SAWI South Asia Water Initiative Annual Report (July 2018 - June 2019) About SAWI The South Asia Water Initiative (SAWI) is a multi-donor trust fund supported by the United Kingdom, Australia and Norway, and administered by the World Bank. SAWI supports a rich portfolio of activities designed to increase regional cooperation in the management of the major Himalayan river systems in South Asia to deliver sustainable, fair and inclusive development and climate resilience. It does this through four complementary outcome areas: strengthening awareness and knowledge on regional water issues; enhancing technical and policy capacity across the region; facilitating dialogue and participatory decision processes to build trust and confidence; and scoping and informing investment designs. In the context of water resources planning and management, the program promotes poverty alleviation, economic development, gender inclusion and climate change adaptation. Its work is structured across three river basins (Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra Focus Areas) and one landscape (Sundarbans Focus Area), spanning seven countries (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Nepal and Pakistan). These Focus Areas interface with a Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Area that both supports non-basin specific work and translates national and basin-specific work for wider dissemination or implementation. The World Bank Group Copyright 2019 All rights reserved All photos are SAWI or licensed through iStock by Getty Images The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank Group 1818 H Street, NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA SAWI South Asia Water Initiative Annual Report (July 2018 - June 2019) The South Asia Water Initiative (SAWI) Annual Report (July 2018 – June 2019) was prepared by Debbie Menezes (Lead Author) and Taylor Henshaw, with contributions received from the SARRE (South Asia Region Regional Integration and Engagement) team led previously by Robert J. Saum, Director, and currently Mohammed Dalil Essakali, Acting Director, and the World Bank’s Global Practices and SAWI team. The Water Practice leadership for SAWI is headed by John Roome, Regional Director, Michael Haney, Practice Manager, Takuya Kamata, Practice Manager, and Sudipto Sarkar, Practice Manager. The SAWI Program is managed by Janet Minatelli, previously Irina Gabrial, and by Halla Qaddumi as the technical lead of the program. Core SAWI program team members include Debbie Menezes, Yinan Zhang, Muhammad Wali Ahmadzai, Taylor Henshaw, Julie Ann Vorman, Jane F. Kirby-Zaki, and Sarwat Batool. We particularly want to acknowledge the support and inputs provided by the following Task Team Leaders and their teams contributing to the SAWI Trust Fund: Ahmed Shawky M. Abdel Ghany, Satya Priya, William Young, Anju Gaur, Lucy Lytton, Feriha Mugisha, Upneet Singh (WAT); Rikard Liden, Xiaoping Wang (EAE); Muthukumara Mani (SARCE); Tapas Paul, Susmita Dasgupta (ENV); Arati Belle, Dechen Tshering (SURR); Juan Carlos Rojas for report design; as well as the World Bank’s Regional Integration Program Committee (RIPC). The SAWI team extends its gratitude to the SAWI development partners—the United Kingdom’s Department of International Development, Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Norway’s Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation—for their continuous support to SAWI. CONTENTS SUMMARY OVERVIEW 1 SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION 10 1.1 SAWI’S Objective, Approach and Portfolio 11 1.2 Partnership Approach 12 1.3 Relevance 12 SECTION 2: FY19 ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORTING 13 2.1 Effectiveness (What Difference is SAWI Making?) 14 2.2 Focus Area Reporting 16 Indus Basin Focus Area 16 Ganges Basin Focus Area 18 Brahmaputra Basin Focus Area 22 Sundarbans Landscape Focus Area 26 Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Area 31 2.3 Cross-Cutting Themes 34 Gender, Social Inclusion and Disability 34 Climate Change and Building Resilience 36 Innovation 40 2.4 Sustainability 41 2.5 Program and Financial Management 41 SECTION 3: LESSONS, RISKS, FORWARD LOOK 43 3.1 Lessons 44 What Has Worked Well 44 What Has Worked Less Well 44 3.2 Risks and Mitigation 45 3.3 Portfolio Forward Look 46 ANNEX 1: ACTIVITY PERFORMANCE 50 ANNEX 2: ACTIVITY SUMMARIES 60 ANNEX 3: KNOWLEDGE PRODUCTS 76 ANNEX 4: PROGRAM AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT 79 ANNEX 5: GENDER MAPPING 87 ANNEX 6: COUNTRY ACTIVITY PROFILES 90 ANNEX 7: PARTNERSHIPS 101 ANNEX 8: NEW ACTIVITIES 104 ANNEX 9: WB INVESTMENTS/OPERATIONS INFLUENCED BY SAWI 108 ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS B Billion (US Dollars) BBIN Bangladesh-Bhutan-India-Nepal BBL Brown Bag Lunch BE Bank Executed BISRCI Bangladesh-India Sundarbans Regional Cooperation Initiative BKDP Bihar Kosi Basin Development Project BMD Bangladesh Meteorological Department BRB Brahmaputra River Basin Focus Area BWMD Bangladesh Water Development Board CAEWDP Central Asia Energy-Water Development Program CMU (World Bank) Country Management Unit COP24 24th Annual Conference of the Parties to UN Framework Convention on Climate Change CSO Civil Society Organization CWC (India) Central Water Commission DFAT (Australia) Department for Foreign Affairs and Trade DFID (UK) Department for International Development DHPS Department of Hydropower and Power Systems DONER Ministry for Development of the North-Eastern Region EC Executive Committee FSPV Floating Solar Photovoltaic FY Fiscal Year GESI Gender and Social Inclusion GFR Grant Funding Request GOI Government of India GP (World Bank) Global Practice GRB Ganges River Basin Focus Area HEP Hydro Electric Power HIWAT High-Impact Weather Assessment Toolkit HKH Hindu Kush Himalaya HLC High-Level Committee HUC Himalayan University Consortium IBKF Indus Basin Knowledge Forum ICIMOD International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development IFWG Indus Forum Working Group IIASA International Institute of Applied Systems Analysis IRB Indus River Basin Focus Area IUCN International Union for Conservation of Nature IWMI International Water Management Institute IWRM Integrated Water Resource Management JWG Joint Working Group M Million (US Dollars) MDTF Multi-Donor Trust Fund MIS Management Information System MOU Memorandum of Understanding MOWR Ministry of Water Resources MOWR,RD&GR Ministry of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation MW Megawatt M&E Monitoring and Evaluation NCHM National Center for Hydrology and Meteorology NEA Nepal Electricity Authority NER North East Region (India) NGO Non-Governmental Organization NHP National Hydrology Project NITI AAYOG National Institutions for Transforming India PACT Program for Asia Connectivity and Trade PARCC Program for Asia’s Resilience to Climate Change PRO Program Management RE Recipient Executed REG Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Area RGOB The Royal Government of Bhutan RIPC Regional Integration Program Committee SARRE South Asia Region’s Regional Integration and Engagement SARTFP South Asia Regional Trade Facilitation Program SAWGP (DFID) South Asia Water Governance Programme SAWI South Asia Water Initiative SDIP (DFAT) Sustainable Development Investment Portfolio SESA Strategic Environmental and Social Assessment SUN Sundarbans Landscape Focus Area TTL (World Bank) Task Team Leader UNDP United Nations Development Programme USAID United States Agency for International Development WECS (Nepal) Water and Energy Commission Secretariat WRM Water Resources Management SUMMARY OVERVIEW 2 How to Read this Report • By design, SAWI’s activities contribute toward its five Focus Area Strategies. Figure 1 shows FY19 and This annual report (July 2018 – June 2019) summarizes cumulative expenditure distribution. progress, annual results and outcomes for the sixth • As part of the World Bank’s Trust Fund Reform pilot, year of implementation of the South Asia Water Initiative which involves aligning the selection of all Trust Fund (SAWI) Phase II (2013-2021). This report covers 28 grant (TF) activities across the portfolio with the World activities that were ongoing in the reporting year, including Bank’s strategic business planning process, six eight that were completed/closed. The Summary Overview new SAWI activities were endorsed by the Regional outlines key change processes and emerging results, Integration Program Committee (RIPC) in March 2019 including from work in previous years. It is followed by a (Annex 8). brief introduction (Section 1), progress against each of the • A SAWI program management team, led by the five Focus Areas and an update on program and financial Washington, DC-based Program Manager and Delhi- management (Section 2), and risks to delivery and lessons based Technical Lead, continue to closely track (Section 3). Nine supporting Annexes include: Activity progress and ensure that adaptive programming is Performance (Annex 1); Activity Summaries (Annex 2); followed to deliver value for money. Knowledge Products (Annex 3); Program and Financial Management (Annex 4); Gender Mapping (Annex 5); • A new Management Information System (MIS) has Country Activity Profiles (Annex 6); Partnerships (Annex become operational and is helping to track results, 7); New Activities (Annex 8); and World Bank Investments/ strengthen financial management and support Operations Influenced by SAWI (Annex 9). knowledge management. • SAWI is an integral part of the World Bank’s SAWI’s Portfolio in FY19 growing regional portfolio in South Asia and its strategic approach towards regional integration and • Of the overall portfolio of 57 activities since inception, engagement. Thus, SAWI is linked to a number of 28 grant activities were active this fiscal year, of other World Bank investments and regional trust funds which five were Recipient Executed (RE) and 23 were in South Asia, which include: the Program for Asia’s Bank Executed (BE). Three BE activities focused on Resilience to Climate Change (PARCC); the South Asia program management, strategic communications and Regional Trade Facilitation Program (SARTFP); and, the results monitoring and evaluation. Programme for Asia Connectivity and Trade (PACT). • Of the 28 grant activities in the portfolio this year, The Bank has also put in place a streamlined process six new activities began implementation and are for the selection of activities for funding across all four ongoing (these are aligned with the SAWI Think Piece South Asia Regional Trust Funds. prepared in FY18); eight activities have satisfactorily come to an end.1 Figure 1: Left: FY19 Expenditure Percentage by Focus Area (Number of FY19 Active Activities in Brackets) Right: Cumulative Financial Expenditure Since Inception (Number of Activities Since Inception in Brackets) $8,000,000.00 $7,000,000.00 17% $6,000,000.00 IRB (5) $5,000,000.00 GRB $4,000,000.00 BRB 47% 9% (9) (19) SUN (7) (4) $3,000,000.00 (13) $2,000,000.00 REG 18% (6) (3) (7) PRO $1,000,000.00 (7) 2% 7% $0.00 (2) (3) IRB GRB BRB SUN REG PRO Disbursement Commitment Available 1 Two activities were on hold this year. The Non-Monetary Value of Water study did not progress due to limited potential for uptake with the World Bank’s current investment portfolio; and, the Ganges Dialogue remains on hold pending opportunities to advance basin dialogue. 3 Progress in FY19 SAWI has made steady progress this year—focused on Highlights: FY19 delivering its annual activity workplans while ensuring Regional events this year (Brahmaputra Dialogue alignment with its four outcome areas. Achievement and Regional Dialogue) brought together more than against annual program-level targets in SAWI’s Results 165 technical experts, government and civil society Framework remains on track (see Annex 1), and highlights participants. These acted as forums to advance tacit are in Table 1 (at the end of the main report). and technical knowledge sharing and progress common understanding on collaborative ways to tackle regional This year, SAWI’s focus has been on progressing activities challenges to good water resources governance. towards their completion; promoting ownership of emerging technical products with regional stakeholders; and putting The completion of 39 technical products from in place and supporting sustainability mechanisms, across the five Focus Areas has not only brought new including through consolidating partnerships with others, knowledge and tools to help stakeholders in planning engaging with key regional stakeholders to broaden and for water resource management, but also focused deepen the discourse on water resources management, on emerging priority issues that are closely related to and disseminating knowledge and promoting learning with critical regional challenges (such as management of regional stakeholders in relevant forums. scarce groundwater resources). Recently-completed technical achievements have the SAWI has also provided capacity building support to potential to become game changers. The scenario-based 155 professionals (including 36 women) to enable river basin modelling and participatory planning under the these tools to be put into use and has helped to Strategic Basin Planning for the Ganges in India activity build the policy or technical capacity of 30 key water was finalized this year. This first of its kind analytical management organizations. and modelling work undertook a highly multi-stakeholder engagement process to draw up a set of plausible SAWI activities are now cumulatively linked to 27 World scenarios for the development of the basin, while taking Bank investments (worth $5.7B), up from 19 ($4.2B) into consideration the multiple stakeholder interests. The last year. combination of technical work and consultation enabled a key shift in approaching this exercise—from current With 35 development partners and 47 country-level practices that focus on the main stem of the Ganga partnerships, SAWI’s network continues to grow. towards thinking about the basin as a whole. This process helped to bring together stakeholders from across government departments at central and state levels, Other significant technical work concluded enhance knowledge and capacity through participation in satisfactorily and has been successfully taken on all stages of the activity, and deepen appreciation on the board by government. (i) The Sundarbans Landscape need to approach investments in a comprehensive manner Hydro-met Design activity has provided a comprehensive rather than fragmented or individual project planning. All picture of the entire Landscape (Bangladesh and India) model components are open source or free in India. At the that connects poverty, water resources information and time of writing this report, the World Bank/SAWI team was ecosystems, and provides a framework for both countries in discussions with the National Mission for Clean Ganga to adopt a holistic approach to the joint management on the adoption of these tools. SAWI is also exploring of the Landscape. The activity’s approach of fostering opportunities for potential follow on activities, including deliberations between technical experts from Bangladesh wider dissemination of these outputs. and India in research and data analysis has helped to enhance levels of trust, improve working relationships and build common understanding of the challenges faced by the Sundarbans. As many of these experts exert influence in their respective countries, this is a significant 4 step forward in building the relationship and is setting There are good examples of SAWI contributing to building a positive foundation for collaborative and sustainable a conducive wider environment. A workshop which management of the Sundarbans Landscape. The technical discussed emerging findings from the SAWI Glaciers of the study is informing discussions of the Joint Working Group Himalayas activity study (September 2018, Nepal) resulted towards a harmonious hydro-met system covering the in stakeholders calling for greater regional cooperation on Sundarbans in both countries; (ii) The Brahmaputra Basin the issue of glacier melting. A draft declaration was also Modelling and Analysis activity created a knowledge adopted, and a Platform to champion this cooperation base and analytical tools that are supporting information- was formally announced at COP24 in Katowice Poland in based dialogue between riparian states. A noteworthy December 2018. Going forward, the Government of Nepal development under SAWI is that the report on Rapid is leading this effort. Furthermore, the Sundarbans work Assessment of Water in the North-East (supported by has supported and facilitated the Sundarbans Dialogue SAWI TF resources last year) was used in (and appended through the Bangladesh-India Sundarbans Regional to) a report to the Prime Minister’s Office by India’s High- Cooperation Initiative (BISRCI) platform. BISRCI played a level Committee (HLC)2 for water resource management critical role in informing discussions among policymakers in North-East India. The World Bank has subsequently and other stakeholders that led to an agreement on the received a follow-on request for Technical Assistance provision of passengers and cruise vessels on the Inland ($70M) to support rollout of the report recommendations, Protocol and coastal shipping routes that was previously under discussion with government; (iii) The Bhutan Hydro- restricted to the movement of cargo for transit and inter- met Services and Disaster Resilience activity (complete) country trade on specific routes. Ferry services began supported the installation of automatic weather and wind this year, and this agreement potentially opens up the observation systems in the aviation sector (critical due space for further cooperation on inland water transport to Bhutan’s treacherous mountainous terrain) and the and fostering people-to-people connections to strengthen operationalization of a SMART-Met system that is enabling bilateral relations. national hydro-met agencies to access weather-related data for more effective forecasting. This year, a number of SAWI activities have coalesced around two priority thematic areas: (a) Groundwater Dialogue events are positively viewed by stakeholders. management (more details are in the cross-cutting section These forums are seen as useful opportunities to discuss on climate change); and (b) Hydro-met systems. Both of and test issues in a neutral space that can then be taken these issues are closely linked to water governance and are back to capitals, to exchange ideas on topics of mutual therefore highly relevant to SAWI. While the first thematic concern, to bring together diverse stakeholders from across area cuts across multiple sectors and community groups governments, academia and civil society in a common that demand water, the second provides vital information forum, and to gain insights from experience of what works for water managers and communities at large. With elsewhere. Several dialogue events were held this year, increasing political attention towards these issues, they including a basin-level dialogue event (Brahmaputra) offer feasible entry points for fostering discussion amongst and a regional workshop on managing water extremes. regional stakeholders and for progressing opportunities Basin and national-level dialogue events were also held for knowledge sharing and collaboration. with various stakeholders in Bangladesh, Guwahati, and Rajasthan. SAWI has found that both basin- and regional- (a) Groundwater Management: Groundwater is emerging level events bring different value addition. Basin-level as a critical issue in South Asia—in terms of its availability, dialogues enable participants to focus on issues pertinent management, and challenges related to its contamination. to the particular basin; SAWI has also taken care to The use of groundwater resources is high across much introduce discussion topics that foster dialogue and to of the region—together, South Asia and China account use established national and regional institutions to play for more than half of global groundwater use—leading a role in organizing these events. Regional-level dialogue to problems of extreme over-exploitation in many parts events enable discussion on a wider range of topics and of the region. Countries are increasingly recognizing the cross-fertilization of ideas across basins and build wider challenge and are beginning to tackle the groundwater networks and partnerships. crises through national programs to reform water policies 2 In October 2017, following the devastating floods, a High-Level Committee (HLC) for the Proper Management of Water Resources in the North-East was established at the directive of the Indian Prime Minister’s Office. The HLC was tasked with developing an action plan for improving management of the water resources of the Northeast by June 2019. 5 and address groundwater management issues. However, Ganges Basin (India) and in the Sundarbans Landscape over-exploitation of groundwater remains a risk and is (Bangladesh, India). These are not only addressing further complicated by competing incentives for its use, crucial capacity gaps at national levels but also promoting lack of institutional coordination, poor regulation and knowledge exchange, including on responses to cross- systems, and a general lack of awareness. An equally border water-related hazards (more information is in Box significant risk is that of deteriorating groundwater quality 8 on page 38). resulting from poorly controlled agricultural chemical use and industrial discharge, and inadequate management of domestic sewage. A key concern is that, as demand Strategy and Alignment for water grows, there will be increasing pressure on SAWI’s use of a mix of regional and national-level entry groundwater, despite quality issues, as available surface points is proving to be an effective approach, and one river water becomes increasingly constrained. Reliable that is grounded in contextual realities. While all of data to support planning decisions for groundwater SAWI’s activities promote and adopt a transboundary management (both quality and quantity) is generally approach, some activities have engaged with national absent. and state-level governments in the first instance. This is due to a number of reasons: variable capacity and pace of SAWI is tackling this critical issue through four studies in the progress across countries, which requires a differentiated Indus and Ganges Basins that are focused on groundwater approach; multiple agencies are involved in different management, including conjunctive uses of surface water aspects of water management; data sharing; diverse and groundwater, and the interactions between the two. drivers, interests among stakeholders within a country A key advantage is that the studies are also promoting that need nuanced approaches; and opportunities to test cross-learning and knowledge sharing across the basins a model before taking it to scale. A differentiated approach and will contribute to an ongoing consolidation of the has been taken, reflecting the contextual realities of the groundwater knowledge base in South Asia. For instance, basin or landscape. For example, the Ganges Focus Area recently concluded analytical work on groundwater- has approached these issues by linking its technical surface water and environmental flows (as part of the engagement with large national investments to ensure Ganges Strategic Basin Planning work) has brought greater ownership and buy-in, by bringing cross-sectoral new insights for stakeholders on common groundwater stakeholders together in capacity building events, and management issues and on the impacts that projects can by ensuring consistency in approaches across countries. have on altering groundwater levels (more information is in As reported in previous years, the Indus Focus Area Box 9 on page 39). has invested in building capacity by focused training and exposure visits, and through carefully structured (b) Hydro-met Systems: The three river basins and stakeholder dialogues around common themes, such as Sundarbans landscape are prone to devastating weather climate change. The Brahmaputra has, over the years, and climate-related hazards, such as floods, droughts developed a joint narrative by drawing in institutions from and cyclones - which are transboundary in nature. SAWI across the four riparian countries; while the Sundarbans recognizes that reliable information on extreme weather, has facilitated technical exchanges and focused expert such as excessive rainfall and its flows, are a prerequisite attention on solving common problems, particularly for water managers to understand, predict and manage around tackling lack of information. water resources. Countries are now investing significantly in modernizing their hydro-met systems, many of which are The nexus approach is embedded within SAWI, as supported by larger World Bank investments. However, water, by its very nature, is an integrator across other challenges relate to the lack of information tailored multiple