Critical success factors for resilient water infrastructure

The document outlines five critical factors for building climate-resilient water infrastructure: effective communication of risks, inclusive stakeholder engagement, strategic use of entry points, adopting a systemic approach beyond individual projects, and building institutional capacity. It draws on case studies from Colombia, Africa, Mozambique, St. Vincent, and Nepal to demonstrate how these factors mitigate the risks associated with long-lived infrastructure and climate uncertainty.

• Water infrastructure is particularly vulnerable to climate change because it is typically "long-lived and with high upfront costs," which makes predictive design difficult due to uncertainties regarding the magnitude and direction of future change.
• Effective communication of climate risks requires translating complex scientific data into sector-specific indicators that decision-makers can use. In Cartagena, this was achieved by presenting risks by sector, such as tourism and agriculture, and using an online tool called "CartaClima" to inform investors.
• Stakeholder engagement must be planned from the outset to ensure local ownership and political commitment. The document emphasizes mapping stakeholder perspectives and identifying "champions" for change to prevent a lack of political will from becoming a barrier to decision-making.
• Identifying 'entry points'—specific windows of time or institutional processes—is critical for timing interventions effectively. For example, in Nepal, project outputs were timed to coincide with the development of a hydropower and river basin master plan.
• Resilience should be pursued through a programmatic or portfolio approach rather than isolated projects to maximize co-benefits and manage systemic interactions. In the Limpopo Basin, this involved evaluating large dams as part of a broader portfolio of interventions at a catchment scale.
• Long-term resilience depends on building the capacity of national government agencies and river basin organisations rather than relying on short-term consultants. Effective capacity development should target mid-level or senior staff to ensure knowledge remains within the institution despite political reshuffles.
• Financial barriers to resilient infrastructure often stem from a lack of awareness of climate-specific funding sources and a lack of institutional capacity to prepare complex applications for international finance, as seen in Nepal and St. Vincent.

APA

Hurford, A. P., Moschini, F., & Woolhouse, G. A. (2017). Critical success factors for resilient water infrastructure. Climate and Development Knowledge Network. https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/Working-Paper_Critical-success-factors-resilient-water-infrastructure_CDKN.pdf

Chicago

Hurford, Anthony P., Francesca Moschini, and George A.F. Woolhouse. Critical success factors for resilient water infrastructure. Climate and Development Knowledge Network, 2017. https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/Working-Paper_Critical-success-factors-resilient-water-infrastructure_CDKN.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Hurford |first1=Anthony P. |last2=Moschini |first2=Francesca |last3=Woolhouse |first3=George A.F. |title=Critical success factors for resilient water infrastructure |publisher=Climate and Development Knowledge Network |date=August 2017 |url=https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/Working-Paper_Critical-success-factors-resilient-water-infrastructure_CDKN.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{hurford2017critical, author = {Hurford, Anthony P. and Moschini, Francesca and Woolhouse, George A.F.}, title = {{Critical success factors for resilient water infrastructure}}, institution = {Climate and Development Knowledge Network}, year = {2017}, month = aug, url = {https://cdkn.org/sites/default/files/files/Working-Paper_Critical-success-factors-resilient-water-infrastructure_CDKN.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }