Integration Challenges of Water and Land Reform – A Critical Review of South Africa

Funke, Nicola S; Jacobs, Inga

doi:10.5772/28938

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…Of the 19 catchment management agencies planned for the country, only two are in operation (van Koppen and Schreiner 2014a). Another key stumbling block at the macro level has been the unwillingness of the South African government to adequately acknowledge that access to water for Black smallholder farmers requires action outside the water sector as the issue of water is closely linked to the issue of land reform (Funke andJacobs 2011, Cousins 2016).…”

Section: Macro Levelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Participation and marginalization in water governance: probing the agency of powerholders

Aleu¹,

Larsen²,

Methner³

2022

E&S

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There is growing awareness that both the practice and science of participation in water governance continue to suffer from blind spots with regard to questions of power and equity. We present an analytical frame that helps explore how participatory processes initiated by water reforms can better address the needs and interests of marginalized groups. We build on recent arguments about the potential to enrich adaptive governance theory from a critical institutionalist perspective, combining power-sensitive concepts with a multi-level analysis. The key insight advanced is about the potential to apply critical institutionalism to unpack structural obstacles to the participation of marginalized groups in water governance and to illustrate how such obstacles are (re)created by the agency of powerful actors. We draw on two cases: the situations of Black smallholder farmers in South Africa and the Indigenous Sámi people in Sweden, in the context of the participatory water policies they are subjected to. The analysis shows how the agency of powerholders can purposefully block the inclusion of marginalized groups in two very different political and historical contexts and provides important insights into some of the main stumbling blocks that hinder the advancement of an adaptive water governance system in both countries. On this basis, we suggest opportunities to advance this research direction analytically and empirically. Our larger argument is about fundamentally recasting our view on the purpose of participatory processes in water governance; rather than primarily being instruments to deliver specific policy outcomes, they should allow marginalized groups to center their concerns about the structural roots of the experienced marginalization into the water governance discourse. It requires acting upon the right-claims of marginalized groups and re-evaluating dominant narratives of acceptable societal tradeoffs as well as cost-benefit distribution based on the inputs from these groups. Otherwise, powerful actors will continue to co-opt water governance processes to their advantage and use their agency to undermine the effectiveness of participatory initiatives.

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Section: Macro Levelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Participation and marginalization in water governance: probing the agency of powerholders

Aleu¹,

Larsen²,

Methner³

2022

E&S

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Groundwater licensing and its challenges

Molle¹,

Closas²

2020

Hydrogeol J

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The registering and/or licensing of groundwater abstraction is held as a "best practice" in the control of groundwater use and a necessary step toward volumetric management of resources. Yet, groundwater licensing and legalization processes in areas with many scattered (often agricultural) users tend to face severe difficulties and are rarely successful. Based on a global survey on groundwater governance, this article revisits the reasons for the users' lack of interest, the failure of most legalization/licensing processes, and the frequent lack of both capacity and the political will of government agencies in conducting such processes. It identifies a groundwater licensing dilemma that explains why governments deploy too little effort too late, and finally proposes a few steps and principles to be considered when deciding whether licensing is achievable and how to increase the likelihood of success.

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Implications of water policy reforms for agricultural productivity in South Africa: Scenario analysis based on the Olifants river basin

Thiam

Muchapondwa

Kirsten

et al. 2015

Water Resources and Economics

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Integration Challenges of Water and Land Reform – A Critical Review of South Africa

Cited by 3 publications

References 19 publications

Participation and marginalization in water governance: probing the agency of powerholders

Participation and marginalization in water governance: probing the agency of powerholders

Groundwater licensing and its challenges

Implications of water policy reforms for agricultural productivity in South Africa: Scenario analysis based on the Olifants river basin

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