The report consists of an introduction, and three separate, but inter-related parts. The introduction provides an overview of the workshop discussions, arguing that the irrigation sector is blamed for many environmental problems, suggesting to set the right incentives, and regulations, including...

This study deals with the evolution and context of the Bank policy for projects on international waterways. It starts with a brief description of how the Bank has faced the challenges stemming from such projects, and the different approaches deliberated by the Bank that led to the issuance of...

This note contains a summary, for practitioners, of the World Bank Law, Justice, and Development Series Book Regulatory Frameworks for Water Resources Management: a comparative study (2006). It examines how the regulatory frameworks in 16 jurisdictions worldwide have addressed the various basic...

Water is a scarce and finite resource with no substitute, and upon which the very existence of life on earth depends. The challenges facing water resources are daunting. The Millennium Development Goals aim, inter alia, at reducing by half, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable...

This study is a comparative assessment of the regulatory frameworks applicable to dam safety in 22 countries. It is divided into three parts. The first part is a description of the dam safety regulatory framework in each of the 22 countries. The countries were selected based on the availability...

The book analyzes five major bilateral treaty regimes on the South Asian subcontinent: between India and Bangladesh for the Ganges River; between India and Nepal for the Kosi, Gandaki, and Mahakali rivers; and, between India and Pakistan for the Indus River. It explains the background, and legal...

The evolution of the right to water can be traced to the developments of the early 1970s. This Study analyzes the resolutions and declarations of the various conferences and forums that have been held since that time, and the ways in which they have confronted the issue of the right to water....

The Gulf Economic Update (GEU) is the product of the Economic Policy unit for Middle East and North Africa at the World Bank Group. It provides an update on key economic developments and policies in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries over the past six months, places them in a...

Developing countries in the East Asia Pacific region will see stable economic growth this year, bolstered by a recovery in high-income economies and the market’s modest response so far to the Federal Reserve’s tapering of its quantitative easing, according to the East Asia Pacific Economic...