that has been introduced in many countries
worldwide to reduce the cost of irrigation management and secure new investment for infrastructure
renewal/replacement. Under the PIM system, insteadof government organizations, farmers themselves – as
the actual users of the irrigation system – actively
contribute their efforts to maintain and manage theirrigation system.

When maintenance-based organizations differ fromconstruction-based organizations, it is difﬁcult toreﬂect the problems and challenges during facilities
management to the construction design.
Furthermore, it can be difﬁcult to create an atmosphere of ownership in an operation, maintenanceand management organization.
It is desirable that the organization responsible for
operation, maintenance and management carry out
construction of the facilities. The better the preparation of the construction design, the smoother the
implementation of facility management.

4.1.3
It is advisable to prepare an institutional framework to aggregate experience and knowledge obtained
through construction/improvement or operation/maintenance of infrastructure in and out of the basin.
• Experience and knowledge gained through construction/improvement or operation/maintenance (O&M)
of an infrastructure are extremely valuable for construction/improvement or O&M of other facilities. If
such experience and knowledge is not aggregated or shared it will eventually be lost, which will be anenormous social and economic loss.

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3 – KEY FOR SUCCESS• Needless to say, infrastructure construction/
improvement or operation/maintenance conductedin the basin must be appropriate for the basin’s
situation. At the same time, the information used
can also be useful for infrastructure developmentin other basins. Alternatively, obtaining information
regarding infrastructure development or O&M ofinfrastructure in other basins can usefully enhance

infrastructure development or O&M in your own
basin and improve the quality of the services delivered. Thus, it is advisable to prepare an institutionalframework to aggregate experience and knowledge
obtained through construction/improvement oroperation/maintenance of infrastructure in various
basins.

3.4.2 Monitoring and evaluation

4.2.1
Monitor and evaluate the new IWRM system introduced based on the plan, whether or not it achieves the
agricultural objectives intended.
Verify that the new IWRM system can meet the agricultural objectives. Undertake continuous monitoringand evaluation from the viewpoints of economical andsocial effect, environmental conservation and sustainability, fairness.
The results of the evaluation should be used to
improve aspects of the system that are less effective,
and for materials to change the activities.
Because the method and system of evaluation must
be objective and fair, it is desirable that a standard,socially recognized evaluation system be prepared inadvance.
• In the early stages of operation in an irrigation project, it is necessary to evaluate the adaptability of
the new scheme and examine whether the initially
expected beneﬁts and functions have been fully
realized. Based on the results, make adjustments orrevise as necessary. It should be noted that some
activities or projects do not provide apparent beneﬁts in the short-term.

4.2.2
It is advisable to share the data (for example, the volume of water utilization) among stakeholders, and disseminate it to the public.

Without continuous data collection, it is impossible
to evaluate present status and forecast future conditions.
It is advisable to share data among stakeholders tomaintain a good relationship with them.

Sharing data also enables smooth coordination ofwater use during drought. It is vital that individual stakeholders make decisions and act based onshared information, in order to ensure the integrityof the various activities.

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3.5 POLICIES/NATIONALSTRATEGIES, LEGISLATIVEFRAMEWORKS AND FINANCING
The rest of this section includes keys for success,which are useful for readers concerned with policies/
national strategies, legislative frameworks and ﬁnancing, but are also important throughout the entire
IWRM process. Things to note in this phase are:

• Can you move ahead with just the consensus
built among stakeholders or do you need a formal
framework?
• Are you working bottom-up to inﬂuence thenational or higher level organizations?
• Do you have ﬁnancial sources in mind?

