Strengthening Water Resources Management for Climate-Resilient and Inclusive WASH Services

The University of Technology Sydney - Institute for Sustainable Futures

Climate Resilience Research (WRA-CR07)

Research theme: Climate-resilient water safety planning

Research focus: Practical application of water safety planning in Cambodia to progress climate-resilient, inclusive WASH services in Cambodia. 

Location: Kampong Chhnang and Pursat Province, Cambodia

Partners: University of Technology Sydney - Institute for Sustainable Futures (UTS-ISF), Cambodia Development Resource Institute (CDRI), Thrive Networks/East Meets West Cambodia, WaterAid Cambodia and Cambodia Water Supply Association (CWA)

To support civil society organisations (CSOs) and government to implement water safety planning (WSP) in Cambodia that is inclusive and climate-resilient, this project sought to analyse tools and frameworks for risk and resilience assessments and their application to the needs of Cambodia’s water service authorities and providers.

This included determining:

1. In what ways are WASH CSOs and associations engaging in climate-resilient water resources management planning at varied scales in Cambodia (commune, district, catchment)?
2. How can existing or new tools and frameworks for risk and resilient WASH assessment be used and adapted to meet the needs of WASH system actors in Cambodia to secure more climate-resilient services?
3. To what extent do new and existing tools and frameworks incorporate gender equality, disability and social inclusion (GEDSI) and women’s leadership considerations and opportunities? How could they be improved?

What we did

We comparatively analysed WSP tools issued by government agencies Ministry of Rural Development (MRD) focused on community engagement and Ministry of Industry, Sciences, Technology and Innovation (MISTI) focusing on private water operators (PWOs). We explored ways WASH CSOs engage with climate resilient (CR) water planning through surveys, key informant interviews, observations and focus group discussions. We integrated gender responsiveness and social inclusion as cross-cutting themes in WSP, to ensure equal resource access and promote gender inclusion. The guidelines were only available in Khmer when we started the project, and now they have been translated into English for wider use and for analysis purposes.

East Meets West engaged 13 communes with piped (10) and non-piped (3) water supply with participation of local government, private sector and female community volunteers to develop climate resilient and inclusive CRI-WSP using both guidelines. They also conducted workshops with government partners including Provincial Department of Rural Development and Department of Industry, Scientific, Technology & Innovation, local authorities, private sectors and CDRI to share experience and reflect the knowledge and capacity of stakeholders at different levels in six target provinces on the implementation of six steps of WSP guidelines.

“Engaging the government in research projects that have findings that are relevant to them is very important to influence effectively and build the WASH system overall.”

We co-developed and designed our research activities with implementing partners and key stakeholders at the national, provincial and local levels. Local leadership and a diverse team of CSOs, research organisations and an association played important roles in driving this research project.

On 28 August 2024, researchers and water sector professionals gathered at the Cambodia Development Resource Institute (CDRI) in Phnom Penh to analyse findings from their research on climate-resilient water safety planning. The workshop brought together representatives from research partners CDRI, East Meets West (EMW), WaterAid Cambodia, and the Cambodian Water Supply Association (CWA).

What we found

WASH CSOs and associations in Cambodia are engaging in CR water resources management planning through complementary approaches at different scales from commune-level work directly with communities, through district-level coordination with authorities and water operators, to catchment-level partnerships with government agencies and other stakeholders.  Community engagement, capacity building/training, collaboration and partnership are fundamental to this work. This multi-scale approach helps build climate resilience while working to ensure equitable access to safe water, however, challenges remain including limited resources, varying levels of participation, and the need for better coordination between different initiatives.

Comparing MRD and MISTI’s guidelines, MRD’s placed more emphasis on inclusion, while MISTI’s were less explicit. Conversely, the MISTI guideline provided more detailed climate risk assessment frameworks covering hazards, impacts and vulnerabilities compared to the MRD's briefer treatment. These tools need better alignment and integration. While MISTI's guidelines provide strong technical guidance and MRD's focus on community engagement, stakeholders identified that combining valuable elements from both would create more comprehensive and effective frameworks which is particularly important when working across different scales and with various water system actors.

Research Uptake

WASH CSOs and associations are making significant contributions to CR water resources management planning in Cambodia, including customising and piloting the recently launched WSP guidelines (2023), while also highlighting areas where further support and development are needed in order to maximise the benefits of WSP.

Emerging research impacts include engagement with MRD and growing international interest, for example, UNICEF Lao PDR plan to apply lessons from our project to their upcoming national WSP guideline development process. As a result of partaking in this research, four private water operators successfully completed their CRI-WSP plans for water management and are implementing them.

WaterAid leveraged research findings to enhance future programming, with a particular focus on GEDSI integration in their guidelines. WaterAid Cambodia is using insights to collaborate on inclusive climate-resilient WASH programs across various sectors. The research activities enabled diverse team members to openly share lessons learned from implementing WSP guidelines, enhancing their staff's understanding of participatory action research methods and processes. The team successfully adapted these methods to strengthen disability-inclusive water solutions in Cambodia.

All of the partners’ commitment to long-term engagement and their existing close relationships with government departments position them well to support further uptake of the research findings through their sector strengthening approach.

