ERD 2012

Confronting scarcity:Managing water,

energy and land for inclusive and sustainable growth

OverviewProblem

• Access to water, energy and land is crucial for growth and poverty reduction.

• But global and interrelated environmental pressures are threatening to undermine the development prospects of the poorest countries and people.

Response

• All countries urgently need to recognise and address in an integratedmanner the rapidly growing scarcity and increased pressures on water, manner the rapidly growing scarcity and increased pressures on water, energy and land (WEL).

• This involves a WEL nexus approach to policy-making and management.

• Requires joint action by a variety of actors (governments, business, and international actors such as the EU) to promote inclusive and sustainable growth (ISG) around a four-pillar response

Water-energy-land (WEL) nexus

Manage demand to reflect scarcity (e.g. change food and packaging wastage);

Improve resilience to shocks and protect poorest);

Framing Policy Responses

4

Expand quality and quantity of supply (renewable energy, soils, water storage);

Promote use efficiencies (Productive, allocative, WEL / nexus-wide);

Transformative action is needed

Roles across the EU (PCD)(EU institutions and member states)

• EU internal policies

– Sustainable consumption and supply, Resource Efficient Europe, reforming CAP, reassessing biofuel policies

• EU external policies such as trade and investment policies

– New partnerships to promote responsible investment in water, renewable energy and landenergy and land

• EU development co-operation

– Implementation of EU Agenda for Change; renewable energy partnerships, improve transparency around land deals, WEL nexus diagnostic and policy initiative, challenging business to promote an ecosystems approach

• EU’s role in shaping global governance

– Enhanced UNEP role and SDGs, ambitious positions on climate change

Reforming EU Development cooperation(EU institutions and member states) – See Box 11.5

EU development cooperation programmes should support and improve:•Governance and analysis that identifies winners and losers•Institutional development in relation to WEL-nexus pressures.•Improve EU-wide harmonisation and coordination.•Government capacity to coordinate WEL-nexus stakeholders.•Provide data and other support to enhance transparency on WEL linkages, •Provide data and other support to enhance transparency on WEL linkages, •State–business relations on the WEL nexus, including policies that promote responsible private investment.•Renewable energy partnerships involving finance, TA and technology transfer.•Social protection for resource shocks to support those most vulnerable to changes•Regional integration to deal with water stresses and energy shortages.•Infrastructure projects that support poverty reduction through improved WEL-nexus management.•Blending of grants and loans for water infrastructure & renewable energy

Overall: 5 priorities for action• Reduce environmental footprint of consumption (especially, but

not only, in developed countries such as the EU) to promote inclusive growth without increasing resource use.

• Promote innovation to increase agricultural productivity to feed 9bn+ people sustainably by 2050 and to scale up renewable energy technologies to deliver sustainable energy for all by 2030.

• Establish or reform institutions for an integrated approach • Establish or reform institutions for an integrated approach towards managing resources.

• Push for inclusive land policy to ensure access to land and water for the poorest and most vulnerable.

• Price natural resources and services comprehensively and appropriately (e.g. using payments for ecosystem services), whilst safeguarding the welfare of the poorest.

Thank you

Dirk Willem te Velde (ODI) and James Mackie (ECDPM)

For more information on ERD 2011/2012:

www.erd-report.eu

www.odi.org.ukwww.die-gdi.dewww.ecdpm.org