3.5.1 Policies and national strategies

5.1.1
Act to encourage the importance of water resources management at basin level. Coordination among all
sectors in the basin should be addressed in agricultural policies and strategies.
The percentage of water utilized by agriculture is relatively large in terms of basin water resources. If the
agricultural sector maintains a stance corresponding to
its political objectives and strategies, then conﬂicts inwater resources utilization will take place and sustainable development of the nation will be threatened.
Water has diverse stakeholders. In general, sectors
are managed under the jurisdiction of sectoral administrative institutions. In order to manage water well inthe ﬁeld and implement water projects, cross-sector
cooperation is vital. Sometimes the agricultural sector
is expected to take the leading role among sectors.
Actions requested of irrigation practitioners include
the following:• Practitioners who implement IWRM in the agricultural sector should act to reﬂect individual farmer’s

voices in policies through grass roots activities. At
the same time, he/she is required to emphasize theimportance of IWRM.
• Practitioners are also requested to carry out
national level plans and international strategies aspart of their tasks, disseminate the elements they
think are necessary through political channels topolicy makers, and recognize that part of their role
includes promoting and reinforcing the connection
between the ﬁeld and policies.
Actions requested of nations and decision makers
include the following:• Take the opinions and suggestions of practitioners
and stakeholders seriously, and makes sure they are
reﬂected them in the creation of appropriate policies and legislation.

3.5.2 Legislative framework

5.2.1
It is advisable to consider IWRM at basin level as a vital concept that reﬂects laws and regulations in the
agricultural sector.
Since the share of agricultural water utilization in abasin is relatively large, the agricultural sector is sometimes requested to take on a leading role in IWRM

promotion. Although not necessarily stipulated in law,
it is desirable to recognize that IWRM implementation is a basic form of legislation.

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3.5.3 Financing

5.3.1
Secure ﬁnancial resources for IWRM coordination to promote irrigation plans in the basin.
• The ﬁnancial resources required for coordination are not high when compared to infrastructure development. However, lack of understanding of the importance of IWRM can result in insufﬁcient funds,
which then prevent the introduction of IWRM or delay coordination and implementation. This can leadto enormous losses for the basin, society, and the environment.

• Coordination efforts for consensus building, suchas assessment of water resources in the basin, various studies and simulations, coordination for implementation, monitoring and evaluation, all requireﬁnancial resources.
o Coordination activities alone do not produce proﬁt, and the effectiveness of theinvestment may not be obvious at the timeof coordination. This has led to inadequate
recognition of the importance of investing in
IWRM implementation in many national andregional policies.
o Implementation of IWRM delivers signiﬁcantadvantages to the basin and society. For example, constructing a multi-purpose dam rather
than a single-purpose dam can result in massive cost reductions for the sectors involved.

This cost advantage is much greater than isthe amount required for coordination.
o Irrigation practitioners need to inform policy
makers of such beneﬁts of IWRM in order topromote their understanding and awareness.
• Transparency is a key for coordination in the IWRM
process. Funding from relevant sectors for coordination should be welcomed, but care must be taken
in preparing the funding scheme to ensure that it
does not lead to any bias in coordination or suspicion of bias among stakeholders.
• In any case, it is crucial to establish a scheme
whereby ﬁnancial sources are secured not in a
temporary but in a sustainable manner.

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4 IWRM Process

In this document, each stage of the IWRM process is
described by four phases.The elements of the process
related to all phases such as policies, legal framework,and ﬁnancing are indicated exterior of the process
ﬂow. Each phase is further explained through steps
inherent in the process.

Fig. 4.1 IWRM Process (Phase 1)

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4 – IWRM PROCESS

4.1 PHASE 1: RECOGNIZING AND IDENTIFYING

Fig. 4.2 Phase 1: Recognizing and identifying
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4.2 PHASE 2: CONCEPTUALIZATIONIWRM Guidelines at River Basin Level – Part 2-3: Invitation to IWRM for Irrigation Practitioners

Fig. 4.3 Phase 2: Conceptualization

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4 – IWRM PROCESS

4.3 PHASE 3: COORDINATING AND DETAIL PLANNING

Fig. 4.4 Phase 3: Coordinating and detail planning
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4.4 PHASE 4: IMPLEMENTING, MONITORING AND EVALUATINGIWRM Guidelines at River Basin Level – Part 2-3: Invitation to IWRM for Irrigation Practitioners

Fig. 4.5 Phase 4: Implementing, monitoring and evaluating

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4 – IWRM PROCESS

4.5 PHASE 5: POLICIES/NATIONAL STRATEGIES, LEGISLATIVEFRAMEWORK, FINANCING

Fig. 4.6 Phase 5: Policies/national strategies, legislative framework, ﬁnancing

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