Broader WASH sector contributions

The project contributed to adaptation and implementation of WSP in communities to better understand climate risks to water security and build community knowledge and ways of working to address WASH issues at a community level. This is a broader contribution to the knowledge base related to effectiveness (or otherwise) of WSP.

Our systematic application of the WHO Equity Guideline for WSP with additional GEDSI frameworks and an action learning approach was a unique and important contribution to the WSP knowledge and learning in Cambodia and globally. To help build a global community of practice related to CRI-WSP and how it needs to be locally contextualised, we also hope to contribute to WHO processes and practices and global collaboration on tailored approaches for CRI-WSP.

Where to from here?

This pioneering CRI-WSP research in Cambodia can inform and support CRI-WSP implementation in other countries, particularly Lao PDR. In addition to filling evidence gaps on WSP in the Mekong region, we seek to improve, evaluate and scale CRI-WSP in more contexts to understand its usefulness, success factors, and how it can be scaled effectively.

CWA will continue working with MISTI (Department of Portable Water) and other key stakeholders to strengthen PWOs’ water supply operations through CRI-WSP implementation and climate awareness efforts, encouraging PWOs to develop plans with local stakeholder input.

East Meets West plans to continue CRI-WSP projects in target provinces, integrating water conservation, double pit latrines to prevent source pollution, menstrual health and hygiene, and women’s empowerment.

WaterAid has leveraged research findings to enhance future programming, with a particular focus on GEDSI integration in their guidelines, working to strengthen both disability-inclusive water solutions and locally-led climate change adaptation initiatives in Cambodia.

Our partners have good systems, staff with strong commitments and CRI- WSP expertise, and strong working relationship with government partners at all levels, private sector, NGO partners and research partner, and are ready to continue this valuable work.

Where we started

"This is an important project for WASH programs in Cambodia and has been designed to inform and support WASH organisations and government agencies wishing to make WASH more climate-resilient. We are fortunate to have a really strong and influential project team of five partner organisations from Cambodia and Australia. This project will also help to inform key government agencies who have recently developed water safety planning guidelines, as well as the broader WASH sector about how these tools can be used for maximum impact.” 

Melita Grant, University of Technology Sydney - Institute for Sustainable Futures and project coordinator

Research Description

Cambodia is highly vulnerable to climate change due to its dependence on climate-sensitive sectors such as agriculture, water resources, forestry, fisheries, and tourism, which are crucial for economic growth and the livelihoods of the population.

Projected climate change trends indicate that Cambodia will experience more severe and unpredictable floods and droughts, which will have a significant impact on the country’s GDP, potentially reducing it by nearly 10% by 2050. These climate change impacts are expected to worsen existing issues of wealth and income inequality and hinder poverty alleviation efforts. 

Given these threats and the interconnectedness of climate change and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) issues, this research aims to analyse tools and frameworks for risk and resilience assessments and their application to the needs of Cambodia’s water service authorities and providers. The objective of the research is to support CSOs and government to implement water safety planning in Cambodia that is inclusive and climate-resilient.

This research focuses on the involvement of WASH CSOs and other associations in the development of Water Safety Plan guidelines and how these updated guidelines can be effectively implemented in their work.

WASH CSOs and associations are crucial in identifying affordable and effective water treatment methods for the people of Cambodia. The findings of this research are providing valuable insights for policymakers and contributing to improving the guidelines by highlighting strengths and areas that need attention. Additionally, the research emphasises the importance of community participation, including women and people from minority groups, in decision-making processes related to water safety planning and services in Cambodia.

This project aims to comprehensively engage in various research activities, including documenting and capturing the involvement of WASH CSOs and associations in water resources management, reviewing new tools and frameworks, analysing risk and resilience assessments, and assessing the leadership and empowerment initiatives for local communities, women, and people with disabilities.

The research involves quantitative data analysis through surveys, and qualitative data including key informant interviews, observations and focus group discussions. It integrates gender responsiveness and social inclusion as cross-cutting themes in water safety planning, to ensure equal resource access and promote gender inclusion.

The research activities have been co-developed and designed by implementing partners in collaboration with key stakeholders at the national, provincial and local levels. The researchers have planned policy dialogues with government stakeholders to stimulate discussions on actionable research findings and progress climate-resilient inclusive WASH.

Pathways to impact

To shape climate-resilient, inclusive water safety planning in Cambodia, researchers are undertaking mixed methods research which involves:

1. Participatory action research in local communities in two provinces.
2. Capacity development and integration of GEDSI approaches.
3. Implementation of water safety planning with an emphasis on climate resilience.
4. Stakeholder coordination, implementation monitoring, reporting and dissemination of research findings.

“The workshop supports the co-developing [of] the key elements of the research plan and communications plan and also sharing information with partners relevant to the research framework and questions. This marks the beginning of our joint project, and we are excited to see how our shared vision will unfold.”

Cambodia Development Resource Institute researcher 

Feature photo: Research partners engage in a lively brainstorming session, unleashing their inputs to generate groundbreaking ideas for the project plan (Cambodia Development Resource Institute)