sectors. Although SAWI’s main focus remains to the needs of the sector, limited data sharing between on promoting regional collaboration on water governance, countries, and weak capacity of water sector managers it remains closely related with the growing emphasis on to use the information, including for early warning and regional connectivity. SAWI connects closely with other timely responses to weather-related disasters. This related sectors, such as by brokering broader dialogue year, SAWI progressed four hydro-met-related activities on transport (inland waterways), through studies that across the Brahmaputra Basin (Bhutan, Bangladesh), the are informing investment decisions on clean energy 6 (hydropower), environment and agriculture (food security), a consolidated Jal Shakti water ministry, and concerted and research on other water-related challenges, such efforts led by the Prime Minister’s office for water resource as climate change, groundwater management and management in the North-East provide positive impetus disaster risk management. All of these broader water- towards tackling water resource management challenges related issues serve as useful entry points, are vital to in India. SAWI is closely aligned with these policy priorities transboundary water governance, have positive impacts and its activities are therefore likely to continue to on regional growth, trade, climate mitigation, and bring contribute to this agenda in the long term. socio-economic benefits for the region’s population of some 1.8 billion people (World Bank, 2018). SAWI is also linked with other World Bank South Asia trust funds: (i) hydro-met, data sharing, disaster risk SAWI remains strategically aligned with the World management and climate-change related work links closely Bank’s overall approach and portfolio in South Asia. with and can potentially inform the recently started DFID- SAWI is strongly aligned with and contributes to the World funded Program for Asia’s Resilience to Climate Change Bank’s South Asia Region (SAR) Regional Strategy, the (PARCC); and (ii) work related to regional connectivity (e.g., draft South Asia Regional Integration Approach (see Figure inland waterways and hydropower) resonates closely with 2), and the Climate Action Plan.3 This year, as part of DFID’s Program for Asia Connectivity and Trade, and with the World Bank’s Trust Fund Reform pilot, new proposals DFAT’s South Asia Regional Trade Facilitation Program for SAWI were reviewed and approved by the Regional (SARTFP) , enabling a more integrated, joined-up approach. Integration Program Committee (RIPC). This recently introduced process enables World Bank management to undertake a comprehensive and coordinated review of Figure 2: Four Thematic Priorities - South Asia Regional proposals across all five of the World Bank-managed South Integration Approach Asia regional trust funds. The process is helping to ensure a more strategic alignment of trust-funded activities with regional and country priories and across the World Bank’s • Cross-border trade & portfolio as a whole, promoting greater synergies among • Electricity investments • Women & small traders • Multi-modal transport the activities themselves. • Data & analytics • Digital connectivity & • Payments platforms 1. Progession to 2. Enabling SAWI informs a total of 27 World regional markets economic activity Bank investments totalling $5.7B 3. Managing 4. Preparing South vulnerabilities Asia for global and resilience integration The World Bank continues to strategically link SAWI activities with national priorities and World Bank- • Human Capital financed investments (pipeline and ongoing) within • Water • Women and Youth • Climate change • Connecting to Central countries and in the region. For example, several of Asia & East Asia • Environment SAWI’s activities and their emerging products (Ganges, • Disaster resilience Pacific • Dovetailing with Sundarbans and Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Areas) existing institutions are linked to the National Hydrology Project (NHP), while work supporting hydro-met systems is informing the design of the World Bank’s growing regional hydro-met modernization investment portfolio. Within India, the strong support of the Prime Minister of India to the Namami Ganga (Rejuvenate Ganga) project, the recent creation of 3 The SAR Regional Strategy acknowledges the need for stepping-up action on climate change and emphasizes improving weather & climate information services, and early warning systems to support adaptation and resilience as one of the most important actions to support adaptation. The business plan guides the Region’s climate dialogue and analytical and operational work with the goal of supporting a strategic shift in the portfolio towards climate-smart investment from IBRD/ IDA lending, along with a partnership with the countries to access international climate finance. 7 Effectiveness: SAWI’s Progression Bank for further technical assistance. This follows on from an invitation to the World Bank in 2018 to provide technical Along the Results Continuum expertise and to join a high-level Expert Committee for a priority initiative in the North-East of India following the Over the years, SAWI has focused its efforts on regional devastating floods in that region in 2017. The World Bank collaboration on transboundary water governance by representative was also the SAWI Technical Lead, which adopting a politically neutral approach to its technical enabled SAWI to make a significant contribution to a high- expertise, responsiveness to stakeholder needs, and priority agenda of water resources management in the leveraging broader networks and investments. The Focus North-East and the Brahmaputra Basin. Elsewhere, the Area strategies, developed at the start of the program, recently concluded Ganges Strategic Basin Planning suite have enabled SAWI to incrementally build its portfolio and the Bihar flood modelling tools have been transferred of activities in a way that is responsive to the context of to government. These are also being scaled up by the each of the basins and the landscape area. The Regional World Bank-financed NHP, which is being implemented by Focus Area has served to promote knowledge sharing and 29 states and 11 central government agencies—thereby stakeholder dialogue across all geographies. exerting further reach and impact. The political economy may limit the immediate uptake of some of SAWI’s By design, SAWI’s technical and analytical products technical and analytical products which may not happen continue to bring new evidence, knowledge and tools within a particular reporting year, but SAWI makes every that adopt a regional perspective but are also cognizant effort to ensure that these are used to inform debate and of sub-regional needs. The process of development discussion and that they provide robust technical options and dissemination has proved to be a useful means for decision makers to consider. to engage local stakeholders, and over time there is growing acceptability and evidence of ownership of these (ii) Momentum towards regional collaborative actions approaches. The dialogues have been a useful mechanism is starting to build, although these are at early stages to broaden entrenched perspectives and to discuss and progressing at a different pace across all Focus alternative ways of tackling issues related to regional Areas. The Sundarbans Landscape Focus Area has seen water governance. Capacity building has been critical to the most significant progress in this regard, backed by the process in terms of strengthening understanding and a generally positive bilateral political environment for use of new systems, providing a suite of technical- and regional collaboration. For instance, the Sundarbans non-technical-related skills (including on water diplomacy) hydro-met study and the joint landscape plan, supported to build confidence and knowledge of stakeholders in by dialogue processes over the years, has strong regional representations, and exposing key policymakers acceptability by the BISRCI, which, although working as and technocrats to successful practices elsewhere. an informal group, exerts significant influence in both countries. The Ganges Focus Area has had limited SAWI has therefore laid a practical foundation, that has success in directly progressing joint collaborative action gained acceptability by stakeholders, for progression among riparian countries. Nevertheless, SAWI’s technical towards regional collaboration and joint actions on work on flood forecasting in Bihar has drawn on an existing managing transboundary rivers. Memorandum of Understanding between Nepal and India to facilitate rainfall-related data sharing. The main shifts that have become evident across the lifetime of SAWI are as follows: (i) A consultative approach is helping to build Network of 35 development stakeholder ownership of SAWI knowledge products, partners and 47 government with growing evidence of their uptake. The most notable and country-specific partners achievement is the Brahmaputra Focus Area’s technical support to the Prime Minister of India’s priority initiative in the North-East of India, which has culminated in a formal request from the Government of India (GoI) to the World 8 (iii) Regional institutions are stepping up to progress technical work initiated under SAWI. As reported in In FY19, some 165 participants previous years, SAWI continues to grow its network of came together in dialogue partnerships in the region. The value of this approach is two-fold. On the one hand, it helps to build capacity, processes ownership and ensure sustainability beyond this phase of funding. This is playing out in a number of ways. For instance, ICIMOD is now poised to support the Indus Climate Change Basin research proposal on understanding and assessing the impacts of climate change, and to secure funding for SAWI is contributing to the mainstreaming of climate its implementation. Locating the lead facilitation role of change resilience and adaptation, including in the this process within a regional organization, will help to World Bank’s lending portfolio in South Asia. Climate ensure stronger sustainability to a process that has been change remains an important underlying theme across all jointly developed by researchers from the four riparian SAWI activities, which are focused on building scientific countries. In the Brahmaputra dialogues, institutions knowledge, using this information to strengthen technical from the riparian countries are continuing to work together cooperation between countries, and working to integrate to deliver these events, and the process seems to be climate change into institutional programs and practices. working effectively. South-South institutional exchanges, This year, the Glaciers of the Himalayas study has such as between Nepal and Chinese Universities, has also completed part of its analysis on the impacts of climate been made possible through SAWI’s Himalayan University change and black carbon on glacial and snow melt and Consortium grant funds. how this affects water resources. As reported in other sections of this report, SAWI’s ongoing studies are focused (iv) SAWI’s engagement through new topical issues is on climatic impacts of floods, storm surges, erosion enriching the discourse on water and its value across and saline intrusion, and implications for groundwater multiple sectors. Technical support on water resources management. These studies will also inform World Bank forms an important backdrop to future hydropower plans investment programs in South Asia, including on hydro- of countries in the South Asian region and is potentially met, water resources, and through broader policy dialogue. informing the design of the Bank’s inland water transport projects; groundwater studies are outlining options for management of the resource; hydro-met studies are Gender and Social Inclusion focusing attention on data for accurate forecasting and Gender and Social Inclusion (GESI) are mainstreamed bringing new knowledge on tackling cross-border water- across the SAWI portfolio. Men and women have different related hazards; and new work on plastic pollution proposes needs and priorities for water resources. Traditional water to pave the way for knowledge on tackling this issue and governance or investment projects do not necessarily understanding its value chains in the Brahmaputra Basin. have a gender or social inclusion approach. The World Bank’s refreshed Gender Strategy (2016) commits (v) Stakeholder participation in SAWI events remains the World Bank to work toward removing remaining strong, with positive feedback on the value of such constraints to women’s endowments, improving access to forums. The complex relations between South Asian more and better jobs for women, strengthening women’s nations places an inherent limit on the the ability of multiple access to land and financial assets, and improving stakeholders to convene to discuss transboundary issues. women’s voice and agency, including by engaging men SAWI has not only engaged diverse stakeholders, but the to address gender-based violence. An underlying theme evolution of the quality of dialogue shows a progression is to build the resilience of women and men to cope with towards trust building and willingness to discuss potential natural (climate-related) shocks. SAWI’s approach is collaborative actions. For instance, the Brahmaputra to mainstream GESI across its portfolio—which adopts Dialogue has moved from a Track 3 to a Track 1.5 dialogue the principle of ‘do-no-harm’ and ensures that a gender- forum,4 with increased levels of participation in all of inclusive approach is integrated across activities. While SAWI’s dialogue processes over the years. SAWI activities continue to adopt different approaches to 4 In this context, Track 3 suggests a broader set of stakeholders; while Track 1.5 here brings both official and unofficial participants into the dialogue process 9 gender and inclusion, this is not without its challenges, The broader geopolitics of South Asia are continuing to as stakeholders may not immediately appreciate the evolve, and infrastructure and connectivity are emerging importance as other issues take priority, existing roles of as the two regional drivers of change. China’s Belt and women in local water governance are not fully understood, Road Initiative, various regional economic and transport gender-disaggregated information and datasets are not corridors, and India’s Act East Policy and its growing readily available, and women stakeholder groups are outreach with South East Asia are some of the factors that not easily reachable or may be reticent to participate in are likely to change the dynamics of regional cooperation discussion forums. in the medium-term. The World Bank continues to adapt SAWI approaches such that it is responsive to partner needs and the changing More than 200 women trained context. (including 30 in FY19) Looking Ahead This year, SAWI has continued its approach by: (i) SAWI’s main focus will be on completing its activities by introducing gender thematic discussions in regional the end of the trust fund, and on working towards the and sub-regional dialogue, and promoting leadership of dissemination of knowledge among regional stakeholders women participants; (ii) supporting the participation of and supporting its uptake by partners as part of the women in training and other capacity building events; (iii) sustainability measures. Another key focus will be on undertaking consultations with local stakeholders and ensuring that activities continue to deliver results, and women’s groups to include them as part of the solution; that emerging opportunities are leveraged through the and (iv) expanding knowledge on linkages between water World Bank’s wider portfolio in South Asia. Finally, SAWI governance and impacts on women— for instance, through will continue to support and work through its network of the Sundarbans Targeted Environmental Studies that are partnerships established during the program. examining the causal linkages between salinization and the nutritional and health status of expectant mothers and SAWI continues to consider measures for sustaining its children in a changing climate. work beyond this phase of funding and has discussed initial options with its current donor partners this year. The Evolving Context These efforts include: scoping out the context and emerging opportunities, identifying priority themes, National elections in several SAR countries over the last 12 mapping networks and partnerships (including donors), months caused some temporary slowdown in the pace of facilitating uptake of knowledge products, and solidifying SAWI activities, but the main thrust of the grant activities linkages with other World Bank investments. has continued. More broadly, there is growing recognition of the potential for regional economic partnerships, and countries tend to pursue these mainly on a bilateral basis. There is evidence of positive progress in the eastern sub-region: Bangladesh and India have forged several bilateral agreements, including on water sharing, inland waterways and the Sundarbans Landscape; Bhutan, India and Bangladesh are progressing plans for expanded energy trade; Nepal and India also have plans on data sharing and on energy trade; and India stated Act East policy to extend economic and strategic relations with South-East Asian countries. SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION 11 1.1 SAWI’S Objective, Approach and Portfolio SAWI Phase II is a seven year (2013/14-2020/21) Multi- four geographic Focus Areas (Indus Basin, Ganges Basin, Donor Trust Fund (US $30.8M) administered by the Brahmaputra Basin, Sundarbans Landscape) interfacing World Bank, with financing from the governments of the with a Regional Cross-Cutting Knowledge, Dialogue United Kingdom, Australia and Norway. Its objective is and Communications Focus Area that both supports to increase regional cooperation in the management non-basin-specific work and translates national or basin- of the major Himalayan river systems in South Asia to specific work for wider dissemination or implementation. deliver sustainable, fair and inclusive development and Each Focus Area is framed around a high-level objective climate resilience. Four inter-linked pathways support statement and strategy. this outcome: (i) building confidence and trust amongst the riparian countries; (ii) generating new knowledge, SAWI has had a total of 57 activities since its inception. In including in partnership with others; (iii) building capacity FY19, 28 grants were active, of which five were Recipient of key institutions and stakeholders; and (iv) scoping and Executed (RE) activities and 23 were Bank Executed (BE). leveraging investments. The program is structured around Three BE activities were program management-related. Cumulative Financials by Focus Area (US$) $8,000,000.00 $7,000,000.00 $6,000,000.00 $5,000,000.00 $4,000,000.00 (9) (19) $3,000,000.00 (13) $2,000,000.00 (6) (7) (3) $1,000,000.00 $0.00 IRB GRB BRB SUN REG PRO Disbursement Commitment Available 12 1.2 Partnership Approach 1.3 Relevance SAWI continues to expand its partnerships and networks, SAWI remains strongly relevant, not only to its core and its activities are carried out with national, regional objectives but also through its potential role as a and global partners. National authorities in all SAWI regional integrator across sectors, geographies and countries are involved in virtually all SAWI activities. These stakeholders. Firstly, SAWI remains a useful mechanism partnerships ensure the sustainability of SAWI activities, for regional integration, using technical entry points to including beyond the duration of the program. They also bring stakeholders together. Secondly, water security help in crowding in knowledge and disseminating it to is a growing issue for concern in South Asia, and SAWI multiple stakeholder groups, and congregate partners is potentially providing a range of technical options for around common themes and interest. Most events are government to discuss and take action on at the regional, organized in collaboration with partners, while knowledge national and local levels. Finally, SAWI is relevant to generation is carried out with involvement of policy think national priorities and to World Bank investments, thereby tanks, civil society and academics. Activities are primarily exerting an influence beyond the Trust Fund resources. implemented through grants or contractual arrangements with external implementing agencies, regional knowledge institutions and experts. (Refer to Annex 7). SECTION 2: FY19 ANNUAL PROGRESS REPORTING 14 2.1 Effectiveness (What Some of the more discernible shifts can be attributed to SAWI’s activities. For instance, it was due to SAWI’s Difference is SAWI Making?) efforts that BISRCI was conceptualized through activities undertaken by the SAWI Sundarbans Focus Area. SAWI Overall, SAWI is making steady and incremental contracted and facilitated the formation of this group – a progress towards its outcomes. Over the years, SAWI has first of its kind that is representative of key agencies in become an increasingly effective mechanism on regional Bangladesh and India. SAWI also funded key activities of collaboration on transboundary water governance through the BISRCI group to help them establish and expand both technical expertise, responsiveness to stakeholder their thinking, ways of working and presence on issues needs, and its ability to leverage broader networks and related to the management of the Sundarbans. Over a investments. period of time, member agencies of BISRCI have engaged with SAWI’s technical work and are championing these SAWI has laid a practical foundation, and one that has issues, independently of SAWI, in their individual and gained acceptability by stakeholders, for progression collective efforts. towards regional collaboration and joint actions on managing transboundary rivers. The four basin and Similarly, in the Brahmaputra Focus Area, SAWI’s landscape Focus Area strategies, developed at the start involvement was instrumental to charting out an Action of the program, have enabled SAWI to focus its efforts and Plan for improving management of water resources in the incrementally build its portfolio of activities in a manner North East Region of India. Without SAWI, financing the that is responsive to the context. Activities under the fifth Bank could not have been as intimately involved in the strategy (Regional Focus Area) are aimed at developing exercise, nor influence its outcome (which is explained new knowledge, promoting knowledge sharing and further in the section on the Brahmaputra Focus Area). facilitating stakeholder dialogue across all geographies. All five Focus Areas are contributing to SAWI’s four Momentum towards regional collaborative actions is intermediate outcome areas as articulated in its Theory starting to build, although these are still at early stages of Change. These outcome areas continue to work in and progressing at a different pace across all four Focus tandem to facilitate stakeholder engagement and build Areas in line with contextual realities. The Sundarbans the impetus for joint collaborative action towards the Landscape and the Brahmaputra Focus Areas have seen higher objective of cooperation on transboundary water the most significant progress in this regard, backed by governance. A summary assessment of progression a positive bilateral political environment for regional toward the four intermediate outcome areas is as follows collaboration. For instance, the Sundarbans hydro-met (with more details in the Annex 1 Results Dashboard and study and the joint landscape plan, supported by dialogue in Table 1 at the end of this report): processes over the years, has strong acceptability by the BISRCI, which, although it works as an informal (1) Building Trust and Confidence: Over time, the group, exerts significant influence in both countries. The basin- and regional-level dialogues have been a Brahmaputra Dialogue has inched its way from a Track 3 useful mechanism to broaden perspectives, build to a Track 1.5 dialogue forum over the years, and SAWI trust among stakeholders and to discuss alternative activities across the four riparian countries are increasingly ways of tackling issues related to regional water linked. The Ganges Focus Area has had limited success governance. These events are now well attended in directly progressing joint collaborative action among by stakeholders. Feedback suggests that they value the riparian countries. Nevertheless, SAWI’s technical the neutral space to discuss common challenges work on flood forecasting in Bihar has drawn on an related to water governance and to learn from other existing Memorandum of Understanding between Nepal experiences, and there is evidence of stakeholders and India to facilitate rainfall-related data sharing. The using these forums to network and explore joint Indus Basin Focus Area is progressing its collaborative activities. SAWI has initiated multiple processes of research agenda, notwithstanding the challenging context dialogue, and other regional institutions are stepping that is subject to wider geo-political factors and to shifting up efforts to sustain these processes. regional dynamics. 