To ensure equitable distribution to all legitimate rights holders and to protect natural ecosystems, it is important that existing water tenure arrangements are coherent and all legitimate tenure rights are recognized by national legislation. 

Water tenure arrangements can be very complex and vary considerably, including within the same country, influenced by local and social practices, traditions and status, geography, environment and livelihood practices. Different water tenure arrangements may coexist and overlap in the same region, and water tenure holders may be part of more than one water tenure arrangement. 

The assessment methodology 

The KnoWat project developed a water tenure assessment methodology to identify and analyse the diversity of water tenure arrangements that may exist within a catchment or community. The methodology includes desk research and field data collection as well as capacity building and consultations with decision-makers, national stakeholders and local people that depend on water for their livelihoods. The assessment is carried out by a multidisciplinary team, which includes legal and sociological experts. 

It allows the identification and the analysis of water tenure arrangements deriving from different sources, including formal, customary, traditional and indigenous systems. Formal law, often described in terms of ‘water rights,’ includes permits, licenses, small-scale so-called ‘free uses,’ concessions, contracts, membership in water users’ associations and legal powers conferred on public bodies. Local communities and indigenous peoples that exercise self-governance over natural resources may apply their own rules to the allocation, management, use and protection of water resources. Communities often share resources based on social, cultural or religious norms, some of which may be recognized in formal law. 

The assessment methodology follows a six-step approach (see figure below) to categorize water tenure arrangements and determine their perceived security. It also permits the analysis of governance institutions and the identification of potential conflicts and their resolution through the application and revision of legal frameworks and local practices. 

The methodology allows comparisons between countries and between different regions in the same country while highlighting the specificities of each study area. The analysis provided by the assessment assists policymakers to define and safeguard the rights of all tenure holders and to determine how to safeguard water resources for users, while ensuring food security, livelihoods and the integrity of natural ecosystems. 

Water tenure assessment in Sri Lanka 

The Malwathu Oya basin is the second largest river basin among the river basins in Sri Lanka (3 284 km2) and one of the major agricultural areas in the country. The project area, the Malwathu Oya Southern Catchment is part of the Malwathu Oya river basin and extends over 77 950 ha. The population in the area has been estimated at 204 775. Agriculture and especially rice farming is the predominant livelihoods of the households, and 14 759 households are engaged in agriculture. 

Sri Lanka is experiencing spatial and temporal water scarcities, and there is an increasing demand and competition on water resources. It can be expected that in future, water scarcity and the risk of conflicts over sharing water will further increase. 

The KnoWat water tenure assessment identified and compared various water tenure arrangements that exist in the project area as well as at national level and highlighted the threats, issues and conflicts regarding the water tenure arrangements. It also provided recommendations for decision-makers on how to achieve more responsible and equitable governance of water tenure. 

Currently, there are 52 legislations that cover the overall water sector. 40 state agencies across various line ministries are involved in the administration of the water resources and in addressing the challenges related to water resources. 

Key recommendations for the responsible governance of water resources tenure include: 

• Improve the management of irrigation water, particularly monitoring of irrigation water provision, to provide the exact and adequate amount of water for paddy. This is important as irrigation is the main water user. 

• Bring all the water sector institution under one umbrella to simplify the administration for collective and inclusive planning, to reduce costs and to speed up the decision-making in the water sector. 

• Establish an overarching water policy to govern the water sector and simultaneously, establish an appropriate governance structure for basin management . 

• Implement the existing rules and regulations to control the illegal and unregulated water use to reduce the current water related issues and conflicts between water users and tenure regimes. 

• Streamline the water sector laws and have a separate water law for the country. Most of laws are out of date and responsibilities are spread out among large number of agencies. There is overlap, as some water sector government agencies implement other agency’s acts and not their own. 

• Review the provincial administration layer created by the 13th amendment of the Constitution taking into account the issues between central and provincial government agencies and come up with an acceptable solution to overcome the issues to improve collaboration and coordination, in particular regarding 

water governance. 

• Improve horizontal coordination among the existing water sector agencies by implementing common systems and procedures and by encouraging participatory water sector planning. 

• The role of the Project Management Committees (PMCs) in water tenure governance and water management should be further strengthened with a view to providing equitable and sustainable water services for all. Membership of the PMCs should be expanded to include all the water sector stakeholders. 

• At national level strengthen the water management panel for science based decision making and participatory water management mechanisms. 

• Establish free sharing of data and information among the water users and institutions should be established for better decision-making. 

• Introduce modern water tenure arrangements where possible in order to minimize water tenure insecurity.