Photo: from left to right: Elias Salameh (U of Jordan), Majd al Naber (WANA), Marwan Al Raggad (INWRDAM), HRH Prince El Hassan bin Talal, Ines Dombrowsky (IDOS), Nabil Assaf (FAO), Mufleh AlAlaween (Swiss Embassy), Timothy Hanlon (INWRDAM), © Ines Dombrowsky
The study on “Natural Resource Governance in Light of the 2030 Agenda. The Case of Competition for Groundwater in Azraq, Jordan”, which builds on field research conducted in the 2019/2020 by IDOS’ Postgraduate Training Programme, analyses action situations that lead to competition and the overuse of groundwater in Azraq, and identifies intervention points for different actor groups. The study shows that the informal norm of ‘wasta’, the preferential treatment of members of one’s own clan, tends to water down enforcement mechanisms in the water sector; that hierarchical governance weakens multi-stakeholder approaches and trust; and that land, agriculture, and energy governance create counterproductive incentives for groundwater overuse. Thus, groundwater governance in Azraq does not meet the 2030 Agenda’s principles. The presentation led to a lively discussion with representatives from four different ministries, local stakeholders and various local and international organisations on the causes of groundwater overuse and how it could be addressed. Afterwards, Ms. Dombrowsky and her Jordanian partner organisations, the West Asia-North Africa (WANA) Institute and the Inter-Islamic Network on Water Resources Development and Management (INWRDAM), briefed HRH El Hassan bin Talal on the discussion, emphasising inter alia the importance of a long-term commitment to a participatory approach.
