Complexity of the water sector and its governance arrangements
At the same time, water sector governance and management choices depend on the broader political system, politico-administrative structures and country-specific institutional arrangements. Public, private and state relationships, as well as current capacities for efficient management and control of water resources also influence management of the sector on the ground.
For example, in Latin America, a UNDP (2013) regional study identified at least three common models of water governance that developed out of specific political, legal and institutional contexts. These are:
2.1 Decentralized public water management as an alternative to the state centralized and hyper-bureaucratized model.
2.2. Privatization of water resources and service delivery, characterized by the development of new institutional rules that advocate for minimal state influence, adoption of market logics in the distribution of property rights and water management, and redefinition of the relationship between market and civil society.
2.3 Self-managed forms of water management at the local level that emerged from social movements against privatization and advocacy for decentralized management models.
