Indicator System Governance and Stakeholders

The Governance and Stakeholders component of the FHI is composed by four major indicators: Enabling Environment, Stakeholder Engagement, Vision and Adaptive Governance, and Effectiveness. Each of these indicators is composed by two up to five sub-indicators as indicated below. Table bloew provides a summary of the indicators and sub-indicators comprising the Governance and Stakeholders component.

Enabling Environment assesses the constraints and opportunities that are enshrined by the existing institutional framework (policies, regulations, market mechanisms and social norms) and the financial and technical capacity available to carry out mandates (Moglia et al. 2011). This indicator is composed by five sub-indicators: Water Resource Management measuring the degree to which institutions (formal and informal) are responsible for performing the water resource management functions; Rights to Resource Use measuring the coherence of the existing rights to resource use; Incentives and Regulations measuring the availability of different management instruments; Financial Capacity measuring the degree to which financial resources are available to investment in water resource protection; and Technical Capacity measuring the number and skill level of professionals working in water resource management.

Stakeholder Engagement assesses stakeholder interactions, i.e., people’s ability to engage in decision making processes and the degree of transparency and accountability that govern these interactions. This indicator is composed by two sub-indicators: Information Access and Knowledge measuring the access (and uptake) all stakeholders have to information (e.g., data); and Engagement in Decision-Making Processes measuring the degree to which all stakeholders have a voice within the cycle of policy and planning.

Vision and Adaptive Governance assesses the stakeholders’ capacity to collect and interpret information, and to use this information to set goals for the basin and adapt to changing circumstances. This indicator is composed by two sub-indicators: Strategic Planning and Adaptive Governance measuring the degree to which stakeholders engage in comprehensive strategic planning; and Monitoring and Learning Mechanisms measuring the adequacy and uptake of monitoring programs and information.

Effectiveness assesses the governance components that are being implemented and whether they are leading to the expected outcomes. More specifically, the focus here is on key indicators of governance failures (Rogers and Hall 2003): implementation gaps, inequitable distribution of benefits and the presence of water-related conflicts. This indicator is composed by three sub-indicators: Enforcement and Compliance measuring the degree to which laws are upheld and agreements are enforced; Distribution of Benefits from Ecosystem Services measuring the impact of water management-related decisions on vulnerable populations, gender and resource-dependent communities, especially; and Water-Related Conflict measuring the presence of conflicts over water services.

Governance & Stakeholders indicators