15 (2) Generating and Sharing Knowledge: By design, ensure that there is gender representation and that SAWI’s technical and analytical products continue capacity building programs take into account gender- to bring new evidence, knowledge and tools that related dimensions. Regional institutions are also adopt a regional perspective but are also cognizant stepping up to progress technical work initiated under of sub-regional needs. The process of development SAWI—especially in the Brahmaputra and the Indus and dissemination has proved to be a useful means to Basins. South-South institutional exchanges, such engage stakeholders, and over time there is growing as between Nepal and Chinese universities, has also evidence of ownership and uptake of this knowledge. been made possible through SAWI’s grant funds. SAWI’s engagement through new topical issues is (4) Scoping Interventions and Investments: SAWI enriching the discourse on water management across activities are aligned with and informing other World multiple sectors. Technical support on water resources Bank investments in the region and with its other forms an important backdrop to future hydropower regional Trust Funds (supported by DFAT and DFID). plans of countries in the South Asian Region; and is Likewise, SAWI continues to leverage the World Bank’s potentially informing the design of the World Bank’s presence, reach and networks to deepen its impact in inland water transport projects; groundwater studies the region. Although SAWI’s work supports in-country are outlining options for management of the resource; investments, these have a potential regional public- hydro-met studies are focusing attention on data for good / benefit element and offer an entry-point accurate forecasting and bringing new knowledge on to work with key country stakeholders to progress tackling cross-border water-related hazards; and new towards regional collaboration on transboundary work on plastic pollution proposes to pave the way for water governance. knowledge on tackling this issue and understanding Cumulatively, SAWI is linked to 27 World Bank its value chains in the Brahmaputra Basin. By adopting projects, totaling about $5.7B. This year alone, a demand-responsive approach and by focusing eight opportunities have been linked to SAWI on topical issues of interest to stakeholders, there activities. In Pakistan, the initial findings from the is a stronger likelihood that SAWI’s technical work Indus Basin (Pakistan) Groundwater Analysis are remains relevant. SAWI also continues to work with informing implementation of the Sindh Water Sector its partners so that these products can be embedded Improvement Project Phase I ($150M) and have the within partner systems, and so that knowledge can be potential for cross-learning with other countries in accessible to other regional stakeholders. the region that are tackling similar critical challenges (3) Building Institutional and Professional Capacity: at scale; in Bhutan, the due diligence report for the Capacity building has been critical to the process Dorjilung hydropower project is informing the regional in terms of strengthening understanding and use South Asia Power Electricity Market Project ($3.7M); of new systems, providing a suite of technical and the regional Glaciers of the Himalayas activity studies non-technical-related skills (including on water will inform design of the South Asia Region Climate diplomacy) to build confidence and knowledge Adaptation and Resilience Program (US$36M); in of stakeholders in regional representations, and Bangladesh and India, recommendations from the exposing key policymakers and technocrats to Sundarbans work are informing the First Regional successful practices elsewhere. Demand for Waterway Transport Project for Bangladesh ($360M), SAWI’s capacity building activities remains strong, the National Hydrology Project in India ($175M), which and the study tours, exchange visits and training spans several Indian states, Bangladesh Coastal has helped to engage senior officials, broaden Embankment Improvement Project ($375M), the understanding and experience of how other countries Integrated Coastal Zone Management-India Project are approaching similar issues, and build capacity ($220M), the National Cyclone Risk Mitigation and preparedness to take on board the knowledge Project ($310M) and the Multipurpose Disaster and tools developed. SAWI continues its approach Shelter Project ($375M). In Nepal, preparation of a of targeting training programs at both the drivers of plan to implement a white paper developed by the change (senior decision makers) and the users of Water and Energy Commission Secretariat (WECS) is the tools (operational staff). SAWI also continues to informing the preparation of the Nepal Energy Sector 16 Development Policy Credit project series (US$172M) SAWI’s approach is two-fold: (a) to broaden basin-level which is oriented toward sustainable hydropower dialogue and build its influence through the Indus Basin development and supporting a South Asia electricity Knowledge Forum (IBKF; track II basin-wide dialogue market. process to build trust and confidence), which is now co-convened by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), the International 2.2 Focus Area Reporting Institute of Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), and the World Bank; and (b) to facilitate national thinking and action Indus Basin Focus Area towards a basin-wide approach through capacity building and the generation and use of technical knowledge to Context and Strategic Approach inform policy thinking. The approach of finding a common The Indus River Basin, shared by Afghanistan, China, India thematic priority—climate change—has proved to be and Pakistan, faces stress due to demographic pressures useful, leading to the subsequent development of an from increasing populations, rapid urbanization, and IBKF-fostered joint research proposal on climate change growing requirements for water from agricultural and other adaptation and resilience in the basin. In previous years, economic activities. With a unique topography and river SAWI has also invested in strengthening capacity, including flows comprising of glacier melt, snow melt, rainfall and through targeted exposure visits related to climate change runoff, the Indus Basin is vulnerable to climate change, adaptation, cryosphere and water resources. and shrinking glaciers are impacting river flows and water availability. Furthermore, changes in precipitation and weather extremes mean that the sub-basin is likely “This (the Indus dialogue process) helps us to keep to suffer from larger floods, longer droughts and higher thinking on a broader scale and in a transboundary temperatures. The river is underlain by an extensive context, to encourage collaborations, knowledge groundwater aquifer but an over-reliance on its extraction sharing and joint activities” is resulting in poorer water quality and depleting water IBKF3 participant, June 2018 tables, particularly in both India and Pakistan. Perversely, due to over-irrigation, groundwater levels remain high in parts of the Punjab and in most of the canal command This year, SAWI has focused on delivering two activities. areas of Sindh, leading to water-logging and soil salinization This has included putting in place sustainability measures in these areas of Pakistan. A potentially even greater risk for the main component of the Indus Basin Dialogue to groundwater is that of its deteriorating quality resulting and transferring ownership of processes. Key measures from uncontrolled agricultural chemical use and industrial have included establishing a partnership with ICIMOD discharge and inadequate management of domestic in May 2019 that will see the South Asia-based regional sewage. A key concern is that as demand for water grows, organization carry forward Indus Basin Knowledge Forum there will be increasing pressure on groundwater, despite (IBKF) events and provide secretariat support for taking the quality challenge, as available surface river water is forward the joint research proposal, including through fund already in use. Reliable data to support planning decisions mobilization, coordination of activities and ensuring quality for groundwater (quality and quantity) is generally absent. control of research. SAWI is supporting ICIMOD through the All of these factors are likely to seriously impact population transition period, including the IBKF4 (August 2019). This health and mortality and have negative consequences for has been essential, as there were administrative delays livelihoods of millions of people. Historic tensions around in signing of the grant, leaving ICIMOD with little event issues of water sharing between the countries, conflicting preparation time. The Indus Basin (Pakistan) Groundwater demands on water use across sectors, fragmented Analysis study is closely aligned with the Pakistan knowledge of the basin as a whole, lack of appreciation National Water Policy (2018), which requires provinces of the interplay between hydrological, environmental and to develop water policies for sustainable management of socio-economic factors, and limited data sharing continue water resources. The ongoing study is aimed at increasing to impede effective collaboration on transboundary water sub-basin-level knowledge to assist decision makers in management and limit the effective tackling of associated improving the governance of groundwater and exploring uncertainties arising from climate change. 17 options for optimizing conjunctive management of surface (Pakistan) and an analysis of trends in available data. and groundwater. The study is principally targeted at provincial (Punjab and Sindh) and national government agencies with Key Results in FY19 – What Has SAWI Delivered? responsibility for management and use of groundwater. In-country data and information gathering supports i. Building Trust and Confidence the compilation of knowledge and understanding of groundwater (policy settings, physical environment and SAWI’s efforts to transition leadership of the IBKF5 and critical areas) in the Indus Basin. The World Bank team the joint research proposals are meant to deepen regional has also led consultations with 24 relevant federal and ownership of processes that have been established provincial institutions and 50 water experts, academicians and to promote their sustainability. Feedback from and farmers, to discuss their perspectives on critical participants, and evidence of a rapidly expanding and challenges, to acquire unpublished literature and datasets diversely representative group of participants indicates held by government agencies, and to maintain relationships that regional stakeholders see value in such a platform. as the work progresses. Activities under the grant are The World Bank team provided some support to ICIMOD progressing but there are challenges in obtaining datasets during the transition period, including in supporting on groundwater levels and quality, particularly in Sindh, preparations for the IBKF4 event in August 2019. SAWI as there has been no agency with formal responsibility for restructured another existing RE grant with ICIMOD—the its collection since the Federal government, by default, Himalayan University Consortium (HUC) Grant—to enable passed responsibility to the provinces for such activities these activities to go forward. under the 18th Constitutional Amendment in 2010. The SAWI team proposes to share and discuss near-final drafts ii. Generating and Sharing Knowledge through stakeholder workshops in late 2019, and the The proceedings report from the third IBKF (IBKF3), activity is planned to be completed by early 2020. The Managing Systems Under Stress: Science for Solutions World Bank team will also help to socialise these learnings in the Indus Basin, held in Vienna May/June 2018, internally, including through knowledge sharing events, was made publicly available in December 2018. As engagement with the Pakistan Country Strategy Plan, and noted above, ICIMOD was brought in “to institutionalize linkages with wider World Bank investments. the joint research program and take on its secretariat functions, including fundraising and mobilizing resources, iii. Building Institutional and Professional Capacity coordinating activities, and ensuring quality control of SAWI did not undertake any specific capacity building research outcomes. As reported above, the fourth IBKF activities in the reporting year, as its two-year program (“Pathways to Impactful Research”) in August 2019, was for Government of Afghanistan officials had previously co-convened by ICIMOD and IIASA, and with ongoing World concluded in 2018. However, it is worth noting that Bank support during the transition period. SAWI’s capacity building delivered in previous years has been important in developing the government’s overall The World Bank SAWI team has put in place formal capacity to participate and engage in transboundary water arrangements so that ICIMOD can take forward dialogues in South Asia, as well as enable it to apply these the implementation of the joint research proposal, skills to the other transboundary basins that Afghanistan “Understanding and Assessing the Impact of Climate shares with its Central Asian neighbors (Iran, Turkmenistan, Change in the Indus Basin”, that was finalized and Tajikistan, Uzbekistan). The skills are expected to assist presented at the 2nd IBKF. ICIMOD will also work to raise Afghanistan in advancing its engagement with other resources to fund the research work. World Bank projects on cross-border basins, such as in the context of the Central Asia Energy and Water This year, SAWI initiated the Indus Basin (Pakistan) Development Program (CAEWDP) and currently planned Groundwater Analysis activity— a synthesis of knowledge hydropower and water supply projects in the Helmand of groundwater and its governance in the Indus Basin and Kabul River Basins. Since the onset of the training, 5 The IBKF is the dominant part of the Indus Dialogue, which, over the course of SAWI, has expanded from a group of 15 to over 100 participants from the four countries, plus international experts. So far, three IBKF events have usefully brought together knowledge producers (scientists) and knowledge consumers (decision makers). The processes have been fairly intensive, requiring the World Bank to sensitively navigate the complexities of bringing together diverse representative voices in a meaningful way. 18 BOX 1: VALUE OF THE INDUS BASIN DIALOGUE PROCESS SAWI has brought value addition by: (i) providing a neutral platform that brings together regional stakeholders from upper and lower riparian countries (similar joint regional encounters are rare) towards a greater appreciation of the common hydrological, socioeconomic, technical, and environmental challenges, and enabling them to discuss ways in which to secure a sustainable future for the sub-region; (ii) seeding ideas, broadening and shifting the discourse—for instance, through a climate change lens rather than focusing on intractable issues around water sharing; (iii) bringing understanding of how climate change intersects with socio-economic issues is important, as losses caused by disasters can have relatively greater negative impacts on less developed economies; (iv) using working groups to prioritise, phase and own the research that could be translated into usable information for policymakers; (v) providing focused technical expertise on critical issues, such as groundwater management in Pakistan, to assist decision makers in improving the governance of groundwater in the Indus Basin; (vi) facilitating the move from national thinking to basin-wide and regional thinking, including through facilitating exposure visits on glacier monitoring and research (Ecuador and the Swiss Alps) so that the basin countries could learn from experiences elsewhere. the government has increased existing water resources transboundary water unit in the MEW. This year, initial dialogues with Tajikistan and has initiated dialogues with findings from the groundwater analysis study (Pakistan) Turkmenistan and Iran. Participant feedback also notes are informing the Sindh Water Sector Improvement Project that the program has led to closer relationships between (Phase One). the three departments that are collaborating on managing Afghanistan’s transboundary water resources and that inform the High-Level Commission on Transboundary Ganges Basin Focus Area Waters (established in 2016); namely, the Ministry of Context and Strategic Approach Energy and Water, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Finance. The Ganges Basin, a complex hydrological system, spans India, Bangladesh, all of Nepal and a small area of China. It is the most populous river basin in the world. However, iv. Scoping Interventions and Investments the ecological health of the river has deteriorated As previously reported, SAWI funding has supported because of pollution, excessive water withdrawal, and implementation of the World Bank’s restructured flow regime and river modifications caused by water Afghanistan Irrigation Restoration and Development resources infrastructure. The river is prone to frequent project, which financed the establishment of a and devastating floods—most recently in 2018. The 19 resources of the basin are under increasing pressure and management across India. This year, key knowledge given economic development and population growth, and products were disseminated, hydro-meteorological water resource management will be further challenged capacity was strengthened, and online river basin planning by climate change and the weak capacity for integrated and management models were tested. resource management. Despite multiple bilateral treaty mechanisms, there is no multilateral basin agreement The Power Sector Reform and Sustainable Hydropower on water sharing, hydro-meteorological data sharing, Development Project (RE) activity in Nepal and the or cooperative development, planning or management. supporting Sustainable Water Resources Development Capacity across the basin remains low, and there are for HEP in Nepal (BE) activity progressed support to power persistent long-term and politically sensitive issues. sector agencies towards more holistic and environmentally sustainable hydropower and transmission line projects, Taking into consideration the inter-state sensitivities drawing on international standards and best practice. and disputes on water sharing, SAWI’s approach in the Ganges Basin is to strengthen and better integrate water The BMIS Flood Forecasting (BE) and Strengthening FMIS management, working at both national and regional levels. Capacity in Bihar (RE) activities concluded. As reported It supports cooperative inter-state river basin planning last year, these activities equipped the state’s Flood in India, combining technical assistance and capacity Management Improvement Support Center with a robust building across central and state organizations, and linking 24x7 feed of short-to-medium range rainfall forecasts for these to major World Bank investments. Complementary use in their operational flood forecasting models. work in Nepal focuses on establishing mechanisms and capacity for basin planning to support sustainable Key Results in FY19 – What Has SAWI Delivered? hydropower development. SAWI is also helping to improve flood forecasting in India-Nepal border sub-basins. i. Building Trust and Confidence The water crises in India highlighted the need for the Most significantly, SAWI successfully delivered the multi- centre and states to work jointly on water management year Strategic Basin Planning for the Ganges in India solutions. The Strategic Basin Planning for the Ganges activity. This activity provided technical assistance to in India activity supported trust building amongst national the Government of India and basin State governments and state level agencies in India on cooperative water in scenario-based river basin modeling and participatory management. For this project, all classified hydrological river basin planning for the Ganges Basin in India. The data for the Ganges Basin was provided, and the center- activity created the first ever accessible, open source, state collaborations contributed to the historic opening up comprehensive river basin modelling suite (coupled with of center-state data sharing. The political complexity of a water information system and scenario dashboard) for managing change in the Ganges Basin means meaningful the Ganges Basin, designed to guide informed decision reform progress remains uncertain. making, dialogue and management of the basin. Central and State government engineers and planners received extensive training in the use of these tools, which are ii. Generating and Sharing Knowledge now under the custodianship of the Central Water Last year, under the Strategic Basin Planning for the Commission (CWC). A multi-stakeholder engagement Ganges in India, a comprehensive basin modelling suite process was established across 33 state- and national- and associated data dashboard (developed by SAWI) were level agencies. The Government of India’s new Jal Shakti completed and transferred to the Government of India’s Ministry has invited the project team to share the findings CWC. The project championed open exchange of data and of this influential work at a National IWRM Workshop in information between all participants, and actively shared September 2019, to which key international experts have data and information in all workshops and training. CWC, as been invited. hosting organization, maintains the central server, registers users and provides credentials to ensure the functionality The Water Resource Management in Transboundary of the central repository. Project information, links to all Basins activity continued to provide technical support to project reports, the Geographical Information System the NHP to strengthen water resources planning, operation database, the results dashboard and all project analyses 20 BOX 2: GANGES STRATEGIC BASIN PLANNING – EMERGING RECOMMENDATIONS Five key recommendations have emerged from this recently concluded activity. These could help to inform future work to progress strategic basin planning and to improve water resources management. In summary, the recommendations are: 1. Expand the mandate of the National Ganga River Basin Authority to integrated water resources management. There is an urgent need to establish integrated river basin governance for the Ganga. This process will take considerable time and needs to respect the autonomy of the states. As the process evolves, it may eventually become appropriate to expand it to engage with Bangladesh and Nepal to cover the wider basin. 2. Assess the economic costs and benefits of interventions. While the project explored a range of potential interventions and management options, to develop realistic strategies and scenarios, and to inform policy and political decision making, robust economic assessments, including cost-benefit analysis or other economic analysis, is required. 3. Ensure tangible results in environmental flow interventions. Currently proposed e-flows are too minimal to significantly affect ecological status and so may lead to a loss of stakeholder support for e-flows. Key river zones with a high ecological value (e.g., nature reserves or fish spawning areas) should be identified and specific interventions designed that combine e-flow allocations with water quality improvement, to achieve realistic improvement in these river zones. 4. Consider the entire basin, not only the river. Pressures on the river come from across the entire basin, not just along the mainstem river, or the immediate vicinity of the tributaries. Projects and interventions need to be harmonized across the basin for synergistic impact and to avoid unforeseen antagonisms. 