In Africa and worldwide, researchers are attempting to address Water Management issues for Local Development. Most approaches attempt to understand the institutional, cultural, social, technical, financial and economic contexts in which water reform takes place. Through projects and partnerships with policy- and decision-makers, implementation and development agents, tools are developed, that are aimed at understanding and documenting processes, informing decisions, facilitating negotiation, solving conflicts, foreseeing possible outcomes and impact, and seeking for alternative solutions and scenarios. Many operational toolboxes and approaches already exist, but need to be shared among researchers and development stakeholders.

The core idea of the workshop is to create an opportunity for exchange, discussion, and knowledge and experience sharing between research teams, and policy and development agents. The emphasis is on water management for local sustainable development, through proper and sound governance, institutions and policies. The focus is rural development, although interactions between urban, peri-urban and rural water uses will also be addressed.

Therefore, the workshop is likely to be very multi-disciplinary, yet with an emphasis on institutional analysis, economics and socio-economics, policy analysis, modelling and the like. Pure technical contributions may not be accepted.

Contributions from developing and emerging countries around the globe are expected, although specific emphasis will be put on Africa. Research operators, development and implementing agents, policy makers in the field of water resource management are warmly invited to attend and contribute to the workshop.

60 to 80 researchers, decision-makers and operators should attend.

A CD-Rom with all contributing papers and key-note addresses will be distributed at the outset of the workshop.

On the basis of selected best and original contributing papers, a book will be published after the workshop.