Messages and meaning - Water Scarcity, Livelihoods and Food Security - page 201

Box 9.1 Six core messages from the CGIAR Challenge
Program on Water and Food
Message 1 : Water is not scarce, it is the way that it is managed: because of
their complexity, addressing water and food issues means tackling
wicked problems.
Message 2 : Research for development requires dedicated people, time,
and continuity to address the wicked problems of water and food.
Message 3 : Technical and institutional innovation go together, but
innovation is long-term, non-linear and risky.
Message 4 : Equitable access to water-related benefits can be achieved
through improved water governance, water-related rights and benefit-
sharing.
Message 5 : Sustainable intensification relies on market incentives and
often on water infrastructure.
Message 6 : Engagement with decision-makers supported by modeling
tools and innovation platforms helps build capacity and consensus,
and increases the effectiveness of policy analysis, planning and imple-
mentation.
Water is not scarce, it is the way that it is managed:
Because of their complexity, addressing water and food
issues means tackling wicked problems
[T]he planet has enough water to meet the full range of needs for people and ecosystems
in the foreseeable future, but social and environmental equity will only be achieved
through [careful] and creative management [of water resources] ( Joubert and Trollip,
2012) .
Water is not scarce, it is the way that it is managed
Based on the accumulated evidence, the CPWF abandoned its initial
assumptions on water scarcity and the need to improve water productivity
rapidly. Within a river basin, freshwater can be scarce and abundant at the same
time, depending on whether we are talking about blue or green water.
Although the dominant demand in water-scarce areas is access, reliable
availability of good-quality water is also important (Limpopo). Blue water may
be scarce even when green water and rainfall are abundant. Problems of water
access and availability and water scarcity often have institutional rather than
physical causes, and the relevant institutions will differ depending on a basin's
development trajectory (Chapter 2).