5. Redesign Groundwater Monitoring and Modelling. Current groundwater models are based on simple conceptualizations and could be much improved by a three-dimensional conceptualization based on aquifer lithology and sedimentary characteristics. An assessment of deep groundwater using deep observation wells along transects from the Himalayas to the southern rock outcrops and a detailed basin- wide analysis of managed recharge and conjunctive use are recommended. Considerable groundwater expertise exists for the basin and this can be leveraged to identify knowledge gaps for investigations and determine priorities for groundwater management. are available at www.gangariverbasinplanning.com. The reference for all implementing agencies under the NHP. reports are also hosted on the CWC website at cwc.gov.in/ It covers data collection and transmission pertaining to basin-planning-studies. The National Mission Clean Ganga surface water, groundwater, water quality, sediment and (NMCG) is considering adopting the comprehensive basin rainfall/weather, and includes comprehensive material on modelling suite and associate data dashboard. This year, site selection and installation supervision and discharge all final milestones of the activity were completed. This measurement. The manual has been published online includes work on surface water-groundwater interactions, (http://nhp.mowr.gov.in), with printed copies circulated to environmental flow assessments, and scenario and all implementing agencies. strategy assessment. Surface water and groundwater are the principal water sources of the Ganges River Basin, The Nepal Power Sector Reform and Sustainable and the dynamic interactions between them is essential Hydropower Development Project (RE), which was delayed for effective management of water resources. To assess in previous years, picked up again this year. The activity, the implications of changed water management practices which is part of Nepal’s National Water Plan (2005) and on both surface water and groundwater upstream of Water Resources Strategy (2002) for integrated water Farakka Barrage, SAWI undertook extensive groundwater resources management, aims to prepare river basin master modelling, and comprehensive river modelling, drawing plans for river basins of Nepal to support power sector on various groundwater literature, recent and historical agencies to plan and prepare hydropower and transmission maps, and other model studies. line projects following international standards and best practices. Consultants were appointed to prepare a study The Water Resource Management in Transboundary for the preparation of river basin plans, to undertake a Basins activity released the advanced Hydro-met manual, hydropower development master plan for all major rivers “An Introduction to Real-time Hydrological Information in Nepal with a concurrent Strategic Environmental and System Ver 2”, which is intended to serve as an exhaustive Social Assessment, and to develop capacity of WECS. 21 Three expert groups were constituted by WECS on This year, the Sustainable Water Resources Development Hydrology, Hydropower and Environment. The Consultant for HEP in Nepal (BE) activity has continued to build also completed consultations with more than 200 people capacity on hydropower and water resource management from government and non-government agencies across through several academic exchanges (student and faculty). seven provinces on the scope of the study, initiated data Participants and the host universities in Nepal and China collection and analysis that includes modelling of the have highly appreciated the facilitating support that SAWI river basin, and conducted a hydrology and hydropower provided. A Memorandum of Understanding between thematic workshop in January 2019. Initial results for the Kathmandu University (Nepal) and Wuhan University Kosi Basin are expected in FY20. (China) serves as the basis for academic exchange. Ten Master’s students (including four women) from Kathmandu University and Tribhuvan University of Nepal participated iii. Building Institutional and Professional Capacity in a two-month fellowship in China (commencing in late The Water Resource Management in Transboundary May 2018), which helped improve their understanding on Basins activity supported several learning events aligned crucial issues related to water resource management and with the NHP, including: (i) a two-day modeler’s meet (Delhi, hydropower development. To strengthen hydropower and September 2018), attended by 73 participants (including water resources management education in-country, ten 23 women), to encourage cross-learning on different faculty exchange visits of at least one week were carried modelling activities done in basins across India. Some 20 out between Kathmandu University and Wuhan University representatives from leading consultancy firms apprised in China on joint hydropower research and curriculum participants of the various modelling activities being development. Twenty-five participants from the Nepal carried out in India. Based on roundtable discussions, a Electricity Authority (NEA) benefitted from project and comprehensive framework was prepared for developing contract management training (April 2019), which helped training modules to address learning needs. An online broaden their understanding of managing donor-funded modelers profile tool has also been developed by SAWI, projects. A senior official from NEA, with responsibility for resulting from participant feedback, and is available on two major energy projects, attended a training program the NHP website; (ii) an advanced workshop, “Emerging in Taiwan on sustainable environment and energy Technologies in Hydro-met Instrumentation” (Guwahati, development to acquire knowledge on international October 2018) was attended by 44 participants experience in managing risks and safeguarding energy from industry and 30 participants from various NHP projects. WECS received technical support on specific implementing agencies. Industry representatives topics (such as dam safety and procurement), and as part presented latest technologies for adaptation under NHP. of preparatory work for the World Bank-supported Nepal The event focused on developing a hydro-met monitoring Energy Sector Development Policy Credit Project series, plan for the North East and helped participants to which aims to support the government’s efforts to improve gain exposure to requirements for preparation of bid the financial viability and governance of the electricity documentation. Implementing agencies noted that sector in Nepal. they faced challenges in identifying specifications and instruments appropriate to their specific needs. To assist, an online tool for screening different equipment makes iv. Scoping Interventions and Investments and models for specific site conditions was prepared and In India, both the recently completed Bihar flood modelling made available on the NHP website; (iii) to assist IWRM work and the Strategic Basin Planning activity are being and basin plans, a five-day hands-on training, “Water scaled up by the World Bank-financed NHP ($175M), Information & Analytics Generation using Free Online Tools” which is being implemented by 29 states and 11 central (Pune, November 2018) focused on using remote sensing government agencies. The model and institutional capacity and the Google Earth Engine and its applications, and was under the BMIS Flood Forecasting (BE) and Strengthening attended by 46 participants (including 13 women), from FMIS Capacity in Bihar (RE) activities were linked to the various government agencies in India, including the CWC, Bank-financed India-Bihar Kosi Basin Development Project the Central Ground Water Board, and State groundwater (BKDP) as it provided a framework for the establishment departments. of a Mathematical Modelling Center (MMC) under BKDP and was used during the floods of 2018. These functions 22 have been subsumed under MMC to ensure sustainability. SAWI is working to address these challenges and The Strategic Basin Planning for the Ganges in India build on potential opportunities by supporting a basin activity is informing improvements in data, information dialogue that brings together key stakeholders to build and knowledge systems to strengthen water resources trust and a common understanding of the challenges planning, operation and management in the Ganges and opportunities, developing technical knowledge, and Basin, and has the potential to significantly influence the supporting joint action. SAWI’s strategic approach involves ongoing National Ganga River Basin Project (US$ 1B). The engaging at multiple levels—within India at the inter-state Water Resources Management in Transboundary Basins level (North-East water resources), with other country-level activity is bringing knowledge and modelling tools for both activities (Bhutan and Bangladesh hydro-met services / the Ganges and Brahmaputra Basins, and its technical disaster risk management; and Bhutan’s hydropower work has a reach to 38 state-level implementing agencies plans), and at the regional level (dialogue activities). and 10 central government agencies in India. SAWI’s support is bringing consistency, alignment and integration with other-related World Bank investments at In Nepal, the Power Sector Reform and Sustainable the state and country levels, and is helping to ensure that Hydropower Development Project (RE) has picked up they inform each other. pace this year. As reported last year, SAWI’s work on river basin planning and hydropower development in Nepal is This year, SAWI focused on delivering five activities. one of the components of the World Bank’s investment Through Brahmaputra Dialogue activities, SAWI has in the Power Sector Reform and Sustainable Hydropower incrementally expanded the discourse on transboundary Development project (P150066) ($20M). This work cooperation on water—consequently, the process was contributed to the design of an energy sector Development institutionalized last year, and now involves institutions Policy Credit (DPC-1, P154693) worth $72M, approved in that are connected to governments in the riparian September 2018. SAWI is also informing the design of a countries. This year’s dialogue activities demonstrate second DPC-2 (P170248) worth $100M, which is under active engagement—the small group of track-II and III design. stakeholders has now expanded to an engaged group at track I½ level. The activity has built commitment and momentum through national and regional-level workshops, Brahmaputra Basin Focus Area closed-door and one-on-one meetings, and knowledge Context and Strategic Approach exchanges/study tours. The Brahmaputra River Basin (BRB) originates in This phase of the Basin Modelling and Analysis activity the Himalayas of China and flows through India and has come to a highly satisfactory close, having created Bangladesh, with flow contribution from Bhutan. The basin a knowledge base and suite of modelling tools that are is one of the largest and most complex in the world for supporting information-based dialogue among riparian a variety of reasons, including its challenging topography states. North-East India, a critical part of the Brahmaputra and hydrological environment. Development in the basin Basin, continues to receive high political attention for its has historically been piecemeal, undertaken on a project- growth and development, and also as part of India’s Act by-project basis at the country level. Complex geopolitics East Policy. A noteworthy development under SAWI is that between downstream and upstream countries have been the report on Rapid Assessment of Water in the North- amplified by an incomplete basin knowledge base, varying East (supported by SAWI TF resources last year) was used technical capacities of water resources management in (and appended to) a report to the Prime Minister’s Office professionals, and power asymmetry amongst the by India’s High-level Committee (HLC)6 for Water Resource riparians. The absence of a basin-wide cooperative Management in North-East India. The World Bank has framework has translated into missed opportunities also received a request for further Technical Assistance for regional economic growth, including in hydropower ($70M) to support rollout of the report recommendations; development and trade, inland water transport and which is currently under discussion. disaster risk reduction. 6 In October 2017, following the devastating floods, a High-Level Committee for the Proper Management of Water Resources was established at the directive of the Indian Prime Minister Office. The HLC was tasked with developing an action plan for improving management of the water resources of the Northeast. 23 move the dialogue process for stakeholder exchange of “The World Bank deserves special mention for ideas, viewpoints, knowledge and development plans for facilitating the entire exercise and providing the Brahmaputra Basin forward. unflinching support for the study” Extract from the Foreword (A.B. Pandya, Chairman, Expert Jointly organized by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Committee) of the report, “Framework for Proper Planning Guwahati, India and Shanghai Institute for International & Management of Water Resources in the North Eastern Region of India.” Studies (SIIS), China, in close partnership with Bangladesh’s Institute of Water Modelling (IWM), the workshop brought together water and energy sector experts from China, Two activities in Bangladesh and Bhutan supported India and Bangladesh (Bhutan could not participate capacity building of national hydro-met agencies to due to parliamentary elections) to share expertise and use and deliver reliable weather, water and climate experience, to identify needs and opportunities, and to information services, and are direct inputs to the design identify potential entry points for regional cooperation and implementation of the World Bank’s larger hydro- related to the climate-water-energy nexus. Feedback met investments in these countries and in South Asia. from participants notes that the forum has helped to The Bhutan Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience strengthen the network of diplomats, academicians and activity (complete) supported the installation of automatic researchers through enhanced interactions and dialogue weather and wind observation systems in the aviation on generating initiatives on issues of common concern. sector (critical due to Bhutan’s treacherous mountainous Due to the success of the workshop, China is planning to terrain) and the operationalization of a SMART-Met system host another, higher-level event in Shanghai in late 2019/ that is enabling national hydro-met agencies to access early 2020. weather-related data for more effective forecasting. The Strengthening Hydro-met Services and Disaster In the run up to the regional workshop, SAWI also Resilience in Bangladesh activity is drawing on regional supported national-level events in Dhaka, Bangladesh and global best practice to develop tailored capacity (August 2018), and with Civil Society Organizations building on highly technical issues for national hydro-met (CSOs) in Guwahati, India (November 2018). The national agencies and to strengthen regional communication and workshop in Dhaka was held in response to Bangladesh’s collaboration with neighboring countries. However, as stated needs for understanding their capacity on disaster agencies lack capacity to access, manage and use data risk management, and on realizing the potential of inland flows, including from new instruments, progress has been water transport through joint efforts. The workshop slower than expected. SAWI is considering restructuring enabled in-depth discussions with various stakeholders in its grant over the remainder of the program to address Bangladesh, including officials from inland water transport, these issues. water resources, and disaster risk reduction on these entry points for cooperation. The participants identified Key Results for FY19 – What Has SAWI Delivered? a number of action points for advancing cooperation on both of these fronts, including by building the knowledge i. Building Trust and Confidence base, undertaking investments, and visiting other riparian countries to better understand their practices and SAWI has continued to build trust among key stakeholders priorities. from across the four riparian countries through the Brahmaputra Dialogue activities. Following on from the The CSO event brought together more than 30 Brahmaputra River Symposium, hosted in India last fiscal stakeholders who are engaging on the Brahmaputra year, SAWI supported the regional Climate-Water-Energy through multiple activities, but are working largely in Nexus and South-South Cooperation Workshop (China, isolation of one another. The first of its kind meeting was September 2018). This first multilateral international highly productive in identifying synergies and areas for workshop in China marks the Brahmaputra Dialogue’s future collaborative work. full active engagement in all four riparian countries, but it also shows China’s increasing interest in regional cooperation in the basin. This interest will be critical to 24 BOX 3: BRAHMAPUTRA DIALOGUE – CONSENSUS ON KEY PRIORITIES FOR THE FUTURE The Climate-Water-Energy Nexus and South-South Cooperation Workshop (September 2018, China) provided a platform to bring together participants from China, India, and Bangladesh to discuss and jointly identify future needs and prospects for ensuring water and energy security. Key points emerged, as follows: • Participants identified energy security under a changing climate as a potential entry point for regional cooperation in the Yarlung-Brahmaputra-Jamuna River Basin to realize benefits from and beyond the river; • Joint research by academics can build a common evidence- based narrative to enhance mutual understanding amongst countries; • Common data collection, sharing and dissemination mechanisms should be enhanced; • Organized training and exposure visits are essential to building capacity and coping strategies for weather and climate-related disasters; • Encourage enhanced studies on climate change impacts for the basin as a whole; • Cultivate local communities in demanding and responding to regional river cooperation; • Support reformation of inland navigational routes; and • Build coalitions with other regional initiatives, institutions and projects. ii. Generating and Sharing Knowledge WRM in the North East; flood hazard mitigation (the US experience); nature-based infrastructure; community- A Rapid Assessment Report, although completed last based disaster risk management; expanding fisheries fiscal year, was used this year by the HLC to prepare their in the North East; distributed storage for multiple uses; own report to the Prime Minister of India’s Office (it was spring recharge/protection national and international appended to the HLC report). The World Bank team, in good practice; capacity building in integrated water close collaboration with the Expert Committee (EC) and resources planning and management; and an institutional members of the HLC, also prepared a time-bound and structure for the proposed North East Water Management costed Road Map for rolling out the measures identified Authority (NEWMA), along with roles and responsibilities. in the EC and HLC report and that were presented to the Prime Minister.7 This Road Map has formed the basis for SAWI supported the development of a discussion note, a request from the Government of India (in April 2019) for “A Framework for Integrated River Basin Evaluation”, further Technical Assistance ($70M) from the World Bank; prepared by Ministry of Water Resources, River which is currently under discussion. Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Government of India. The note was completed in April 2019 and outlines In addition to the timely preparation of the Rapid a new framework (soft option) for a river basin approach Assessment, this FY the World Bank team provided just- to water resources development and management—and in-time support to the preparation of the HLC Report, is expected to help co-basin states to develop a win-win including a series of notes on key topics of interest to approach in planning and management of water resources. the EC and HLC, including the critical role of women in 7 Commissioned by the World Bank and supported by SAWI resources under the Basin Modelling and Analysis activity, the study was initiated last year when the World Bank was requested for technical support to the Prime Minister of India’s initiative on water resources management in North-East India. Alongside World Bank technical expertise, SAWI TA supported a Rapid Assessment with the core objectives of assessing the state of water resources planning, management, and development in the North-East region (current conditions, challenges and opportunities), recommending actions for improvement, and setting a high-level path towards proper management of water resources. This involved a highly consultative exercise and working closely with the High-Level Committee (chaired by the Vice Chair of NITI Aayog and consisting of Secretaries of all water-related Ministries and Chief Secretaries from all North-East States) and the Expert Committee (on which the World Bank team was invited to sit) to conduct a rapid assessment of water resources with recommended actions and to build an interactive North-East Water Information Base (NEWRIB). 25 Other ongoing work under the Brahmaputra Dialogue activity includes: (a) A power mapping study, which builds Data and records are not easily found on an institutional mapping completed earlier in each of the four riparian countries. The study is identifying power relationships and the influence of various institutions in devising policies and programs related to (transboundary) water resources management in each of the riparian countries. Its results are expected to allow the Dialogue to more effectively engage with the riparian countries going forward; (b) Work has commenced on a book, "Perspectives on the Yarlung-Tsangpo-Brahmaputra- Jamuna River Basin", which will be co-produced by Source: Records Office, Government Library (Figure 1.5) from the report of the Expert Committee, GoI institutions in each of the four riparian countries. This will be the first attempt in documenting the river basin as one river system and in creating a multi-layered understanding Under the ongoing Strengthening Hydro-met Services of the basin; and (c) Targeted work on plastics in the and Disaster Resilience in Bangladesh activity, SAWI Brahmaputra Basin is currently being explored and is likely has completed its Technical Assistance consultancies to be taken up under SAWI. to support the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB, the hydrological agency) in conducting site surveys SAWI seeks to build knowledge to help scope out the related to its observation systems and to strengthen the challenges and opportunities for reducing and managing design of modernization as well as on services delivery for the growing problem of plastic waste in the Ganga- both the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD) Brahmaputra and Meghna Basin which alone contributes and BWDB. 72,845 tons of plastic, making the basin the sixth highest contributor of plastic pollution to the marine environment. This SAWI activity is supporting one of three components Currently, there is a lack of established methodologies of the World Bank investment, Bangladesh Weather and for data collection, lack of standardized plastic waste Climate Services Regional Project (BWCSRP), which has definitions and very little data on plastic waste statistics stalled due to client capacity constraints and is planned from a transboundary perspective. to be restructured in FY20. The restructuring will provide further prioritization of training, such as capacity on flash This year, SAWI has initiated two activities: A white paper flood guidance system and numerical weather prediction on understanding plastic in South Asia, which seeks (NWP). Looking ahead, a cross-border training is planned to provide a situation analysis, identify examples of for FY20 with the India NHP to allow for intensive knowledge innovation, and describe the policy landscape for plastics sharing and will explore cross-border communication management; and a pilot study on understanding plastic as well. Further, ongoing dialogue with NASA SERVIR is pollution in the Brahmaputra Basin, which will undertake exploring cross-border collaboration with Nepal for the use a gap analysis on data and information on plastic use and of the HIWAT model8 in both countries. Additional analytical plastic waste management, focused on the most densely work on data management, ICT and user satisfaction is populated areas of the Brahmaputra Basin covering the planned in parallel with project implementation. Through floodplains of Bangladesh and Assam. This activity is ongoing Technical Assistance and by fostering dialogue linking closely with a broader Bank program, Plastic Free across departments, the World Bank’s SAWI task team Rivers and Seas for South Asia. also supports Bangladesh’s participation in the South Asia Regional Hydro-met Forum (SAHF), which is funded iii. Building Institutional and Professional Capacity through other donor resources. Across South Asian countries, tools for water resource The Royal Government of Bhutan has prioritized planning are uncoordinated, and quality data is not easily strengthening resilience to hydro-met hazards and climate available or accessible. change and introduced indicators for improvement in its 8 HIWAT Model: https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/20180003183.pdf 26 11th Five Year Plan (2013-18). The Department of Hydro- informing the design of a longer-term programmatic met Services (DHMS), under the Ministry of Economic activities, including