Sustainable Drylands Management: A Strategy for Securing Water Resources and Adapting to Climate Change

Based on the statistics that drylands include 40% of the earth's surface and are home to 2 billion people, this article describes natural resource management that is designed to help bring drylands inhabitants out of poverty and decrease human pressure on fragile resources. "Reducing the vulnerability of dryland communities to climate change will require measures that diversify livelihood options, reduce pressure on natural resources, and restore and protect dryland ecosystems through sustainable management practices. Examples of such measures are already in use in communities around the world, and can offer guidance to the adaptation processes of dryland countries. Two examples of valuable community experience are highlighted here."

The focus of the Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR) in India is building community resilience through watershed restoration.  To date (2003), WOTR’s activities have been conducted in over 150 watersheds, covering about 160,000 hectares (ha) and benefiting over 230,000 people. The watershed development effort emphasises self-help, ecological regeneration, and “catching rain wherever it falls.” Upon developing a proposal for action, villagers agree to undertake a series of watershed development activities, such as:

• establishing village self-help groups to help guide the watershed effort;
• building hydraulic structures for in-situ water harvesting, aquifer recharge, and erosion control;
• planting trees and grasses to stabilise waterways and provide fodder and fuelwood;
• instituting bans on tree felling and grazing for natural regeneration of shrubs and grasses;
• training villagers in new or improved agricultural practices and livelihood activities; and
• supporting cottage industries and supplemental income generation through micro-lending schemes.

In addition to indicators such as piped water replacing water tanker delivery, increased irrigated acreage, trees planted, and increased milk production, socio-economic indicators include brick housing replacing mud housing, increased purchase of consumer goods, an increased percentage of the population able to manage a livelihood in times of scarcity, and broader inclusion of villagers elected to serve on public bodies. In one project area, between 1996 and 2001, the groundwater table rose three metres, and there was a net increase in cropped land.  Around 342 ha of land were brought under irrigation, of which 13 ha are now perennially irrigated. Over 378,000 trees were planted, with a survival rate over 90%. Fodder availability increased 170% and milk production rose over 1,500%. In another, drinking water shortages have largely been eliminated. Perennially irrigated land increased by 315% and milk production increased by 1,250%. Over 250,000 trees were planted, with a survival rate over 85%, and fodder production increased by 2,700%

On the policy level, watershed development has been viewed nationally as an effective strategy, influencing national spending allocations. On the state level, partnerships with government-funded watershed management have been informed by the WOTR experience.

The second example is “Community-Based Rangeland Rehabilitation (CBRR) for Carbon Sequestration” in Sudan, funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)’s Global Environmental Facility (GEF), which sought to:

1. Implement a simple model of community-based natural resource management to prevent overexploitation of marginal lands and rehabilitate rangelands for the purpose of carbon sequestration, biodiversity preservation, and the reduction of atmospheric dust; and
2. Help ensure the success and sustainability of this approach by diversifying local production systems and improving socio-economic conditions.

Its activities were designed for:  

• Awareness and institution building to mobilise and organise community groups for project planning and implementation;
• Training in a wide range of activities to build local capacity for project implementation and ensure project sustainability;
• Rangeland rehabilitation - including land management, livestock improvement, agroforestry and sand dune fixation to prevent overexploitation and restore productivity of rangelands; and
• Community development activities to address immediate needs of communities by diversifying local production systems and income-generating opportunities, thereby reducing pressure on rangeland resources.

The short-term achievements of the CBRR project include establishing local community coordinating institutions with land-use master plans and community mobilisation teams, creation of water management sub-committees, and establishment of women's gardens and pastoral groups for supplemental food and income generation. The long-term measure of these achievements lies in their effectiveness in increasing the capacity of people in the Gireigikh rural council to withstand drought.

The article concludes that the experiences from India and Sudan have demonstrated that the resilience of dryland communities can be successfully built through a wide range of ecosystem management and restoration activities, with the following lessons learned from the WOTR and CBRR projects:

"• Understanding of local livelihoods and vulnerabilities, knowing the assets that comprise peoples’ livelihoods and the factors (including climate-related risks) that shape vulnerability to ensure the design of appropriate and locally-relevant project activities.
• Community-driven implementation, emphasizing the active participation of community members in the initiation, design, implementation and monitoring of project activities to secure community support and promote a strong sense of ownership.
• Community organization, establishing or building upon social institutions - e.g., village self-help groups, women’s groups and village water sub-committees - to carry out activities in a structured, participatory and efficient manner.
• Strong participation of women, recognizing their role as household and community resource managers, promoting their active involvement in project activities to ensure the success and sustainability of achievements.
• Local training and capacity building, enhancing the local human resource base and the effectiveness of project activities by teaching community members a range of technical, financial and managerial skills.
• Blending of traditional and modern approaches, using local traditional knowledge to develop appropriate project activities.
• Reconciling short-term needs with long-term goals, investing in the long-term success of the project with activities that meet the immediate development needs of the community and build local capacity to sustain the ecosystem management and restoration (EM&R) effort.
• Supportive policy environment, working within broader policy frameworks that support de-centralized natural resource management and community development processes."