Presentation by: Jippe Hoogeveen (FAO CBL)

Agriculture is both a cause and a casualty of increasing water scarcity, and it has the greatest potential to contribute to more efficient and sustainable management of water resources. Agriculture is already responsible for about 70% of the global water withdrawals, and there will be an estimated 50 percent surge in the food demand in 2050. It is clear that even with the most efficient water use in agriculture, more water will still be necessary to produce the extra food needed particularly for the food insecure. At the same time, climate change is predicted to have a massive impact on water availability by drastically altering hydrological regimes across the globe. It is therefore also clear that where water is already scarce competition over rare water resources will be more acute and agriculture will receive less allocation.  If not dealt with properly and in a timely manner, conflicts over water may trigger conflicts, threaten food security and increase migration. Strategies addressing water scarcity must be based on a thorough understanding of the water balance, including water supply and demand and its spatial and temporal dimensions. It requires an ability to assess the situation and identify at an early stage threats on the sustainability of available resources as recommended in the SDG 6 to ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.   

Water accounting [1] helps to identify bottlenecks and critical points in the water balance where actions would be have the most impact.  The World Water Council Member initiative on water accounting for decision making in the agricultural sector lead by FAO in cooperation with[2] UNESCO-IHE, UNESCO-WWAP, IWMI, ICID and DWFI aims to raise the profile of water accounting for decision making and demonstrating the value added it can bring in smart planning processes in water management and water governance.  The main objective of this initiative is to initiate a process to promote the use of water accounting through a process consisting of expert consultations, policy level interactions, and the development of a White Paper on Water Accounting for decision making in the agricultural sector. The White Paper will be launched at the 8th World Water Forum in March 2018. 

This presentation is part of the consultation process proposed as part of this initiative and aims to frame the beginning of the discussion on : what is water accounting, what is the added value of water accounting to help identify critical action points and what it implies  in terms of tools, approaches. Examples will be used to illustrate the different points 

1.Water accounting refers to the systematic study of the hydrological cycle and the current status and future trends in both water supply and demand. Beyond the simple accounting of volumes and flows, it also focuses on issues relating to accessibility, uncertainty and governance of water.Therefore, Water Accounting is a critical tool to support any initiative aiming at addressing the challenges of water scarcity. Water auditing goes a step further than water accounting by placing trends in water supply, demand, accessibility and use in the broader context of governance, institutions, public and private expenditure, laws, and the wider political economy of water in specified domains. (FAO, 2016, water accounting and auditing, a source book, FAO water reports 43.)

Contact person for this session: Jippe Hoogeveen (CBL); Domitille Vallee (CBL)

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