the Hydro-met Services and Disaster Affairs, is only able to issue weather forecasts and flood Resilience Regional Project (P154477), which comprises warnings a mere 24 hours in advance—due to resource Technical Assistance and investment operations in and technical capacity constraints. multiple countries; and the Bangladesh Weather and Climate Services Regional Project (P150220), currently Under the Bhutan Hydro-met and Disaster Resilience under preparation. As reported above, the Government activity, SAWI completed its capacity building support of India has also approached the World Bank for Technical to the National Center for Hydrology and Meteorology Assistance ($70M) for water resource management in the (NCHM), which is enabling national hydro-met agencies North-East Region. to access weather-related data for more effective forecasting. This forms a critical part of the initial design of larger World Bank hydro-met investments, and SAWI Sundarbans Landscape Focus Area activities built on the findings and recommendations of a Context and Strategic Approach previously funded TA report, “Modernizing Weather, Water and Climate Services: A Roadmap for Bhutan” (July 2016). The Sundarbans Landscape (Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta) is the largest delta in the world, into which drain rivers SAWI also supported operationalization of a SMART-Met from Bhutan, China, India, and Nepal. The Sundarbans lies system and has helped familiarize staff on new aviation in Bangladesh and India and is home to nearly 13 million equipment, facilitated training on operation of the people, including some of the poorest and most vulnerable SMART-Met systems for weather forecasting. Training communities. As the largest remaining contiguous in the previous years, including an institutional visit mangrove forest in the world, with a unique ecosystem, to the Finnish Meteorological Institute for SMART-Met rich wildlife habitat and several endangered species, the system review and familiarization in aviation meteorology, Sundarbans is a wetland of international importance has enabled NCHM to efficiently access all available and its conservation is mandated through international forecasting inputs, leading to improvement in accuracy conventions and treaties. However, this landscape area of weather forecasts. Bhutan is now able to access data faces challenges of high poverty levels, gradual reduction from all of its hydrometeorological stations, GTS (Global of ecosystem services, frequent natural hazards and Telecommunication System), Himawari satellite images threats linked to global climate change. Sea level rise, and the Numerical Weather Prediction models (Weather salinization of soil and water, cyclonic storms, and coastal Research and Forecasting [WRF], Global Forecasting flooding render this one of the most hazardous areas in System [GFS] and Global Environmental Multiscale Model the world and further risks the lives and livelihoods for its [GEM]). The SMART-Met system has been a valuable poor inhabitants. addition to Bhutan’s hydro-met systems. Prior to its installation, the forecasters had to go to individual screens In 2011, Bangladesh and India signed (non-binding) of incoming data—a cumbersome task, which reduced agreements on a host of issues to pave the way for the level of accuracy when working with different layers joint actions on the Sundarbans. These agreements or of data. The system now helps to analyze all available understandings are yet to be formally operationalized, observed data and forecasting models onto a single and, although the two countries have been discussing the platform, thereby offering a well-organized and systematic establishment of a joint mechanism to guide development, generation of data, which in turn leads to increased conservation, and resilience of the Landscape, they are forecast reliability. yet to reach formal agreement. However, the two national governments have set up a formal bilateral Joint Working Group on Conservation of the Sundarbans (JWG), which is iv. Scoping Interventions and Investments a positive signal of continued intent to find collaborative Several SAWI activities continue to inform the design of solutions. larger World Bank investments in South Asia. The two hydro-met activities in Bhutan and Bangladesh are directly 27 All of SAWI’s activities under the Focus Area are working Key Results FY19 – What Has SAWI delivered? together towards supporting the joint management of the Sundarbans Landscape for sustainable development i. Building Trust and Confidence and to deliver mutual benefits for Bangladesh and Overall, the Sundarbans continues to be highly relevant India. SAWI is doing this through two complementary to the bilateral cooperation agenda between Bangladesh objectives: (1) to enhance bilateral cooperation to support and India, and there are positive examples of momentum operationalization of the Sundarbans agreements between towards cooperation (see Box 4). Bangladesh and India (signed 2011); and (2) to enhance technical cooperation between the two countries towards The JWG was not able to meet in this FY due to political joint water resources management in the Sundarbans. economy issues related to the national elections in India (May 2019) and in Bangladesh (December 2018). This year, SAWI has continued to focus on delivering Nevertheless, SAWI has continued to support smaller three complementary activities. The Sundarbans deliberations through BISRCI; for instance: (a) by providing Dialogue activity continues to build trust and working inputs on the rationale and need for cooperation on the relationships between Bangladesh and India, at multiple Sundarbans Landscape to be included in the agenda for stakeholder levels, with the aim to move towards the highest policy-level discussions between Bangladesh operationalization of agreements for joint management and India in August 2018; and (b) by meeting and of the Sundarbans Landscape. In the interim, the SAWI- briefing the newly elected Members of Parliament from supported Bangladesh-India Sundarbans Regional Bangladesh on Sundarbans cooperation (March 2019). Cooperation Initiative (BISRCI) remains the main platform BISRCI has also continued to provide regular inputs to to engage high-level policymakers in both countries; and both national governments and the Government of West this forum is finding significant traction at the highest Bengal on Sundarbans cooperation and policy changes, policymaking levels in both countries—for instance, by and is helping them to plan future meetings of the JWG. providing informal inputs into the agenda for the meeting at the highest decision-making levels of the two countries BISRCI was invited to address the Pacific Environmental in August 2018. BISRCI continues to work towards the Security Forum 2019 (New Zealand, May 2019)—an goal of establishing a formal joint institutional mechanism indication of its wider recognition. The event “Building between the two countries. Resilience in the Pacific," was jointly organized by the Governments of New Zealand and the United States of The Landscape Hydro-met Design activity was satisfactorily America, and BISRCI representatives highlighted how concluded this year. The activity provided a data-based human-ecological action plans in the Sundarbans could comprehensive picture of the entire landscape (Bangladesh help to facilitate stronger strategic bonding between India and India) that connects poverty, water resources and Bangladesh on topics such as climate migration, information and ecosystems. It supported a highly biosecurity, resource protection, regional environmental consultative process towards preparing a plan to install a security solutions, and environmental security uniform hydro-met information system in the landscape, transformation (http://pesforum.org/). and its outputs have been discussed as part of the JWG. ii. Generating and Sharing Knowledge The Targeted Environmental Studies activity continues to build technical knowledge and awareness of climate change The production and dissemination of joint technical risks by 2050, and is promoting technical cooperation, products is enabling stronger buy-in, ensuring a holistic building a knowledge base to support joint management, approach to the Sundarbans, building capacity and and facilitating a holistic approach to the sustainable new understanding, and opening up the space for management of this extremely fragile mangrove. Having collaborative action. completed various technical and analytical studies and capacity building related to tackling climate vulnerability, The Sundarbans Dialogue activity has progressed several this activity is now focused on completing its work on the interim knowledge products during the current reporting implications of water resources for women and children’s year, including: (i) Final draft report “Institutional Structure health, nutrition and productivity. for Joint Action in the Sundarbans Region”, which outlines 28 BOX 4: SUNDARBANS: BANGLADESH - INDIA PROTOCOL ROUTE FOR INLAND NAVIGATION STRATEGIC BASIN PLANNING – EMERGING RECOMMENDATIONS The spirit of the bilateral cooperation in the Sundarbans Region is reflected in several MoUs, agreements and joint statements issued at the highest level in Bangladesh and India. One of these—the Bangladesh-India Protocol Route for Inland Navigation—seeks a revival of the use of waterways between the two countries, which could potentially improve trade and tourism. This year, a key policy outcome has been the extension of this Protocol to include provision of passenger and cruise vessels. Previously the Protocol was restricted to the movement of cargo for transit and inter-country trade on specific routes. Subsequently, river cruise services commenced between Kolkata and Dhaka in March 2019. This is significant, and a vital step towards improving sub-regional connectivity through inland and coastal waterways transport, and a powerful signal of growing willingness to work towards facilitating easier movement of both goods and passengers between the two countries. This policy action was facilitated by deliberations (supported by BISRCI) between the two countries using SAWI’s previously completed outputs, namely: (a) Conceptual Plan for Integrating Community-based Tourism Along the Bangladesh- India Protocol Route for Inland Navigation; and (b) Proposal for Promoting Sustainable Transboundary Inland Navigation in the Sundarbans Region: A Bangladesh-India Initiative. Since 2016, there have been extensive consultations supported by BISRCI inputs to national and sub-national governments in the two countries, including the Ministry of External Affairs in India, the Inland Waterways Authority of India, Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation, and the Department of Tourism, Government of West Bengal. options for the establishment of a formal transboundary organized to prepare and disseminate the key findings of mechanism (January 2019); (ii) Report titled “Benefits these outputs. This year, SAWI has also disseminated of Cooperation: Focus on the Sundarbans” (December outputs produced in previous years. These include 2018); (iii) Report on Sundarbans Media Platform and a the Sundarbans Joint Landscape Narrative and the social media strategy comprising Facebook and Twitter documentary on Sundarbans, “Nature’s Own People”, (July 2018); (iv) the launch of a bilingual (English, Bangla) which was showcased at four international films festivals website on Sundarbans (www.sundarbansonline.org) in across the world in the reporting period. early 2019, which is likely to soon carry content in Hindi, making it a trilingual website. The website offers a digital The Landscape Hydro-met Design activity finalized five platform for continued dialogue among key stakeholders outputs this year, namely: (i) Three volumes of Needs from the two countries and other concerned individuals Assessment and Detailed Planning for a Harmonious and organizations from around the globe. It provides Hydrometeorology System for the Sundarbans: Volume regular updates on media coverage on Sundarbans and 1: Existing Hydro-meteorological Set Up in Sundarbans related issues; includes a discussion platform to engage Covering Both India and Bangladesh; Volume 2: Looking key stakeholders and the general public; and acts as a at Comparable Deltas: Experiences from the Mekong repository of scientific, technical and socio-economic Delta; and Volume 3: Specific Requirements: Sea Level knowledge on Sundarbans. This knowledge portal is Stations, Weather Stations and Logistics for the Entire hosted and managed by BISRCI and provisions have Sundarbans Landscape; (ii) Inventory of Freshwater been put in place for this to continue for at least one year Resources in the Sundarbans Landscape; (iii) Evolution beyond SAWI funding. and Geomorphology of the Sundarbans Landscape; (iv) Proposal for Development of Joint Hydro-meteorological The process of preparation of each of these outputs Services for the Entire Sundarbans Region; and (v) Water involved discussions and deliberations among Quality Analysis and Salinity Intrusion Analysis (this also policymakers, key influencers, strategic and diplomatic supports technical work under Sundarbans Targeted community, journalists, experts and academia. Ranging Environmental Studies). from one-on-one to small technical meetings and roundtables to larger workshops, these discussions were 29 BOX 5: SUNDARBANS: CREATING THE ARCHITECTURE TOWARDS COOPERATION Although both the Bangladesh and Indian Sundarbans face common challenges, it is often difficult to get stakeholders to work together, especially when there are different perceptions, capacities, political motivations and competing incentives. SAWI has successfully used technical entry points to trigger and build collaborative dialogue between regional stakeholders. Although not directly attributable to SAWI’s efforts in a single year, it is worth noting that, as the deliberative and highly consultative process on the Landscape Hydro-met Design activity gained momentum, this mechanism usefully helped to build trust among stakeholders at different levels in India and Bangladesh. Similarly, the Targeted Environmental Studies activity found that collective action may be easier if different groups perceive environmental problems similarly within and across regions. Obtaining ownership and buy-in of processes at an early stage has been important . The genesis of the concept for joint hydro-met services came from a process of dialogue that the BISRCI had initiated, since 2017, with members of the JWG on a range of topics. At the invitation of the JWG, BISRCI put forward a detailed proposal on the development of joint hydro-met services. SAWI helped to develop relevant background reports and a draft proposal, “Development of Joint Hydro-meteorological Services for the Entire Sundarbans Region”, which is likely to be considered in the next JWG formal meeting (late 2019). The proposal will also be shared with the respective ministries of environment, water resources and foreign affairs at the high-level stakeholders meeting under the Sundarbans Dialogue. The strategy of engaging key stakeholders in both Bangladesh and India has been critical to the process and has worked well. As the resultant deliverables emerged from shared knowledge and insight, these have found greater relevance and acceptance by both countries. The consultative process during development of technical products has helped to build trust, increase scientific and economic knowledge, and improve working relationships between Bangladesh and Indian stakeholders. For instance, (a) write-shops were attended by experts from both countries to prepare and finalize reports, such as the joint narrative on the hydrological setting and prospects of the landscape; (b) experts from both countries reached agreement on preparing a report on freshwater endowments in the Sundarbans Landscape without focusing on historical controversies and disputes; and (c) stakeholders agreed to prepare the plan for a joint hydro-met system, focused on local data sharing instead of on agreements on the larger issue of basin-wide data-sharing (which remains a longer-term work in progress). SAWI also engaged local community members with a special focus on women (including women leaders of the villages, or women who are heads of the local government), and development partners. This process led to interesting discussions on adaptation strategies and benefits arising from different alternatives—for instance, whether to use advanced technology in the choice of seeds to withstand salinity, or to instead rely on traditional varieties. Drawing on local community groups and community-based organizations to source information was a useful approach. The approach of sequencing technical studies was a useful way of slowly building common understanding among regional stakeholders. Lack of dependable data can hinder agreements by technical experts. Poor data availability considerably slowed the process, and, having found an alternative way around this by drawing on a 150-year old survey for historic data, SAWI noted the importance of using data and information that is agreeable to all stakeholders in order to move processes forward. SAWI has found that personal interactions among multi-stakeholder participants is an important way to continue collaboration, and that BISRCI, which continues to meet regularly, is an effective mechanism to conduct strategic discussions, to continue the momentum on cooperation, and to enhance understanding from the local to regional levels. Community consultations on the need for better weather and disaster forecasting in the Indian Sundarbans. Source: World Bank internal Completion Report (2019) 30 This year, the Targeted Environmental Studies activity with a semi-structured questionnaire; (b) household completed several analytical products that are oriented surveys with a fully structured pre-coded questionnaire; towards building knowledge on the potential dangers of (c) in selection of a stratified random sample using climate change. All of these studies were peer-reviewed; STATA from a sampling frame; and (d) in developing the published in scientific journals and/or are in the World format of survey-data entry in a spreadsheet. Technical Bank's Open Access Policy Research Working Paper series. knowledge on climate change impacts in the Sundarbans The methodology and findings were presented at several was scarce before this SAWI grant. Therefore, as part of World Bank Country Offices, professional conferences, its outreach and awareness raising strategy, developed universities and research organizations in countries in FY18, the activity completed the compilation of a across South Asia and East Asia, as well as to World Bank geocoded database on the erosion/accretion of the development partners. These outputs include (i) analytic Sundarbans coastline, produced and published reports studies on cyclone risks and salinization of water on including in scientific journals for wider dissemination, ecosystems of Bangladesh and Indian Sundarbans; (ii) a and posted web features. These are intended to build study on impacts of land loss on biodiversity of Bangladesh technical capacities and knowledge across a range of Sundarbans; and (iii) studies on likely impacts of cyclones stakeholders. A full list is included in Annex 3. on displacement of inhabitants of Sundarbans. Analytical work on impacts of land loss on Indian Sundarbans could iv. Scoping Interventions and Investments not be conducted as data on digital elevation of Indian Sundarbans is not available. SAWI is also undertaking The Landscape Hydro-met Design work has provided systematic analysis of the implications of salinization of key inputs used for designing and implementing three water on maternal and child health. World Bank-funded projects, namely: (i) Bangladesh Weather and Climate Services Regional Project From December 2018 to January 2019, SAWI undertook ($113M), where SAWI inputs are informing the 15 focus group discussions with women in various gram implementation of an improved and efficient hydro-met panchayats of Indian Sundarbans to collect information system in the Sundarbans, Bangladesh; (ii) the First on livelihood activities of women who spend long hours in Regional Waterway Transport Project for Bangladesh saline water for catching fish, their average exposure time ($360M), where SAWI inputs are facilitating a discussion to saline water, and the diseases they suffer. This is part of on alternative waterways routes to avoid spill of a study to understand the expected impacts of salinization contaminants in and around the Sundarbans; and (iii) of water in a changing climate on maternal and child health. the NHP in India ($175M), where SAWI has worked as A household survey was subsequently designed and is an alternative special-purpose study in this project, underway—it will cover over 900 households. In parallel, to help in deciding the scope, coverage and logistics SAWI is also collecting water samples from rivers, tube for the project's planned water resources information wells and ponds at each survey location and monitoring infrastructure in the Sundarbans. salinity in water to build a geocoded database of surface water and groundwater salinity. SAWI’s Targeted Environmental Studies activity continues to be relevant to seven World Bank operations, as follows: (i) The geocoded database of erosion/accretion of the iii. Building Institutional and Professional Capacity coastline of Sundarbans is highly relevant for the World While in previous years the Targeted Environmental Bank’s Integrated Coastal Zone Management ($220M) Studies activity conducted knowledge exchange to take into account the geomorphological changes: workshops and hands-on training between Bangladeshi erosion/ accretion of Sundarbans; (ii) the analysis of and Indian experts, this year (November – December 2018) impacts of cyclones on population displacement is the activity focused on institutional capacity building by relevant for two projects in India (National Cyclone Risk training university research scholars on data collection Mitigation Project ($310M) and the Integrated Coastal (which remains a huge gap on the Indian Sundarbans Zone Management project); and for two projects in side). Accordingly, six Ph.D. scholars and Post-doctoral Bangladesh, namely the Multipurpose Disaster Shelter fellows from Vishva Bharati University, West Bengal, Project ($375M) and Bangladesh Coastal Embankment India were trained to conduct (a) focus group discussions Improvement ($375M); (iii) the findings from previously 31 undertaken studies on mangrove composition and Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Area species are being taken up by the mangrove afforestation component of the Bangladesh Coastal Embankment Context and Strategic Approach Improvement Project team and will usefully inform the The Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Area supports cross- mangrove afforestation component; (iv) findings will also fertilization of knowledge and capacity building across be useful for the Sustainable Forest and Livelihood basins towards transboundary cooperation. This work Project (Bangladesh) ($175M); the Bangladesh complements and underpins the work under the four Sustainable Coastal and Marine Fisheries Project geographic Focus Areas. SAWI does this through regional ($240M); and the Bangladesh Regional Waterway dialogue to build shared understanding on opportunities Transport Project ($360M). and challenges in regional water management; targeted capacity building activities that bring multiple stakeholders BOX 6: REGIONAL WORKSHOP (DIALOGUE) – WHAT DID WE LEARN? The Regional Workshop on “Managing Water Extremes in South Asia” (December 2018) brought together over 100 participants. Sessions were crafted and delivered towards the following aims: (1) to strengthen the comprehensive understanding of current and anticipated future water scarcity, drought and flood challenges and solutions in South Asia; (2) to facilitate knowledge sharing on disruptive technologies, institutions, and best practices for building resilience to water scarcity and floods, both for people and ecosystems, among different stakeholders in South Asia; and (3) to showcase strategies and methodologies to improve sharing of hydro-meteorological data and modernization and forecasting in South Asia. Participants considered a lack of political will and an unfavorable political climate as the most critical barriers to shifting the needle on managing water extremes. There was strong consensus that managing and responding to the risks posed by water extremes requires collective action at and across all levels from the regional to the local. They suggested that effective communication (which is crisp and concise; from the right voice/champion; and done through both traditional and new mediums/platforms) as the foremost key action to change political mindsets, to govern from community to cabinet, and to close the science-policy gap. Building on technocratic networks established at the country-level and leveraging relationships to engage decision makers at the regional level can usefully help to progress dialogue; and participants were also keen to explore how these challenges were being met in other regions of the world. The showcasing of Australia’s water reform experience in managing water extremes was well received. In particular, participants were interested to learn of Australia’s water tools and its approach of a common intellectual structure within government that enables bureaucrats to draw on evidence and inform effective policy options for politicians to champion. The workshop featured technical breakouts and a tools and practices clinic carousel, featuring five campfire-chat style clinics, where participants learned from international experts on various tools and practices in managing water extremes applicable to the South Asia context. It is expected that participants will share these tools and practices with their colleagues for possible uptake in their respective institutions and/or the tools and practices may be used to influence policy formation and implementation on water extremes issues. 