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Policy Brief: Water accounting for water governance and sustainable development

Year of publication 2018

Place of publication Rome, Italy ;

Pages 4

Author Jippe Hoogeveen

Publisher FAO ;

Product type Policy brief

Edition 1

Synopsis (short abstract) There is growing interest in water accounting, why it is needed, what benefits it brings, and equally important, how it can be put into practice. Water accounting is about quantifying water resources and uses of water, much like financial accounts provide information on income and expenditure. Interest in water accounting is based on the premise that ‘We cannot plan and manage what we do not measure’ – a statement that few would disagree with. Society needs more accurate information and answers to the key questions about water supply and demand. More data are needed but simply doing water measurements and assessments is not enough. Water accounting per se is of little use. But as a tool for understanding and resolving water problems and supporting water management, it is invaluable. Water accounting alone cannot resolve the problems of water governance and managing water resources, but it can go a long way to improving and reforming governance and providing the information needed to support sound decision-making.

Language English

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    Water accounting for water governance and sustainable development 2018
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    There is growing interest in water accounting, why it is needed, what benefits it brings, and equally important, how it can be put into practice. Water accounting is about quantifying water resources and uses of water, much like financial accounts provide information on income and expenditure. Interest in water accounting is based on the premise that ‘We cannot plan and manage what we do not measure’ – a statement that few would disagree with. Society needs more accurate information and answers to the key questions about water supply and demand. More data are needed but simply doing water measurements and assessments is not enough. Water accounting per se is of little use. But as a tool for understanding and resolving water problems and supporting water management, it is invaluable. Water accounting alone cannot resolve the problems of water governance and managing water resources, but it can go a long way to improving and reforming governance and providing the information needed to support sound decision-making.
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    Water accounting and auditing for better water governance
    FAO Agricultural Development Economics Policy Brief 31
    2020
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    In the face of intensifying water constraints, growing demand for water and worsening inequalities in access to it, water accounting and auditing are crucial enabling factors for improved water governance. Water underpins many of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), not least those relating to Zero Hunger and Clean Water and Sanitation. Urgent action is needed to change how water is used by sectors and individuals and so that it is managed sustainably, efficiently and equitably. Water accounting and auditing should precede any water management and governance strategy. A cornerstone of achieving actors’ consensus on essential information on water resources, water accounting is the systematic study of the hydrological cycle and the status and trends in water supply, demand, accessibility and use. Water auditing places this information within the broader context of governance, institutions, public and private expenditure, legislation and the wider political economy. Together, water accounting and water auditing support better governance and can be carried out with active stakeholder engagement at a reasonable cost.
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