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The document examines the complexities of planning and financing regional infrastructure in Southern Africa, focusing on the SADC Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan (RIDMP). It identifies a significant funding gap and analyzes the roles of five primary stakeholders: recipient governments, continental and regional development finance institutions (DFIs), donors, multilateral institutions, and private sector investors. While noting improvements in regional coordination, the text highlights the risks of public-private partnerships (PPPs) and the necessity of long-term policy frameworks that transcend political cycles. The Lesotho Highlands Water Project is presented as a bi-national example of the trade-offs and benefits inherent in transboundary infrastructure.

The case study examines the disconnect between regional water management agendas in SADC and the national development priorities of member states. It argues that traditional donors have prioritised environmental conservation and river basin organisations over the large-scale infrastructure needed for hydropower and irrigation. This has led to 'economic water scarcity' where resources exist but lack the funding for development. The author notes a shift in this dynamic due to the emergence of China and Brazil as financiers for public infrastructure, which aligns more closely with national development goals.

The report argues that while trade integration in SADC has been stagnant, integration in public goods sectors like water, power, and conservation has seen varying degrees of success. It finds that these processes are heavily dependent on third-party financing and often suffer from a disconnect between donor-driven regional agendas and national service delivery priorities. The document highlights that SADC lacks the institutional capacity to implement policies, often requiring independent entities or NGOs to manage funds and projects. Case studies on REDD+, transfrontier conservation areas (TFCAs), and the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) illustrate that bottom-up collaboration and the transposition of regional goals into national law are more effective than top-down mandates.

The authors argue that the lack of integration in resource assessments and policy-making results in inconsistent strategies and inefficient resource use. To remedy this, they introduce the CLEWs (climate, land-use, energy and water strategies) framework, which integrates the assessment of climate, land use, energy, and water strategies, noting that these resources both contribute to and are vulnerable to climate change.

The paper presents a hydro-economic model linking farm-based economics with hydrologic simulation to evaluate sustainable irrigation in Spain's Middle Guadiana basin. It finds that current excessive water use threatens the European Water Framework Directive's goal of 'good ecological status' by 2015, particularly during summer low-flow periods. While the Guadiana River Basin Management Plan may improve water productivity, it may not fully ensure required environmental flows, and securing these flows would likely reduce the viability of upstream small-scale rice farms.

The paper examines the early stages of biofuel production in Tanzania, specifically in Rufiji and Bagamoyo, highlighting significant failures in land acquisition and governance. It finds that discrepancies between national policy and local implementation led to conflicts of interest, inadequate compensation for farmers, and unfulfilled community benefit promises. The study argues that the Tanzanian government's drive for foreign investment has outpaced its capacity to protect citizen rights, creating vulnerabilities that can be exploited by resource-rich investors.

Minister Edna Molewa's 2013 budget speech focuses on a 'decade of equity and redistribution' for South Africa's water sector. Key initiatives include the R4.334 billion Interim Water Supply Programme for rural backlogs, a projected R670 billion infrastructure need over ten years, and the gazetting of the National Water Resource Strategy (NWRS-2). The speech details several major dam and pipeline projects, such as the De Hoop and Mzimvubu projects, and reports on efforts to combat illegal water use and acid mine drainage.

The World Resources Institute (WRI) and CDP have aligned the Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas with the CDP 2013 Water Disclosure Questionnaire to help companies identify and report water-related business risks. The Aqueduct tool provides granular data on water quantity, quality, regulatory, and reputational risks for global operations and supply chains, specifically assisting companies in answering questions regarding water-stressed regions and the potential for substantive changes in business operations or revenue. This initiative aims to standardize corporate water accounting and increase transparency to foster sustainable water resource management.

The authors used the Water Evaluation And Planning (WEAP) system to simulate hydropower generation in the upper west slope Sierra Nevada under four temperature increase scenarios (0°C, 2°C, 4°C, and 6°C) through 2100. The model indicates that the highly productive northern Sierra Nevada would experience large reductions in hydropower generation due to decreased annual runoff, while central watersheds show a better ability to adapt to changes in runoff timing. Generation in the less productive southern watersheds also decreases.

The project examines how land use decisions, such as choosing between pastures and agricultural crops, affect water table depth (WTD) and create interdependencies among neighboring farmers in the Argentine Pampas. Initial findings indicate that pastures lead to deeper groundwater levels compared to crops like soybean, wheat, and maize, and that farmers are generally willing to coordinate actions to manage groundwater as a common good.