32 together; by advancing technical knowledge that cuts sensing tools. Training and development of an assessment across several thematic areas, such as groundwater for needs and prioritization is expected to be done over the management, water quality, climate change risks, course of the next reporting year. integrated water resource management, hydroelectric power, and by fostering partnerships with regional Groundwater is highly relevant to tackling water stress in institutions, including IWMI, IUCN, ICIMOD, South Asian South Asia, and there is increasing interest in conjunctive universities and others, so that momentum is built up and management (coordination on groundwater and surface efforts are sustained in the long term. This year, SAWI has water), including as this relates to transboundary water focused on delivering six activities. management. SAWI has been building knowledge on different aspects of groundwater. Through SAWI support Key Results for FY19– What Has SAWI Delivered? under the Capacity Building for Groundwater Management activity, IWMI has concluded its regional study on Managing i. Building Trust and Confidence Groundwater for Drought Resilience, comprising one synthesis report and eight case studies, which demonstrate Regional dialogue events provide a platform to build groundwater management in different settings across the trust, networks, common understanding and learning region. The report is highly relevant to tackling water stress with diverse and representative stakeholder groups in South Asia—a very pertinent issue that has previously across all three basins. Building on three dialogue events had limited research. The information base is incomplete in previous years, SAWI supported a Regional Workshop and scattered and compounded by diverse groundwater on “Managing Water Extremes in South Asia” (December systems and usage across sectors, and management 2018, Bangkok) with over 100 participants, ranging from capacities across South Asia. Although a dissemination policymakers to technocrats and academics, from the workshop was planned in Colombo in 2018, this could seven SAWI countries, and Thailand. International experts not take place. Alternative plans for dissemination are from Australia, Canada, Malaysia, USA, IGOs and NGOs under consideration by the SAWI team. The A Diagnostic also participated to share tools, methodologies and Study on Groundwater-Energy-Agriculture Nexus activity experiences to manage water extremes. is designing and testing alternative models for subsidy delivery to farmers. This year (March 2019), SAWI presented ii. Generating and Sharing Knowledge options to the Government of Rajasthan on institutional SAWI supported a first of its kind study under the models for solarizing agriculture. This nexus approach is Glaciers of the Himalayas activity that analyzes impacts of significant, as the high-level meeting, chaired by the Chief climate change and black carbon on glacier and snowmelt Secretary, brought together secretaries of water, power in the Himalayas, and implications for water resources and agriculture and other key departmental heads across in the Ganges, Indus and Brahmaputra Basins. The work these sectors. At a follow-on workshop (March 2019), the is expected to inform other ongoing snow, glacier and SAWI team presented various business models for grid- water resource modelling experiments and suggest policy connected solar irrigation, technical and financial analysis, recommendations. SAWI resources enabled the World and institutional models to achieve a nexus between the Bank to source international expertise to complete work energy, agriculture and water sectors. on glacio-hydrological modelling aspects—the University of Colorado’s Comparative Institute for Research in The HEP Sustainable Planning (Bhutan) activity continues Environmental Sciences has world-class expertise in to support the Royal Government of Bhutan (RGoB) as it remote sensing and GIS for glacier change detection and progresses plans for tapping the country’s hydropower mass balance monitoring, with an emphasis on mapping potential. A previous SAWI-supported study, “Managing debris covered glaciers. Secondly, as scientific findings Environmental and Social Impacts of Hydropower can often be disputed, SAWI enabled the research team Development in Bhutan”, concluded that the country has a to involve an external science advisory panel to ensure good regulatory framework but poor institutional capacity that the study is scientifically sound. SAWI has initiated to implement sustainable hydropower. A follow-on request activities to support capacity building with the NCHM in from the RGoB resulted in SAWI developing Bhutanese flood forecasting, cryosphere monitoring and remote Guidelines for Preparation and Construction of Hydropower, 33 BOX 7: REGIONAL GLACIERS OF THE HIMALAYAS ACTIVITY BRINGS STAKEHOLDERS TOGETHER SAWI held a two-day conference in Kathmandu on “Cryosphere, Glacier Melting and Implications on Mountain Economy in the HKH Region” (September 2018). The event was opened by the Minister of Forest and Environment for Nepal. The event was jointly organized with the Government of Nepal, the Centre for Green Economy Development Nepal, and ICIMOD. The conference was attended by government officials, researchers and members of civil society organizations from Afghanistan, Bhutan, India, Nepal and Pakistan. A notable outcome is that participants agreed to launch a Hindu Kush Himalaya Glaciers and Mountain Economy Platform, which will focus on championing greater regional cooperation across various levels on the issue of glacier melting. A draft declaration was also adopted, with a call for action on the need for this network to galvanize greater knowledge sharing and knowledge co-generation, capacity building, and partnerships between government and communities for sustainable mountain economies, with a focus on gender and local knowledge. This network is not intended to supplant existing arrangements (e.g., ICIMOD, IWMI, SAWI etc.); rather, it proposes to energize and reinvigorate them. The Platform was formally announced at COP24 in Katowice, Poland in December 2018, and the Government of Nepal is taking a leading role in advancing its mandate. The conference attracted attention both in print and news media as follows: (a) SAWI TTL’s Op-ed in Kathmandu Post. https://kathmandupost. ekantipur.com/printedition/news/2018-09-21/friends-in-high-places.html; (b) News coverage in The Kathmandu Post: http:// kathmandupost.ekantipur.com/news/2018-09-18/five-south-asia-countries-to-form-regional-network.html; (c) The Rising Nepal: http://bit. ly/2xwpyLY; (d) Face to Face: http://bit.ly/2Nup8AN; (e) Nepali Sansar: https://www.nepalisansar.com/news/hindu-kush-himalaya-region- unite-to-battle-climate-change; (f) Nature Khabar: http://naturekhabar.com/en/archives/11312; (g) Spotlight: http://bit.ly/2PONZvy; and, (h) News coverage in Nepali media: http://naturekhabar.com/en/archives/11312; http://karobardaily.com/news/economy/10656. including support to essential national baseline data on iii. Building Institutional and Professional Capacity aquatic biodiversity, based on international standards, By exposing delegates from South Asia to international which were subsequently approved by the Minister of best practices and innovations, including SAWI products, Economic Affairs in June 2018. This year, in response to the dialogue activities are building institutional a request from RGoB, SAWI has applied the hydropower capacity in participating institutions. For instance, the guidelines to one major pipeline project (1,125MW regional workshop (December 2018) provided a neutral Dorjilung) in a joint collaborative exercise with Bhutanese platform (and safe space) to introduce various discussion hydropower practitioners and international experts. SAWI topics and gain different perspectives. Seven overarching has also provided vital training on dam safety regulations themes were introduced, under which best practices and (December 2018) that was attended by more than 25 innovations were showcased. These included: (i) Health, participants, and follow up work on developing Guidelines Gender and Social Inclusion: Engaging Communities on Dam Safety and on standard civil works bidding to Address Challenges of Water Scarcity and Floods; (ii) documents are nearing completion. Paradigm Shifts to Manage Water Extremes (Featuring 34 Nature-Based Solutions); (iii) Managing and Coping with Himalayas study will inform the technical design of the Urban Floods; (iv) Floods and Droughts as Entry Points for World Bank’s South Asia Regional Climate Adaptation and Cooperative Measures; (v) Drought and Flood Forecasting Resilience (SARCAR) Program9 ($36M). and Disruptive Technologies: From Lab to Community; (vi) Harnessing Groundwater-Based Natural Infrastructure for Improved Resiliency and Water Security; and (vii) Delivering 2.3 Cross-Cutting Themes Impact at Scale. Gender, Social Inclusion and Disability A parallel strategy of strengthening partnerships of The World Bank’s refreshed Gender Strategy (2016) research institutions in the Hindu Kush Himalayan commits the World Bank to work toward removing region enables SAWI partners to work collaboratively remaining constraints to women’s endowments, improving on issues of significance to regional water resources access to more and better jobs for women, strengthening management. This has been pursued through the RE women’s access to land and financial assets, and improving Himalayan University Consortium Grant (in partnership women’s voice and agency, including by engaging men to with ICIMOD), which is now drawing to a close. Since its address gender-based violence. An underlying theme is operationalization in January 2017, the number of HUC to build the resilience of women and men to cope with members has nearly doubled (from baseline of 33 to 62), natural (climate-related) shocks. which is largely attributed to the grant funding. In previous years, young mid-career researchers have benefitted from SAWI’s approach is to mainstream GESI across its new knowledge and skills in natural resource research and portfolio— which not only adopts the principle of ‘do-no- management, and from networking regionally and globally. harm’, but also ensures that a gender-inclusive approach As mentioned in the Indus Basin Focus Area section of this is integrated across all activities. SAWI’s Focus Area report, the HUC grant was restructured this year with an Strategies accordingly take account of poverty, vulnerability additional component that enables ICIMOD to act as an and social inclusion issues. Given the analytical and anchor to the Indus Basin joint research efforts and to facilitative nature of the TF instrument, and the fact that it provide research coordination support. covers different geographies with diverse socio-economic characteristics, SAWI adopts a differentiated approach to tackling gender. SAWI encourages representation of iv. Scoping Interventions and Investments women in capacity building and other events, and consults The Capacity Building for Groundwater Management with community-level women representatives. SAWI is activity has informed the design of India’s Atal Bhujal also trying to integrate gender issues into transboundary Yojana (Abhy)-National Groundwater Management policy priorities and dialogue, but this needs to be Improvement Project ($450M) by providing a technical, approached sensitively and in a meaningful way across environmental and social appraisal of groundwater diverse stakeholder groups. management in India. It also informed the design of a management information system for the project, which will This year, SAWI’s efforts have continued to build on its support community involvement by providing information/ previous work, and include the following: graphics on groundwater status and from local monitoring sites. Information from the case study on conjunctive i. Capacity Building and organizational development: management (coordination on groundwater and surface SAWI is helping to build skills and knowledge of its water) is being used to inform thinking on the Indus stakeholders for gender-sensitive water resource Basin groundwater study. The HEP Sustainable Planning management. SAWI is also encouraging the inclusion (Bhutan) activity is part of the World Bank’s wider South of women in training and capacity building: So far, a Asia work towards regional energy markets, and will inform total of 204 (36 in FY19) women have benefitted over design (and guidelines) of the Dorjilung Hydropower project the SAWI implementation period, showing an incremental (as part of the South Asia Electricity Markets Program progression in their participation. For instance, this ($3.7M), which could potentially export cheap and clean year, six women from the Department of Hydropower power from Bhutan to Bangladesh. The Glaciers of the & Power Systems, Druk Green Power Corporation and 9 The proposed SARCAR, currently at initial stages of design, aims to enable a transformational shift towards climate resilient policies, planning and investments in South Asia through facilitating regional and national-level technical and knowledge exchange. 35 Figure 3: World Bank Group Gender Strategy Priority Areas Improving Human Removing Constraints Removing Barriers to Enhancing Women’s Endowments for More and Better Women’s Ownership Voice & Agency and (Health, Education & Jobs and Control of Assets Engaging Men and 1 2 3 4 Social Protection) Boys Addressing "sticky" Lifting constraints to Improving conditions under Helping to prevent and first generation gaps increase the quantity and which women can secure respond to gender-based in health (maternal quality of jobs and closing ownership of and control violence and address mortality) and education. earnings gaps with a focus over productive assets adverse masculinity norms Working on emerging, on women’s labor force and access the finance in FCS and elsewhere, and second generation participation, occupational and insurance needed to enhance women’s voice issues, such as ageing sex segregation, care acquire those assets. and agency. and non-communicable services and safe diseases. transport. Building the resilience of women and men to cope with natural (climate change) and human (conflict) shocks. National Electricity Authority were trained on international ii. Raising public awareness is an important way to contractual practice and risk-informed dam safety in World bring gender issues into the discourse, which otherwise Bank operations; four women from these organizations remains gender-neutral. One of the main themes/ were trained on dam safety; and three women were roundtables of the regional workshop was Health, Gender trained on overcoming the challenges of civil work and Social Inclusion: Engaging Communities to Address contracts in large hydropower projects. SAWI continues Challenges of Water Scarcity and Floods. Two of the key to encourage women to play leadership roles in regional take-home messages emerged from this roundtable as dialogue events, including as speakers, facilitators, follows: (a) Women bring unique experiences and skills to organizers and active participants. For instance, in this disaster risk reduction and management, although these year’s Brahmaputra regional workshop on Climate-Water- skills are often not acknowledged or tapped into sufficiently. Energy Nexus and South-South Cooperation, special Increased awareness of the drivers, pressures, stressors efforts were made to facilitate high levels of participation and opportunities associated with climate-related by women and to include women in organizing and disasters is key to finding smart pathways to reduce and presenting/facilitating roles (nine women had prominent manage disasters. It is therefore imperative that disaster speaking roles). However, SAWI has also approached the risk reduction and management strategies are gender- issue of women’s participation in forums in a sensitive aware, considering both gender-based vulnerabilities as manner. A lesson has been that, while efforts can (and well as women’s unique contributions; and (b) An inclusive should) be made to support female attendance and and integrated approach, both top down and bottom up, prominence, it is important to be sensitive to the needs of is needed to achieve the 2030 Agenda. There needs to be female participants in terms of how comfortable they feel much more collaborative upward momentum around the in taking a prominent role (e.g., how it may impact on their design of interventions, to determine health, gender and future ability to participate and on how they are viewed social inclusion benefits of projects or programs. when they return to their country/workplace). 36 iii. Gender analysis and expanding knowledge on average exposure time to saline water, and the diseases linkages between water governance and impacts on they suffer. Local doctors in all the Gram Panchayats women: As reported last year, the base of literature were later consulted to ratify the incidence of ailments. and evidence in South Asia on the differential impacts The data will be analyzed to estimate the impact of salinity of transboundary water-climate on men and women is on women's health: household and occupational exposure limited. Gender and social inclusion were mentioned in and for predicting likely impacts of progressive salinization the Rapid Assessment report under the Brahmaputra of water in a changing climate (July to December 2019). Basin Modelling and Analysis and spotlighted in the HLC The work is expected to make policy recommendations report to the Prime Minister of India, based on input for governments in India and Bangladesh to improve received from the World Bank. SAWI also initiated work on health outcomes for mothers and children; and is oriented the non-monetary value of water, including a preliminary towards helping India and Bangladesh attain the specific review of the global literature, which found that, while this goals set out during the sixty-fifth World Health Assembly field is rich, the measurement of intangible values of such for improvements in maternal and child health by 2025. resources is under-researched, and techniques, such as accounting for cultural flows, are still emerging. However, v. Gender M&E: Task Team Leaders continue to report as stated elsewhere in this report, the activity has been on gender mainstreaming actions on an annual basis, parked as there is no immediate operational linkage with providing evidence where possible. Capturing annual any World Bank investment. gender results remains work in progress, especially as SAWI’s efforts are focused at the policy level and do not Using a maternal and child health entry-point can be include grassroot-level targeted initiatives. Nonetheless, an effective means of bringing countries together to SAWI is continuing to build on the gender mapping discuss measures for cooperation. A key finding from the (initiated two years ago) that shows entry points within Sundarbans Targeted Environmental Studies activity is each of the technical areas at the state / local, national that flood prone-areas are doing better than drought-prone and transboundary levels. This is helping SAWI to monitor areas in terms of maternal and child health. One study gender disaggregated results, assess progress, and found that this could be due to the abundant availability prioritize its forward gender approaches. The MIS also of fish during the flooding season, which has been shown includes fields specific to tracking gender aspects and to improve nutritional status of the population, especially gender participation. for mothers and children. This was seen as an important catalyst for bringing countries together to cooperate, and the task team is exploring the possibility of using learnings Climate Change and Building Resilience more widely.10 The World Bank Group remains strongly committed to tackling climate change as articulated in its Climate iv. Strengthening Data and Systems for decision Change Action Plan (CCAP 2016-2020), which is designed making: An ongoing household survey of 900 households to scale up climate action, and in its South Asia Regional under the Sundarbans Targeted Environmental Studies Integration Strategy. South Asia is highly vulnerable to activity is oriented towards understanding the expected climate change due to a high dependency on monsoonal impacts of salinization of water in a changing climate on rainfall and glacier-fed rivers; high exposure to sea level maternal and child health. Some fifteen Gram Panchayats rise and storm surges; and low adaptive capacity. There were identified in Hingalganj, Gosaba, Basanti, Kultali, is increasing evidence from World Bank and other reports Patharpratima, Namkhana and Sagar Blocks of Indian that the three major Himalayan transboundary rivers Sundarbans to get a comprehensive representation of are likely to be significantly impacted by climate change. the variation of water salinity in the region. Fifteen focus Across SAWI, activities have an underlying theme of group discussions were then conducted with the local resilience building to tackle existing and future climate leaders of Women's Self-Help Groups. Information was related risks, and SAWI is approaching this in several ways. collected on livelihood activities of women who spend long hours in saline water for catching fish, crab etc., their 10 In the last FY, the Sundarbans Landscape planning activity included an output related to women’s reproductory health, child mortality, child diseases, and fish consumption. It found that fish consumption is directly related to water and/or freshwater availability. As the study covered the entire country of Bangladesh, it remains relevant not only for the Sundarbans, but also the Ganges and Brahmaputra Focus Areas. 