Integrated Water Resources Management in Latin America

It is now widely accepted that the world is likely to face a major water crisis unless the present management practices are improved very significantly. Promoted extensively by donors and international institutions over the past 15 years, integrated water resources management (IWRM) has been assumed explicitly to be "the" solution for managing the limited water resources of the world. Hundreds of millions of dollars have now been spent in promoting IWRM in developing countries. However, no serious and objective analysis has ever been undertaken as to whether IWRM has made water management more efficient and equitable in any region of the world than otherwise may have been the case. This pioneering analysis indicates that IWRM has not only been unsuccessful in Latin America, but also is highly unlikely to succeed in the future. The reasons and constraints for this failure are outlined.

This book previously appeared as a special issue of the International Journal of Water Resources Development.

Asit K. Biswas is President of the Third World Centre for Water Management, Mexico, and Distinguished Visiting Professor Lee Kuan Yew School for Public Policy. He has advised over fifteen governments and his work has been translated into thirty-two languages.

Benedito P.F. Braga is Director of the National Water Authority, Brazil. He is also Vice President of the World Water Council and Past President of the International Water Resources Association.

Cecilia Tortajada is the Vice President of the Third World Centre for Water Management, Scientific Director of the International Centre for Water in Zaragoza, and Visiting Professor of Lee Kuan Yew for Public Policy, in Singapore.

Marco Palermo is the President of the Instituto Pro-Ambiente at Sao Paulo, Brazil.