The document outlines a ten-step framework for negotiating agricultural investment contracts to ensure sustainable development, emphasizing the need for independent feasibility studies, environmental and social impact assessments, and the protection of local land and water tenure rights. It warns against broad stabilization provisions and advocates for legally binding development obligations and community development agreements to prevent the negative impacts often associated with large-scale foreign land acquisitions.

The document outlines ten essential steps for negotiating sustainable agricultural investment contracts, emphasizing the need for thorough preparation, independent feasibility and impact studies, and the protection of local land and water rights. It warns against 'land grabbing' and the use of broad stabilization clauses, while advocating for Community Development Agreements and clear investor obligations regarding local employment and technology transfer.

The document examines how Bolivia's indigenous populations use traditional knowledge for weather forecasting and resource management to adapt to climate change, while highlighting the risks of this knowledge disappearing. It assesses the Law of Mother Earth as a tool for protecting natural resources but notes its lack of enforcement mechanisms. The brief recommends fostering partnerships between scientists and indigenous knowledge holders to improve adaptive strategies and calls for increased indigenous participation in national and international climate policy.

Friends of the Earth Asia Pacific (FoE APac) expresses concern that the South Korean government is promoting the 'Four Rivers Project' as a model for a similar water management contract in Thailand despite evidence of ecological destruction. FoE APac asserts that the project damaged river ecology by blocking flows with dams and straightening serpentine rivers, and argues that claimed benefits like flood control and water quality improvement were used to obfuscate these impacts. The statement also condemns the South Korean government's labeling of critical environmental NGOs as "unpatriotic" and "anti-state" during a Cabinet meeting on January 15th, viewing this as an attempt to suppress civil society and hinder collaborative environmental responses.

The study examines the integration of climate change adaptation into water management in Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt, highlighting that misconceptions about the timing and certainty of climate risks have led to a lack of mainstreaming in national water planning.

The China–Sweden Erdos Eco-Town Project attempted to scale up dry sanitation systems in Dongsheng, Ordos, involving 832 apartments and approximately 3,000 inhabitants. While the project demonstrated that dry toilets could be implemented in multi-storey buildings without adverse health effects, it faced significant failures due to poor construction quality, lack of pipe insulation for extreme winters, and the absence of a dedicated owner to ensure maintenance. These technical issues were compounded by rapid regional economic growth and a building boom that eliminated the initial drivers of the project—extreme water shortage and poverty—leading the local government to eventually revert to flush toilets.

The report analyzes the intersection of climate threats and socio-economic vulnerabilities in the Yaque del Sur basin, the Dominican Republic's third-largest basin. It finds that the region faces severe water deficits and high vulnerability due to poverty and dependence on climate-sensitive agriculture. Projected climate trends include rising temperatures and decreasing precipitation, which could lead to an annual water deficit of 390 million m3 by 2050. The document identifies critical gaps in institutional coordination between disaster risk management and climate change adaptation bodies. To mitigate these risks, it recommends seven priority actions, including switching to drought-resistant crops like sorghum and mangoes, increasing irrigation efficiency from 20% to 45%, and implementing payment for ecosystem services to promote reforestation in the upper basin.

The report identifies Honduras as highly vulnerable to climate hazards, particularly droughts and tropical cyclones, which threaten the livelihoods of smallholder farmers and national development goals. It highlights significant gaps in climate data, institutional coordination, and adaptive capacity, while proposing a suite of local actions—such as improved water management and agroforestry—and national policy mainstreaming to reduce vulnerability.

The report identifies Honduras as highly vulnerable to climate risks, particularly in its small-scale agricultural sector, which is critical for food security and employment. It details current threats such as droughts, hurricanes, and floods, and projects a hotter, drier future that could significantly reduce maize and bean yields. The document evaluates the country's existing disaster risk and climate adaptation frameworks, noting a lack of integration between the two and significant gaps in meteorological data. It recommends a combination of local technical measures—such as improved water management, soil conservation, and crop diversification—and governance reforms to incorporate climate risk into national agricultural policies.

The report examines the vulnerability of La Mare de Tabalak, a Ramsar site in Niger's Tahoua region, to climate hazards, specifically recurring droughts and occasional floods. Using hydrological modelling (SWAT) and field surveys, the study finds that while the pond is vital for agrosilvopastoral activities, it is threatened by silting, invasive species, and high population pressure. It recommends improving intercommunal governance, establishing continuous environmental monitoring, and accelerating restoration efforts to ensure the wetland's sustainability.