37 This year SAWI has continued to build on and deliver its debris covered glaciers. This work will usefully feed into work, incorporating climate change issues into activities policy dialogue with countries through the World Bank’s as follows: country strategies and investments. i. Building scientific climate knowledge and The rapid assessment work (completed in July 2018), under disseminating this widely: Melting glaciers and loss the Brahmaputra Basin Modelling and Analysis activity, of seasonal snow pose significant risks to the stability singled out climate change as a critical issue that needs of water resources in the South Asia region. Glaciers to be addressed. This work has informed the report of the help to moderate river flows in the region’s major rivers Government of India’s High-Level Committee for Proper by providing a source of meltwater in hot, dry years and Management of Water Resources, which emphasizes storing water during colder, wetter years. The dependence development in the North-East Region. Hydrologically, this on glaciers and snow make these rivers particularly region is connected to the Brahmaputra Basin and shared vulnerable to climate change. While there is evidence by nine Indian states. Some parts of this region are subject that South Asia’s water towers are threatened by climate to devastating consequences of floods and erosion, while change, the impacts on glaciers, water availability and food other parts suffer from water scarcity. SAWI’s analysis security may differ substantially among basins and cannot will be central to any follow-on work, which would include be generalized. Possible effects of climate change on building resilience to climate extremes that could worsen the Indus and Brahmaputra basins could be more severe under a changing climate. The recommendations from because a larger percentage of these basins are glaciated the Rapid Assessment Report and the Roadmap outline and more of their water falls in the mountain portion of a capacity building plan. For instance, the development the basin, creating greater dependency on seasonal melt. of a Disaster Risk Management Plan for the NE and In addition, black carbon produced within the region is updating of State Disaster Risk Management Plans are being deposited on the surfaces of some glaciers, causing envisioned under follow-up Technical Assistance that is them to absorb more solar radiation, and raising the air under discussion with the World Bank. temperature above the glacier, and becoming a significant factor in the retreat of some Himalayan Glaciers. ii. Using climate studies to promote technical cooperation between countries: The finalization of a As reported in an earlier section of this report (under the joint research proposal, “Understanding and Assessing Regional Focus Area), the SAWI-supported Glaciers of the the Impact of Climate Change in the Indus Basin”, arising Himalayas activity study (ongoing) is the first of its kind from activities under the Indus Dialogue (since 2016), is looking at the impact of climate change and black carbon regarded as a positive step towards advancing technical on the glacier and snow melt in the Himalayas and their collaboration between the four riparian countries. This implications for water resources in the Ganges, Indus year, SAWI started to transition its facilitative role to and Brahmaputra Basins. The task team has completed ICIMOD—including that of progressing and sourcing the analysis on (i) historic climate; (ii) transport of black finance for the research and ensuring quality of research carbon within the region; and (iii) impact of aerosols on outcomes. regional climate in the context of global climate change. This work, which focused on developing the atmospheric In the Sundarbans, this year SAWI completed the plan inputs, will serve as necessary inputs to various snow, to install a uniform hydro-met information system in the glacier, and water resource modelling experiments that landscape. The benefits of this activity have been multiple: are ongoing. The team is proceeding carefully and is creation of a large body of technical and socio-economic involving an external science advisory panel to ensure knowledge on potential cooperation in the Sundarbans; that the study is scientifically sound. SAWI has drawn on strengthening of knowledge and capacity of officials in internationally renowned expertise from the University government and non-government organizations in the of Colorado's Comparative Institute for Research in two countries; provision of technical support to the JWG; Environmental Sciences, with world class expertise in and enhanced understanding among multi-stakeholders remote sensing and GIS for glacier change detection and from the local to the national level in the two countries mass balance monitoring, with an emphasis on mapping on the possibilities and benefits of cooperation on 38 BOX 8: HYDRO-MET FOR WATER RESOURCE MANAGEMENT IN SOUTH ASIA Brahmaputra Basin: In Bangladesh, SAWI’s help fills critical technical and capacity gaps in hydro-met data management and services delivery and is facilitating enhanced cross-border collaboration in the Brahmaputra Basin. This is closely aligned with and informing the World Bank’s ongoing hydrometeorological modernization investment (the Bangladesh Weather and Climate Services Regional Project (BWCSRP)] . SAWI has facilitated the participation of Bangladesh and Bhutan in the South Asia Hydro-met Forum (SAHF) in September 2018—which is a mechanism for allowing exchange of information and knowledge sharing. Specifically, SAWI helped to bring together in-country stakeholders across agencies and provided technical support to help them prepare for participation in the event. Next year, planned training offers the potential for cross- border knowledge sharing between India and Bangladesh, while ongoing dialogue with NASA SERVIR is exploring cross-border collaboration with Nepal for the use of the High-Impact Weather Assessment Toolkit (HIWAT) that could potentially help both countries to improve short term forecasting, threat assessment and impact assessment. (https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/20180003183.pdf). In Bhutan, SAWI completed capacity building support for the NCHM to improve hydro-met services and disaster preparedness by strengthening the IT infrastructure for the Department of Hydro-met Services, priority monitoring systems and highly technical training that helped familiarize staff with new equipment. This support forms one of three components of the larger Bhutan Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience Regional Project. Following SAWI support to operationalize a new SMART- Met system that brings all data on to a common platform, the NCHM has effective and efficient access to available forecasting inputs. Previously, forecasters had to draw on data from individual screens which was not only cumbersome, but also reduced levels of accuracy when overlaying different data levels. Ganges Basin: In Bihar, India, last year, as part of a longer flood management strategy in the transboundary Bagmati-Adhwara basin (Ganges Basin), SAWI supported the development of a web-based system to improve flood forecasts with increased lead-time and accuracy in the Bagmati river basin using available hydrologic data. This year, the Bihar state government (India) tested this system during the monsoons and issued one to three-day forecasts using real time hydro-met data from Bihar and from Nepal, received via web-link. The Bihar Government has developed automated tools for processing real-time hydro data for nearly 1000 stations in order to issue daily forecasts. Information is available on government websites: http://bihar.rap.ucar.edu/index.php/; http://bihar.rap.ucar.edu/forecast/; http://indiawbg.rap.ucar.edu/ index.php/. Sundarbans Landscape: Work on supporting preparation of a plan to install a uniform hydro-met information system in the landscape has been successfully completed. SAWI helped to create evidence for informed discussions between Bangladesh and India on planning a coordinated or joint hydro-met system, learning from other shared hydro-met systems in the world, and better planning for coping with rising salinity levels and utilization of freshwater resources in Sundarbans. Outputs under this activity are to be used to move towards operationalization of the non-binding agreements for joint management of the Sundarbans between the two countries. Sundarbans. All outputs were finalized and presented to the governments of Bangladesh and India for discussion in FY19. The outputs are listed in the earlier section of this report under the Sundarbans Focus Area. iii. Integrating Climate Change into Institutional Practices and Programs: Water resource management is the main challenge in adapting to climate induced droughts and floods, and unpredictable weather patterns. SAWI is responding through its work on hydro- met (see Box 8). iv. Tackling new challenges: Groundwater is emerging as a critical issue in South Asia—in terms of its availability and use, management of this resource, and challenges related to its contamination. SAWI is approaching this in a number of ways (see Box 9). 39 BOX 9: GROUNDWATER STUDIES ARE A KEY PART OF WATER RESOURCE MANAGEMENT The use of groundwater resources is high across much of the region—together, South Asia and China account for more than half of global groundwater use. However, intensive and unregulated groundwater pumping for irrigation and other productive uses has caused it to rapidly decline in many parts of South Asia. Furthermore, groundwater quality degradation from naturally occurring and anthropogenic contaminants are a growing problem and an increasing concern. Groundwater issues are closely linked to river and surface water management but are not managed by the same institutions in the region —thus leading to an uncoordinated approach to the detriment of one or both sources of water. Countries are increasingly recognizing the problem and are beginning to tackle the groundwater crises through national programs to reform water policies and address groundwater management challenges. SAWI is undertaking the following: (a) Ganges Basin: Surface water and groundwater are the principal water sources of the Ganga River Basin. For effective management, it is important to understand the dynamic interactions between the two. To assess the implications of changed water management practices on both surface water and groundwater upstream of Farakka Barrage, SAWI undertook extensive groundwater modelling and comprehensive river modelling. Recently concluded analytical work on groundwater-surface water and e-flows (as part of the Ganges Strategic Basin Planning activity) has helped to refine river modelling by showing river flows by function, outlining where extensive leakage from irrigation canals can recharge groundwater aquifers, indicating degradation in water quality and availability, and providing a framework for strategies to reflect positive change. This has also brought new insights and deeper understanding among stakeholders on the impact of projects, such as the construction of irrigation canal systems, on altering groundwater systems. This approach also contributed to greater basin-oriented thinking among participants and identified the need for higher-level strategic thinking. The findings are informing the NHP. (b) Indus Basin: SAWI initiated analytical work this year to increase sub-basin-level knowledge to assist decision makers in improving the governance of groundwater in the Indus Basin. Pakistan has a long history of public investment in surface water infrastructure. By contrast, management of groundwater infrastructure has remained in private hands, leading to uncontrolled expansion of access to groundwater and the corresponding deterioration of the resource. Institutional capacity for governance of these resources is weak and essential groundwater data that would facilitate improved governance are fragmented and not easily discoverable for a significant proportion of the Indus Basin. SAWI’s study is a synthesis of knowledge of groundwater and its governance in water-stressed areas of Pakistan and an analysis of trends in available data. The work will contribute to an ongoing consolidation of the groundwater knowledge base in South Asia and highlight opportunities for regional cross-learning on common groundwater management issues. It will complement the groundwater work already completed by the World Bank in the Indian Punjab portion of the Indus Basin. The work will also benefit from the recent SAWI advisory work on managing groundwater for drought resilience in South Asia. (c) Regional: Two SAWI activities are focused on building knowledge, tools and capacity across the region to support improved groundwater management. A regional study on Managing Groundwater for Drought Resilience, undertaken by IWMI, has been completed and is being finalized for external consumption. The study investigates the status of groundwater in the SAR and identifies a variety of interventions that apply, depending on the context (groundwater environment, socio-economic context, regional setting). This also includes a selection of case studies in the region, demonstrating groundwater management approaches in different types of groundwater settings across the region. It emphasizes the role of improved groundwater governance and management as critical to climate change adaptation and in building resilience to droughts. Noting large differences between countries in terms of availability of datasets, use of analytical methods, and in knowledge and capacities for groundwater governance, the study suggests that increased regional cooperation could reduce these disparities, and share costs (e.g., in data acquisition) and knowledge in the development of solutions to shared challenges. For instance, the transboundary aquifers shared by two or more countries in the region offer a possible entry point for such cooperation to address common issues faced by aquifer-sharing countries, which could generate joint co-benefits. Plans are underway for external dissemination. Through the Diagnostic Study on the Groundwater-Energy-Agriculture Nexus activity, SAWI is also testing alternative models of subsidy delivery to farmers in Rajasthan and is bringing together high levels of cross-departmental stakeholders, under the leadership of the Chief Secretary, to consider the tradeoffs and opportunities for convergence. To implement solarization of agriculture feeders, three business models are being explored: (a) farmer selling electricity to DISCOMs; (b) farmers collective selling electricity; and (c) public- private partnerships. Options for financing the capital cost of solar power generation are also currently being analyzed. This work also offers cross-learning lessons for the region. 40 Innovation surface and groundwater (RIBASIM), and modelling groundwater movements in alluvial areas of the basin SAWI continues to adopt multiple strategies and actions (iMOD-MODFLOW), as well as simulated water quality to adapt to existing challenges, to create and harness based on pollutant transport, dilution and diffusion, and new opportunities, and to shift intractable positions on chemical processes (DWAQ). Additionally, site-specific transboundary cooperation. Some examples of innovative rules were developed jointly with stakeholders to evaluate practice in this reporting year include the following: the impact of change discharges, water levels and water quality on the ecology and ecosystem services. All models (i) Consider the Basin – Not Only the River: are stored in a water information system (hosted by CWC) and a results dashboard shows a comparison between One of several innovations under the Ganges Strategic two scenarios—e.g., with and without the implementation Basin Planning activity, involves the development and of a certain basin or state-level intervention. Notably, use of various modelling tools that project different these indicators were selected by stakeholders during a scenarios, taking into account the entire basin—from series of consultations at the basin and state (sub-basin) glacial and snow melt (SPHY model), to non-mountainous levels in India, which increases the likelihood of its use by river flows (Wflow), to simulating the flows and return stakeholders in decision making processes. flows of water, its conjunctive uses and recharge of BOX 10: GANGES STRATEGIC BASIN MODELLING – AN INNOVATIVE TOOL A Ganga River Basin modelling suite covers the entire basin within India, and the upper basin areas in Nepal and China in order to calculate inflows to the India portion of the basin. An innovative feature is that the modelling suite supports integrated assessments of hydrology, geohydrology, water resources management, water quality and ecology. The model represents the hydrology and water resources of the basin at a level of detail suitable for assessment of strategies and scenarios to inform basin planning, while ensuring the model is not overly complex or cumbersome. The model calibration, validation and sensitivity analysis results provide confidence that the Ganga River Basin model is a robust platform for assessing the impacts of future developments and management measures. It is therefore an appropriate platform to support strategic basin planning. Basin inflows are simulated under two fully distributed grid-based model scenarios: (i) climate; and (ii) water use / management. The greatest complexity across these models is in the RIBASIM schematization, which uses links and nodes to describe the flow of water in rivers, reservoirs and canals. It also represents water use, including conjunctive use of surface and groundwater, and return flows to rivers, canals and groundwater. These connections are important across the Ganga plains, where extensive leakage from irrigation canals is a key groundwater recharge pathway. 41 (ii) Exposure to New Tools and Technologies: (i) institutionalizing the dialogues, knowledge and tools, including through supplementary capacity building One of the main themes of the regional workshop was measures across all focal areas; drought and flood forecasting and disruptive technology: (ii) working in partnership with and through others from community to cabinet. In order to build participant to build ownership and uptake, for instance, capacity in new tools and practices for managing water other institutions are increasingly taking over the extremes, the following innovations were featured—with organization of sub-regional events, such as the significant interest from regional stakeholders: Brahmaputra dialogue, and in the Indus; • The Flood and Drought Portal, developed through (iii) informing and leveraging investments (mainly World a Global Environment Facility project led by the Bank and national projects, details of which are in International Waters Association and DHI, includes Annex 9); a set of tools that can help basin stakeholders and utilities integrate climate information into planning; (iv) Additionally, SAWI has sought to align with and leverage emerging national policy priorities, for • SERVIR, a joint venture between NASA and the instance by responding to the Government of India’s USAID, in collaboration with the World Bank, among request for analytical work in the North-East, and by others, works in partnership with leading regional covering issues of conjunctive groundwater-surface organizations worldwide to help developing countries water management which has become an urgent use information provided by earth observing satellites priority for large parts of the region. and geospatial technologies for managing climate risks and land use; • A number of new and innovative data and modelling 2.5 Program and Financial tools such as Google’s new initiative in partnership with India’s CWC, using big data and artificial Management intelligence for flood prediction, with support of RTI, SAWI sits within the World Bank’s South Asia Region’s initiated in India in 2018, with the intent to expand to Regional Integration and Engagement (SARRE), which is other countries in the future; headed by the Director and managed by a team of experts • The US NOAA National Water Model using the open in Washington, DC and Delhi. SAWI works across multiple source WRF-Hydro modelling system with, and a Global Practices (Energy, Environment, SURR, etc.,) and community approach to building national and regional the Water Global Practice plays a special role as technical capacity; lead for program implementation, ensuring that SAWI is • The upcoming Surface Water and Ocean Topography fully embedded within and aligned to the World Bank’s mission of NASA and CNES for the first global survey broader water agenda. SAWI is an important and strategic of the Earth’s surface water; and instrument for the World Bank in South Asia. • RTI’s HydroRAMS system for South Asia, with regional This year, as a pilot under the World Bank Trust Fund watershed datasets and hydrologic modelling tools. Reform, new proposals submitted to SAWI and the other four regional trust funds were reviewed and endorsed 2.4 Sustainability by the Regional Integration Program Committee (RIPC), consisting of management across country teams and As SAWI moves forward towards its final years of Global Practices in South Asia. This approach was implementation, all activities have actively considered adopted to ensure that trust-funded activities are sustainability beyond this phase of funding. SAWI’s overall aligned with regional and country priorities, maximizing approach to sustainability has not changed from that complementarity and efficiency. The individual activities reported in previous years and follows good practice for are managed by Task Team Leaders who are experts in a Trust Fund of this nature. Its sustainability measures their field, and who also bring experience of working on include the following: similar issues across other countries in South Asia and elsewhere. 42 SAWI developed a Management Information System (MIS) Funds are disbursed according to the grant agreements last year, which was tested this year and the approach was and financing plans. SAWI grants are subject to the World shared with donors during the mid-year check-in meeting Bank’s Anti-Corruption Guidelines, the Procurement and in March 2019. The MIS is helping to strengthen SAWI’s Consultant Guidelines, and the Standard Conditions for management by tracking results and financial information Trust Fund Grants, which delineate standard operating by outcome area, Focus Area and geography. It also hosts procedures for any fraud issues. The Anti-Corruption a streamlined repository for all knowledge products for Guidelines provide for certain actions to be taken by grant lesson sharing, communication and dissemination; and recipients to prevent and combat fraud and corruption, tracks SAWI events and more granular detail on event and the Standard Conditions provide for suspension and/ participation. Once credentialed, donors can access this or cancellation of disbursements, as well as the refund portal at: sawi.mis.org (more details are in Annex 2). of disbursed grant proceeds in the event that fraud and corruption does occur. Standard audit procedures and SAWI resources have almost been fully allocated. A value for money protocols are followed. More details on summary is in Table 1 below, and more details are provided financial management and value for money are available in Annex 4. in Annex 4. The World Bank follows technical, legal and fiduciary This year, SAWI had a mid-year check-in and informal procedures to establish activities and commits funds discussions with donors on a regular basis. Donors were through its standard processes. All trust fund beneficiaries also invited to participate in SAWI events—i.e., the regional and bidders are required to observe the highest standard workshop on managing water extremes. of ethics in World Bank-financed grants and contracts. Current Funding Status US$M Donors pledge funding for SAWI $30.8 Funds are deposited on an agreed schedule $30.8 SAWI allocates funding to specific activities: $29.7 internal review committee endorses allocations Funds are disbursed to activities according $27.4 to grant agreements and financing plans $25 $26 $27 $28 $29 $30 $31 $27.4M Allocation Disbursed Allocation Committed Allocation Available $0.55M $1.75M Overall Balance Funds Deposited -( Allocation Disbursed + Allocation Committed + Allocation Available )= $1.1M Allocation SECTION 3: LESSONS, RISKS, FORWARD LOOK 44 3.1 Lessons farm power subsidies and stagnant farm income. The attractiveness and obstacles for each option and the different institutional models for implementing the proposed models were discussed. The participants in What Has Worked Well the workshop engaged in intensive discussions with • The strategy of a longer-term planning horizon that the presenters and among themselves to understand links relatively short-term SAWI activities to larger the policy options better. World Bank programmatic efforts in South Asia is • Working with and through regional and national effective. This is helping to strengthen sustainability, institutions is an effective mechanism to extend facilitate the uptake of SAWI knowledge in other SAWI’s reach, build ownership of the processes and World Bank investments, and ensure a coordinated ensure sustainability. There are several examples of approach to the World Bank’s regional strategy in where SAWI is successfully drawing on partnerships South Asia. Despite strong ownership, the protracted that it has built up over the years. For instance, the procurement processes and lack of capacity of BISRCI in Sundarbans draws extensively on SAWI- government agencies constrains their ability to adopt knowledge products and has become an effective highly technical approaches—such as the use of platform for stakeholders from Bangladesh and India modernized hydro-met infrastructure. SAWI’s grants to engage informally; the partnership with ICIMOD, are useful in helping to build capacity and readiness including through the HUC grant has helped to widen alongside the World Bank’s larger investment the network in South Asia, build capacity and ensure programs. further momentum on the Indus Basin research. • Creating a shared context can be a helpful way in which to engage diverse stakeholders. For instance, having a central theme at the regional What Has Worked Less Well workshop this year enabled participants to have • Inevitably, a portfolio of SAWI’s size and risk is candid discussions on all aspects of water stress in likely to have some successful activities and some a politically neutral way. Stakeholders also welcome that fail to take off. A small proportion of activities exposure to practices and experiences from other have either been slow to take off or have stalled, for countries that are facing similar issues. Having a different reasons, requiring SAWI to take corrective central theme (e.g., Brahmaputra Dialogue, 2018), action. For instance, the late restructure of the HUC and ensuring wide