A new study of 53 cities in the developing world reveals that farmers in and around the vast majority of these urban areas use polluted wastewater to irrigate their crops. One of the researchers Liqa Raschid-Sally of the International Water Management Institute discusses the issues with Jon Stewart on BBC radio.

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The multiple-use of water will be a topic at the 5th World Water Forum in Istanbul in March 2008. Two sessions will be organised, one focusing on characterising multiple-use services and its costs and benefits, and one on governance aspects related to multiple-use services. There are various mechanisms to participate in the preparations for this topic to the Forum.

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Multiple-use services are not new to Nepal. Actually, one cannot speak to anybody from the water sector in Nepal who has not seen a community already applying gravity water supply schemes for both domestic and productive uses. However, a structured approach to multiple-use services has only been around for a few years. A number of organizations (WaterAid Nepal, NEWAH, Concern International and IDE) from the Nepali water sector are now reviving a platform to discuss issues of multiple-use services, and share experiences.

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FAO and IFAD have recently produced a report where they argue about the existing potentials for well-targeted, local interventions in water that can contribute to the rapid improvement in the livelihoods of the rural poor in Sub-Saharan Africa. Amongst others, multiple-use of water is identified as a high-potential type of intervention for improving livelihoods, through local water management

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Winrock International, together with IWMI and IRC, carried out a study to assess the state of knowledge on multiple-use services. The purpose of the study was to guide prospective investments in the water sector by
• assessing the relative costs, benefits and poverty impacts of multiple-use approaches over single-use approaches
• evaluating the potential market for multiple-use approaches focusing on South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa
The report is available at the link below

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On 27 Sept field staff from a number of water sector organisations in Honduras met at a workshop to discuss their experiences with multiple use of water. Most participants recognised that most of the rural water supply systems in Honduras are de facto used for productive uses. However, this practice is not recognised as such. This limits the support to the sustainability of the services that can be given. Recognizing the reality and considering this in support activities, can be crucial to further sustainability of services.

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This article contains the experiences of three learning groups, from Bolivia, India and Mali, in joint reflection and learning about integrated water management.

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Providing access to clean water and better sanitation for the poor is a global concern. But access alone is insufficient to reduce poverty. The RIPPLE programme produced a video entitled Money into Water, Water into Money, which looks at improved access and poverty reduction in both rural and urban environments in Ethiopia. Understanding links between availability, access and use of water and sanitation is crucial to the challenge of achieving pro-poor economic growth.

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Winrock International, together with the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), Stockholm Environmental Institute (SEI) and IRC undertook a study for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) on multiple uses. This study aimed to assess the state-of-knowledge on the applicability of multiple use approaches, and their potential to meet the water needs of the poor for health, income generation and livelihoods. Results of this study will be presented and discussed during a side session in the Stockholm Water Week, through a panel debate and open discussion. The session is open to all interested participants.

The time and venue of the session are: Wednesday 15 August, 12:15-13:15 in Folkets Hus, Room 300.

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From 11-13 June, the Latin American partners in the MUS (Multiple Use Systems) project, including met in Cochabamba, Bolivia, to draft the conclusions from three years action-research in the field of multiple use systems in the Andean region. They concluded that all the communities in the areas that were studied are using their water supply systems for small-scale productive uses. But in order to be more effective and equitable in services delivery, and scale up the mus approach they require support from intermediate level organisations, such as local governments, NGOs and local private sector.

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