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GWP’s VISION is a water secure world. Our MISSION is to advance governance and management of water resources for sustainable and equitable development.

OUR UNIQUE VALUE: GWP mobilises action on the global water crisis through a unique combination of social capital, shared values, credibility within the global water community, bottom-up orientation, and expertise. A network of networks, we ensure the ‘voices of water’ can inﬂuence local, national, regional, and global development priorities. We are committed to our role as a neutral convener and respected for our focus on inclusiveness and sustainability.

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GWP creates and communicates information about integrated water resources management which contributes to improved water governance and, ultimately, water security.

Together with our Partners, we provide knowledge resources and capacity building activities for solving water problems.

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Institutional Partners are the basis of GWP's multi-stakeholder partnership. A strong, diverse partnership can bring about the changes needed to achieve a water secure world. In this section, learn about the benefits of being a Partner and meet a few who already are. We invite like-minded organisations to join us!

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This is where you can find links to the websites of our Regional Water Partnerships (RWPs). RWPs are closest to the countries where we work. They share knowledge and learning across national boundaries and are expected to have an open, inclusive, and gender-sensitive policies for bringing together as wide a group of stakeholders as possible to solve water problems.

Nepal’s Approach to Climate Change Adaptation with Local Adaptation Plans for Action (LAPAs): A Water Resource Perspective (#487)

Nepal is particularly vulnerable to climate change impacts for a variety of environmental, social, and economic reasons. Average temperatures have been rising steadily since the 1970s. Most of the mountain ranges within Nepal are home to extensive glaciers which are experiencing widespread retreat. Glacial discharge in turn impacts the hydrological regimes of rivers downstream and causes rapid growth of glacial lakes; glacier lake outburst floods (GLOFs) are one of many climate change phenomena with the potential to pose extreme risk to populations, infrastructure, etc.

Description

Nepal has been on the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) list since 1971 and their National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA) was submitted to UNFCC in 2010. Though Nepal was the 45th LDC to submit its NAPA, it has since become a pioneer in climate change adaptation planning. This is because, in 2011, it was the first LDC to issue a national framework on Local Adaptation Plans for Action (LAPAs) to strengthen and implement their NAPA prioritized adaptation actions. The Government of Nepal (GON) endorsed the National Climate Change Policy in 2011 that supports NAPA and LAPA implementation. The Policy specifies to "allocate at least 80% of available funds for field level climate change activities".

Action taken

Beginning in late 2015, JVS/GWP-Nepal began to design a study to further Nepal’s understanding of the relationship between its climate change adaptation priorities and water resource management. 101 of the LAPAs produced were reviewed to identify adaptation actions and associated budgets related to water resources. The report preparation also required extensive consultation with community members and government agencies. Each LAPA includes detailed descriptions of the largest threats faced by their locality due to climate change. The first approach of the study was to examine these identified threats. JVS/GWP-Nepal grouped these into 8 of the most commonly identified potential impacts.

JVS/GWP-Nepal next categorized all the water-related adaptation actions proposed in the reviewed LAPAs into 7 categories: infrastructure; community protection; water resource conservation and rainwater harvesting; agriculture; landslide and flood control; Indigenous knowledge and water mill; and capacity building. These 7 water-related adaptation action categories were used to further observe the budget allocated for each one

Lessons learnt

While it was discovered that adaptation actions related to water resources have already been given some priority, the focus on building water infrastructure may not be advantageous without adaptation actions focusing on capacity building as well.
Monitoring and evaluating national initiatives, as they are developed and implemented, can reveal useful information. Reviewing these initiatives from a broad perspective allows reflection to ultimately improve outcomes.
Strategic communication plans, which can for example include workshops and identification of key partners, should be paired with any study carrying important information in order to support evidence-based decision-making.
Non-governmental organizations and other third-party organizations can be used to provide a critical and objective review of governmental initiatives.

Page last edited: 11/27/2017