Management of catchment for the protection of source water in the Densu River basin, Ghana: implications for rural communities

Since the 1990s, integrated catchment management (ICM) has been promoted as a holistic and integrated approach to water resources management. However, there is evidence to show that the costs and benefits associated with ICM are often inequitably distributed. This study investigates impacts of the implementation of catchment strategies on four rural communities and the coping mechanisms available to residents to cope with concomitant socioeconomic hardships within the Densu River basin, Ghana. The study relies on data collected through reviewing regulatory and policy documents, interviews, observations, and a household survey of 327 respondents. The results show that the implementation of the catchment strategies has negatively impacted the economies of all communities leading to local resistance. Increasing unemployment, decreasing incomes, and decreasing sales are generating increasing crime rates, out migration, and changing gender roles with additional burden on women. What compounds the problem are that socioeconomic interventions and coping mechanisms have failed to make any significant impact. We argue that for effective ICM, proportional representation of local people on catchment committees should be central in order to incorporate a thorough understanding of the local socioeconomic issues and integrating those issues into the implementation process; otherwise catchment strategies risk disproportionately impacting rural communities.

自20世纪90年代以来，流域综合管理（Integrated Catchment Management, ICM）作为一种整体性、一体化的水资源管理范式被广泛推广。然而现有研究表明，与ICM相关的成本与收益往往分配不均。本研究以加纳登苏河流域为研究区域，探讨流域策略实施对四个乡村社区的影响，以及当地居民应对伴随而来的社会经济困境的可行应对机制。本研究的数据来源于监管与政策文件梳理、访谈调研、实地观察，以及针对327名受访者开展的家庭问卷调查。研究结果显示，流域策略的实施对所有社区的经济均造成了负面影响，进而引发了当地居民的抵制行动。失业率攀升、收入下滑、销售额下降等问题，正导致犯罪率上升、人口外流，同时重塑了当地的性别角色结构，给女性群体增添了额外的负担。更为棘手的是，各类社会经济干预措施与应对机制均未产生显著成效。我们认为，若要实现高效的流域综合管理，需将当地居民在流域委员会中的比例代表制作为核心原则，以充分吸纳对当地社会经济问题的深度认知，并将此类问题全面融入实施流程；否则流域策略将面临对乡村社区造成不成比例负面影响的风险。