Political Solutions

Improving Water Security Politically

Political solutions, for example environmental regulation, are very effective means for ensuring a nation’s water security because they can be contextualized to specific regions, and because they have a more powerful impact than other solutions. Mission 2017 has proposed a plan to guide governments in the management and regulation of water both inside and outside of their borders. This plan has considerations for both developed and developing countries.

Proposed Plan

1) Water Management Systems: Optimize water management systems by striking a balance between public and private participation with Private Public Partnerships (PPPs).

2) Trans-Boundary Agreements: Create an advisory organization affiliated with UN Water to moderate transboundary agreements. This organization will advocate strategies such as fair water allocation practices, value creation and non-zero sum thinking, and public involvement.

3) International Declarations: Water as a human right will be added to the declaration of human rights and more countries will join the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and UN Treaty on the Use of Non-Navigational Watercourses due to monetary and political incentives

4) Regulating with Environmental Priority: Governments should regulate pollution, diversion, and distribution of water.

5) Reducing Pesticide Contamination through Adaptive Licensing: Governments should legislate adaptive licensing, and Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs) should work with individuals and corporations to ease the transition to a two-phase licensing process.

6) Water Security in Developing Countries: Developing countries should implement Integrated Water Resource Management and Genetically Modified crops, which should be regulated by the government and financed by micro financiers, charity organizations, and international groups such as the World Bank.