Tropentag, September 10 - 12, 2025, Bonn "Reconciling land system changes with planetary health"

Social water governance as a framework for sustainable access to drinking water, food security, and nutrition in rural areas

The Alliance of Bioversity International & CIAT, Multifunctional Landscape, Colombia

Abstract

In rural areas, access to safe drinking water is essential for producing and processing food in a dignified and safe manner. Even though access to safe drinking water in these areas has increased significantly in recent years, four out of five people still do not have access to a quality household water supply. In this context, the community-based water management models, characteristic of rural population centers, are not sustainable due to the lack of technical and financial resources. As an alternative, models promoted by private actors are presented for their high technical and financial capacity, although without effective mechanisms for participatory water governance. The research carried out in the Master’s thesis “Impacts of the privatisation of water service provision in the rural areas of Palmira, Colombia” developed a qualitative analysis based on a bibliographical review of the technical and financial difficulties of 8 rural aqueducts managed by the communities, which led to the shift from a community-based water management model to a private-corporate management model. Although the new model was shown to have better technical and financial indicators, it did not guarantee water governance based on participation and the empowerment of the territory. Based on these results, it was concluded that in order to achieve sustainable access to drinking water in rural areas, it is necessary to co-create a hybrid water management model, based on a social water management that integrates the technical and financial capacities of private-corporate models and on water governance oriented towards participation and territorial empowerment promoted by the community-based water management model. In addition, this hybrid model can consolidate social water governance as a framework for improving food security and nutrition in rural communities.

Keywords: Food security, nutrition, rural areas, safe drinking water, social water governance

Contact Address: Martin David Londoño Behaine, The Alliance of Bioversity International & CIAT, Multifunctional Landscape, D28 #t6-08, 763531 Palmira, Colombia, e-mail: m.londonocgiar.org