This week, the Stockholm International Water Institute is celebrating the “World Water Week”. We’re all pretty focused on oil these days, but in reality, water scarcity is more of a challenge.
Last year, the UN Development Programme issued a report that highlighted water scarcity and the political and institutional reasons that water remained a tight factor in many world populations: of which Central Asia is one. Water has a more-or-less pre-set geographical distribution, which can be extended by man-made means–or withheld.
The newest SIWI report, however, focuses on the scarcity of water at the source, and talks about “demand management”–primarily this would eliminate wasteful water practices.
This report is about ten pages (really more like 7), with lots of pictures and graphs. In all, it's a painless way to grasp the latest thinking on transboundary water management. For Central Asia watchers, it's worth knowing these principles, since a lack of both political will and scarcity of resources is affecting Central Asian communities and in many cases, dooming them with an unnecessary poverty.
SIWI has a portal page to more reports. Although you have to scroll past the registration for the Week at present, it's still there.
