WATER INSECURITY IN THE ERA OF URBANIZATION AND CLIMATE CHANGE: INSIGHTS FROM DHARAN AND DHULIKHEL, NEPAL

Abstract

Water insecurity poses a global challenge, with rapidly urbanizing cities bearing the brunt of its impacts. The cities are grappling with the severe impacts of climate change. Previous studies have firmly established the connection between urbanization and water, as well as, between climate change and water, outlining the impacts of these factors on water resources. However, scholars have highlighted a notable lack of focus and scholarly examination on urban water security in Himalayan towns, considering the tripartite and interconnected challenges of climate change, water insecurity and rapid urbanization, along with associated governance challenges. Ensuring water security in such a context is challenging owing to the specificities of urban areas, high water demand and sectoral water needs as well as complexity in water governance. Literature on water security and urban water security in particular, notes that ‘water security’ covers diverse elements and has expanded its focus from quantity and quality to other dimensions such as accessibility, affordability, risk and sustainability. In regard to different dimensions of water security, ‘governance’ is considered to be key component for securing water. An array of institutional and policy issues has been identified in recent studies, and strengthening governance has been recommended to achieve water security, which is highly complex in the urban context. However, ‘governance’ has received very limited focus in water security literature. Nepal is committed to provide universal access to water to all of its citizens, as enshrined in its 2015 Constitution as well as its commitment to Sustainable Development Goal 6 and recent water policies. In the federal context, local governments are empowered in managing the water resources and formulate water related policies. Policies and institutional responses addressing this issue are apparent, yet numerous challenges persist. In this context, this study aimed to identify and analyze the key drivers, responses and challenges to address growing water insecurity in two- rapidly urbanizing cities of Nepal: Dharan, a mid-sized foothill town and Dhulikhel, a small mid-hill town of Nepal. The research adopted a pragmatic approach considering its applicability and has applied qualitative-led mixed methods approach combining both qualitative and quantitative methods. In-depth interviews, focused group discussions and participatory observations formed the qualitative methods while surveys (211 households in Dhulikhel and 273 households in Dharan) were conducted as part of quantitative methods during 2018-2021. The research followed embedded mixed method design in which quantitative data played a secondary role to interpret the findings from the qualitative data. Both primary data from above methods were collected and secondary data consisted of conceptual and empirical literature review and review of relevant policies. The qualitative data were analyzed by thematic coding and content analysis while the simple descriptive analysis and a few statistical analyses was carried out for the quantitative data. This study has adopted ‘urban water security’ theory for understanding and addressing the multifaceted water security related challenges. It combines DECS (Drinking water and human beings, Ecosystem, Climate change and water related hazards and Socio-economic factors) framework with urban water security theory and considers the cities as ‘complex adaptive system’. The research and analysis had two specific research objectives: the first one was to analyze the key drivers affecting water security in the context of rapid urbanization and climate change impacts. The findings of the first research question under the first research objective, regarding the nature and drivers of water insecurity identified various socio-economic, technological, environmental, management and governance drivers. The findings additionally uncovered that these various factors, either independently or in combination, impacted different dimensions of water security. Moreover, the analysis underscored ‘governance’ as the key driver shaping urban water security. The identification of the drivers has offered valuable insights to the water institutions and local governments to confront the challenges and integrate them into actionable strategies of ensuring water security. The second objective of the research was to analyze the institutional and policy responses and challenges and constraints in securing water. This objective consisted of three research questions. The first question examined how institutions and policy responses were made in addressing water insecurity in the study sites. The findings revealed sectoral policy formulation, infrastructure-based supply augmentation, and collaboration with NGOs, universities, and research organizations, organizing water forums and integrating solutions such as recharge pits and recharge ponds into municipal policies formed the key responses. Furthermore, the private sector has played a significant role in optimizing water usage. The second research question examined the challenges and constraints in securing water for the future. The study has identified ambiguities in the roles and responsibilities for water management among the three tiers of government in the federal context. These included conflict and coordination issues among water management institutions, limited capacity of the local governments and gaps in women’s representation and effective participation as the main institutional constraints. Further, incoherent sectoral policies were identified as hindering the development of resilient water systems in cities amidst urbanization and climate change impacts. Efforts to organize water forums and implement watershed conservation initiatives encountered obstacles due to inadequate prioritization by the water institutions and shifting leadership. The third research question explored the key elements of ‘governance’ dimension of the urban water security theory. The identified elements include: a) coherent policies and efficient institutions, b) equitable distribution and meaningful participation and c) risk-sensitive evidence informed planning. The gaps in the water security literature have also been discussed to establish why these elements are integral to governance dimension. To enhance water security, the study urges the need to incorporate improved version of water governance which allows flexible, adaptive and innovative planning approaches, tailoring context-specific responses and interventions. This thesis contributes to the urban water security literature by exploring the intersection of urbanization, water security and climate change for the academic community. The study also contributes to social change or practice change by offering actionable insights from Dharan and Dhulikhel to the practitioners, various water stakeholders and policy makers to address water security related challenges in the emerging cities. The identification of drivers affecting water security, responses of water institutions and constraints the water institutions are facing in the study sites offer useful lessons to manage the drivers and plan actions towards addressing them. The research highlights institutional and policy gaps, emphasizing the need for equitable and socially just approaches in large-scale water supply schemes, particularly in the context of climate impacts on urban water systems. Specifically, this research expands the scope of water justice by emphasizing the need towards inclusive, adaptive, and risk-sensitive governance to ensure socially just urban water systems in Nepal. The insights and findings bear relevance to the rapidly urbanizing small to mid-sized Himalayan cities, in and beyond Nepal, that are experiencing the water insecurity challenge.