stakeholder representation were grant delayed the transfer of responsibility of the useful ways in which to tackle issues related to Indus research activity to ICIMOD, thus requiring water stress in a holistic manner rather than in a longer involvement of the World Bank task team. purely technical fashion. Similarly, the Indus Basin The river basin study under the Nepal hydropower Dialogue has focused on climate change as a way of RE activity had stalled in previous years and $2M of engaging diverse stakeholders. At the national level, SAWI’s grant resources were redistributed. However, bringing cross-departmental stakeholders together the activity has now picked up, leaving a funding gap, and presenting alternative scenarios to this group which the World Bank has sought to draw from other is a powerful engagement strategy, particularly on sources. Lastly, the non-monetary value of water sensitive issues, or where there are diverse interests. activity was initiated last year and undertook useful For instance, the regional groundwater study in literature review but did not progress further due to Rajasthan presented different business models its limited potential for uptake with the current World for grid-connected solar irrigation, technical and Bank investment portfolio. financial analysis, institutional models, and related • Gender mainstreaming remains a challenge as policy scenarios to achieve a virtual nexus among shifts in mindsets takes time. SAWI mainstreams energy, groundwater, and agriculture sectors. The gender issues—for instance, by having dedicated workshop, chaired by the Additional Chief Secretary sessions on gender issues in deliberations, through (Agriculture), started with a discussion of the nexus consultations with stakeholders, and by promoting approach for understanding the long standing and female participation in capacity building. This complex issues of groundwater depletion, mounting 45 remains work in progress and needs to be sensitive to the socio-cultural context in South Asia. One of 3.2 Risks and Mitigation SAWI’s female TTLs has reported that in Pakistan, SAWI’s overall risk rating remains Medium. The SAWI while women are active in water management in Program Strategy (2013) identified five key implementation civil society, few are involved in water management risks and mitigation measures, on which an update is within governments (provincial or national). SAWI provided below: is actively trying to encourage female participation in workshops—particularly from civil society and Financial Risks – Low: Two financial risks were identified: academia, and the task team’s view is that it is not (i) reduction in program funding; and (ii) unutilized funds. otherwise possible to force the issue under the SAWI funds are nearly fully allocated and the risk of activity. In reality, the most obvious way in which underspend remains low. women engage with water is in the rural context in the region, and the kind of engagement required to Operational Risks – Medium (changed from Low/ consult with these communities on groundwater Medium last year): Two key operational risks were management would be considerable, involving identified: (i) loss of key program staff; and (ii) poorly surveys, outreach and education (using interpreters designed or executed activities. The SAWI team has who may themselves need educating on important mechanisms, including an MIS, to track activity progress groundwater management concepts) and repeated and financial performance, with management review and visits. This would require a different scale of effort to attention to the quality of spend. This year, there has been what SAWI could reasonably offer. no instances of loss of key staff or of poor performance • The upstream nature of SAWI’s analytical and by contractors. However, as this phase of SAWI reaches advisory work makes it somewhat challenging the final stages of implementation, there are several to demonstrate downstream or direct impact . constraints related to access to quality data (covered in The very nature of SAWI’s work is oriented towards the lessons learned section) and some factors (such as providing technical and politically neutral evidence to regional security, geopolitical developments or bilateral / support partners, systems and processes on a range regional tensions, and shifts in national priorities) that are of complex regional transboundary water governance beyond the control and can affect the pace of progress or issues. However, SAWI’s strategic approach of uptake of SAWI’s work. The risk rating has therefore been building linkages with other longer-term World Bank revised this year from Low/Medium to Medium. investments provides an avenue for the uptake of these approaches. Relationship Risks – Low (changed from Medium last year): Three key relationship risks were identified: (i) • Political developments can affect the pace and reluctance of stakeholders to engage; (ii) disengagement direction of program delivery and remain largely out of donor partners; and (iii) poor integration with World Bank of the program’s control. National elections this year operations. Neither of these risks have manifested this and other regional and geopolitical developments has year, and the risk category has been reduced from Medium limited participation of some countries (e.g., Bhutan) (last year) to Low (this year). SAWI has seen growing or affected the pace of delivery of some activities. ownership and engagement of regional stakeholders, Also, in many cases this results in changes in key including requests from government (such as from India on decision makers, which can require considerable the North-East water resource management), and having efforts to re-engage new counterparts or result in been operational for a decade, its brand is well recognized some adjustment or loss of momentum. While longer by regional stakeholders. SAWI also participated in DFAT’s programs can absorb this delay, the effect is more SDIP review on gender this year, which provided a useful pronounced for shorter-term activities. opportunity for reflection. A majority of SAWI’s activities are linked to the World Bank’s wider efforts in South Asia, providing opportunity for cross-learning and for a comprehensive approach to regional cooperation and integration. 46 Reputational Risks – Low: Risks at the start-up of SAWI-II included: (i) perceived poor quality; and (ii) dialogue 3.3 Portfolio Forward Look processes that enter spheres inappropriate for World Bank The current phase of the SAWI program is focused on engagement. SAWI’s technical products are generally delivery, lesson learning and considering future options. thought of as high quality—for instance, the BISRCI has Therefore, the main focus of its work program over the drawn on SAWI technical work for its discussions with next FY will be to: the bilateral JWG on the Sundarbans; and other national (i) complete work packages to the highest standards, agencies also value SAWI’s analytical rigor and knowledge. work with stakeholders to embed the knowledge Consultative workshops, such as those on Pakistan’s and institutionalize best practice approaches within groundwater study, have been a useful means to discuss current systems, and build capacity through learning issues with wider stakeholder groups, rather than present by doing and through other focused training; final products as a fait accompli; and, the Glaciers of the Himalayas study drew on an external scientific advisory (ii) actively disseminate knowledge products more panel to ensure research quality. widely through various forums targeted at key stakeholders (the SAWI team has a Communications Dialogue processes on international river basins are Specialist to support this); closely linked to the geo-politics of the region, and political (iii) promote linkages with the World Bank’s other Trust development in any of the riparian countries could facilitate Funds (e.g. PARCC, PACT, SARTFP) and regional or hinder opportunities for dialogue. The Brahmaputra investments in South Asia to ensure coherence, Dialogue manages this risk by focusing discussions on sustainability, and value for money; thematic areas that are of common interest to all riparians (iv) support mechanisms at the basin and regional and relatively 'a-political', including disaster management, levels to sustain multi-stakeholder forums—SAWI is inland water transport, and the water-energy nexus. The already off to a promising start as it transitions this manner in which workshops / discussions are conducted facilitative role in the Indus Basin (through ICIMOD), has also varied to respond to potential sensitivities. For the Brahmaputra Basin (through a consortium of example, country level workshops have been held so that institutions from each of the four riparian countries), participants can speak candidly about transboundary and the Sundarbans (through BISRCI); and issues that are only referenced in larger regional fora due (v) develop understanding and knowledge on new to the sensitivities. Regional events are crafted carefully to priority areas for transboundary water governance focus on themes of common interest (e.g., climate-water- in the region—notably plastic pollution, groundwater energy nexus in China) that are related to transboundary management, and hydro-met. water issues, but do not address the matter head on. Finally, at the request of stakeholders from the riparian countries, the name of the Brahmaputra Dialogue was SAWI remains an important part of the World Bank’s wider changed to the more appropriate and inclusive Yarlung- Regional Integration Approach for South Asia. Looking Tsangpo-Brahmaputra-Jamuna Dialogue.11 ahead, the World Bank will explore future programming options and partnership opportunities to ensure that External Risks - Medium-High: Security risks, geo-politics momentum is not lost and to be able to respond to the and other regional dynamics are key external factors that new realities in Central and South Asia. could affect SAWI’s progress and intended outcomes. SAWI continues to rely on the World Bank’s wider network and security protocol to be responsive to any threats. For instance, the regional dialogue workshop, originally scheduled to be held in Colombo in December 2018, was moved to another location (Bangkok) within three weeks of the event date due to political issues in the country at that time. The World Bank was able to draw on its country offices in South Asia and in Bangkok to make this happen. 11 Referred to as Brahmaputra Dialogue in this report for consistency with the Focal Area Strategy. 47 TABLE 1: KEY RESULTS HIGHLIGHTS (FY19) 1. Among many other workshops and consultations, two dialogue events were held this year, enabling 165 regional stakeholders to build trust and to work toward mutually beneficial solutions. • A regional workshop on Managing Water Extremes in South Asia brought together 100 participants from the seven SAWI countries with strong consensus emerging on the need for robust communication and collective action across all levels in managing and responding to the risks posed by water extremes; • The Brahmaputra Dialogue organized three events: a) a national level workshop in Dhaka to identify collaboration on water resources, inland water transport, and disaster risk reduction (15 people); b) a first of its kind meeting with Civil Society Organisations to discuss convergence of their activities on the Brahmaputra (20 people); and, c) a Climate-Water-Energy DIALOGUE AND DIPLOMACY Nexus and South-South Cooperation workshop in China, a first of its kind multilateral international event under the dialogue, which saw representation from three countries in the sub-region coming together to identify future needs for water and energy security (30 people). This event marks the Brahmaputra Dialogue’s full engagement in all four countries and showcased China’s increasing interest in regional cooperation in the basin; • Following on from the Indus Basin Knowledge Forum in FY18, and as part of sustainability planning, SAWI is providing ICIMOD with a Recipient Executed grant to carry forward the four riparian dialogue process and to institutionalize the joint research program on climate change, take on its secretariat functions, including fundraising and mobilizing resources, coordinating activities, and provide research quality control; • Bangladesh-India Sundarbans Regional Cooperation Initiative (BISRCI) continue to inform discussions with key stakeholders, drawing on SAWI technical products. A key policy outcome (informed by BISRCI contributions) was the agreement of a Memorandum of Understanding (March 2019) between Bangladesh and India on passenger and cruise vessls on coastal and protocol routes and the launch of these services between Dhaka and Kolkata; • A regional workshop on the Glaciers of the Himalayas activity saw participants launching a Hindu Kush Himalaya Glaciers and Mountain Economy Platform to champion and energise regional cooperation on the issue of melting of glaciers. The Platform was formally announced at COP24 in Katowice, Poland in December 2018, and the Government of Nepal is taking a leading role in advancing its mandate. 2. New knowledge products (39 in FY19), coupled with targeted capacity building (155 people and 30 water management organizations), continue to deepen understanding of transboundary issues by key stakeholders and provide options and tools for addressing these - thus contributing positively to the wider operating environment. • The completion of the scenario-based river basin modelling suite and participatory planning for the Ganges Basin in India (a first of its kind), and its transferral to the Central Water Commission, is an important step towards strengthening river basin planning and water resources assessment in India. • Regional and country studies on climate change, groundwater-surface water, and hydro-met services are addressing knowledge gaps on priority themes for South Asia and enabling stakeholders to take a more holistic and informed approach to KNOWLEDGE AND CAPACITY management of water resources. • The Sundarbans Landscape Hydro-met study provided a data-based comprehensive picture of the entire Landscape (Bangladesh and India) that connects poverty and ecosystems. It supported a highly consultative process towards preparing a plan to install a uniform hydro-met information system in the Landscape, and its outputs have been discussed as part of the India-Bangladesh Joint Working Group on the Sundarbans. • This phase of the Brahmaputra Basin Modelling and Analysis activity came to a highly satisfactory close having created a knowledge base and analytical tools that are supporting information-based dialogue among riparian states. • The Bhutan Hydromet Services and Disaster Resilience activity (complete) supported the installation of automatic weather and wind observation systems in the aviation sector (critical due to Bhutan’s treacherous mountainous terrain) and the operationalization of a SMART-Met system that is enabling national hydromet agencies to access weather-related data for more effective forecasting. • Capacity building activities are facilitating South-South partnerships, for instance between universities in Nepal and China. This year alone, targeted capacity building activities benefitted professional stakeholders from the Ganges Basin (93 people); and across the region (62 people). Some 30 water management organizations benefitted from technical capacity strengthening in areas relevant to basin-scale planning and regional cooperation. 48 3. SAWI is expanding partnerships, and engaging with emerging opportunities and with national priorities beyond its immediate activities. • SAWI’s partnership with ICIMOD has been strengthened this year, including through the restructuring of the Himalayan University Consortium Grant, which will enable ICIMOD to play a stronger regional facilitative role and step up its coordination efforts on the Indus Basin Knowledge Forum. • Following the completion of the Rapid Assessment Report and its use in the Government of India’s High-Level Committee report for proper planning and management of water resources in the North-Eastern Region of India, the World Bank has received a request for further Technical Assistance ($70M), which is currently under discussion. EXTENDED REACH • The Government of India’s newly initiated Northeast Water Resource Management technical work and consultation exercise is enabling SAWI to support a high priority area that not only is of national significance in India but is also contributing to the wider Brahmaputra Basin approach. SAWI has the opportunity to reach a diverse set of stakeholders (not yet represented in the basin-wide activities), and to build comprehensive understanding across sectors / geographies / themes during the process of developing a forward strategy and plan. • In India, SAWI continues to directly inform the development and implementation of national investments (valued at $3B), and successfully engage 11 Indian States in the Ganges Basin, where there are competing demands for water resources. • So far, SAWI has a network of 35 development partners and 47 plus government and country-specific partners which is a critical element of its strategy to build regional ownership, capacity and sustainability. SAWI continues to strengthen collaboration with the work of other donors – particularly in the Indus and Brahmaputra Basins. SAWI’s work on hydro-met services, whilst a critical input into water resource management, is also directly contributing to the World Bank’s wider investments and regional platforms on Hydromet systems and will inform the recently initiated DFID- supported PARCC Trust Fund. 4. Over the years, SAWI technical products are informing 27 World Bank investments / operations across the region (valued at $5.7B). • Afghanistan —SAWI supported restructuring (additional World Bank financing of $70M) of the World Bank’s Afghanistan Irrigation Restoration and Development Project, with an increased focus on transboundary river basin management. • Bhutan —SAWI contributed to the preparation and implementation of the Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience Project ($4M), partially funded with GFDRR. • Bangladesh —SAWI supported preparation and implementation of the Bangladesh Weather and Climate Services Project ($113M); Bangladesh Sustainable Coastal and Marine Fisheries Project ($240M); Bangladesh Coastal Embankment Improvement Project ($375M); Sustainable Forests and Livelihood Project ($175M), and Climate-Smart Agriculture and Water Management Project ($120M). LEVERAGE • India—technical work on the Brahmaputra supported the preparation of the Assam Integrated River Basin Management Project ($200M). SAWI activities informed and supported implementation of the National Hydrology Project ($175M); Atal Bhujal Yojana - National Groundwater Management Improvement Project ($500M); Uttar Pradesh Water Sector Restructuring Project– Phase 2, ($360M); West Bengal Major Irrigation and Flood Management Project ($145M); Bihar Kosi Basin Development Project ($250M); Punjab Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Project ($248M); and Neeranchal National Watershed Project ($178M). Basin-level technical advice supported the National Ganga River Basin Project ($1B). • Nepal—SAWI commenced analysis to inform the World Bank’s Power Sector Reform and Sustainable Hydropower Development Project ($20M) and informed the Kali Gandaki A Hydropower Plant Rehabilitation ($27M). • Pakistan —SAWI supported additional World Bank financing of $35M for the Water Sector Capacity Building and Advisory Services Project, aimed at bringing an increased focus on river basin management for transboundary rivers. New in FY19: • Pakistan —The initial analysis findings under the Indus Basin (Pakistan) Groundwater Analysis are informing implementation of the Sindh Water Sector Improvement Project Phase I ($150M). 49 • Bhutan —The due diligence report for the Dorjilung hydropower project to ensure quality and reduce associated project risks is informing the South Asia Power Electricity Market Project (of which Dorjilung is a part) ($3.7M). • Region—The Glaciers of the Himalayas activity studies will inform the Technical Assistance that will be provided under the South Asia Region Climate Adaptation and Resilience Program (US$36M). • Bangladesh and India—The recommendations coming out of the large body of technical and socioeconomic knowledge on potential cooperation on the Sundarbans are informing the First Regional Waterway Transport Project for Bangladesh ($360M) and the National Hydrology Project in India • Nepal—Preparation of a plan to implement a white paper developed by WECS is informing the preparation of the Nepal Energy Sector Development Policy Credit project series (US$172M). • Bangladesh and India—The studies completed under the Targeted Environmental Studies activity could potentially inform the Bangladesh Coastal Embankment Improvement Project, the Integrated Coastal Zone Management-India Project ($220M), the National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project ($310M) and the Multipurpose Disaster Shelter Project ($375M). ANNEX 1: ACTIVITY PERFORMANCE 51 FY19 Results Dashboard Results Indicators12 IRB GRB BRB SUN REG TOTAL 1. Trust and confidence in regional or basin water management increased by dialogue processes 1.1 Number of regional and basin/landscape dialogue 1/1 0/0 1/1 1/1 1/1 4/4 processes facilitated or supported by SAWI 2. Stakeholder input to government decision making strengthened by participatory processes that facilitate transboundary knowledge generation and sharing 2.1 Number of regional, basin/landscape or sub-basin level participatory processes that support transboundary 1/1 1/1 0/0 1/1 2/1 5/4 knowledge generation and sharing and stakeholder input to government decision making 3. Capacity of water resources organizations strengthened in areas relevant to transboundary cooperation 3.1 Number of professionals trained in the aspects of water management, water policy or water diplomacy relevant to basin- 0/0 93/10 0/10 0/0 62/50 155/703 scale planning and management or regional cooperation1 3.2 Number of key water management organizations with policy or technical capacity significantly strengthened by SAWI 0/0 20/1 3/1 0/0 7/3 30/53 activities in areas relevant to basin-scale planning or regional cooperation2 4. Regional, basin or sub-basin-level knowledge increased and accessible to stakeholders including decision makers 4.1 Number of regional, basin/landscape or sub-basin- level knowledge products produced and shared with key 2/1 9/5 6/1 17/5 5/3 39/15 stakeholders, including decision makers 5. Regional, basin or sub-basin-level interventions designed to improve livelihoods and ecosystem sustainability 5.1 Number of regional, basin or sub-basin-level feasibility 1/0 3/1 3/1 4/1 2/1 13/4 studies or intervention designs informed by SAWI activities Acronyms: Indus River Basin Focus Area (IRB); Ganges River Basin Focus Area (GRB); Brahmaputra River Basin Focus Area (BRB); Sundarbans Landscape Focus Area (SUN); Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Area (REG) 1 3.1 tracks those who participated in training that was conducted over a sustained period of more than one day. 2 3.2 tracks “capacity strengthened” rather than the subjective “capacity significantly strengthened”. Water-related organizations that participated in training conducted over a sustained period (more than one day) are counted. 3 Performance targets were set in advance of detailed activity design. Actual target achievement depends on the level of client engagement. 12 How to read the Results Numbers: the numerator denotes annual Results actually achieved against the denominator of Targets in the Results Framework 52 Program Development Outcome Indicators Progress Update Objective for PDO To increase regional 1. To support five SAWI continued to support formal and semi-formal sustained processes for cooperation in the existing or new making or operationalizing water management decisions, including in the Indus, management of the bilateral or multilateral Brahmaputra and Sundarbans, where there are now well-established and ongoing Himalayan River governance processes platforms for discussion to inform decision-making and to operationalize existing systems to deliver agreements. sustainable, fair and inclusive development 2. To inform US$1B of A number of SAWI activities link closely with World Bank investments and have and climate resilience investments contributed to investment design and supervision support (improving the quality of planning processes underpinning new investments). To date, 27 projects valued at 3. To improve more than US$5.7B in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal and Pakistan the quality of have been/are being informed by SAWI (which is more than 18 times SAWI’s planning processes US$31M portfolio). underpinning new investments The cumulative portfolio of linked investments is: • Pakistan Water Sector Capacity Building and Advisory Services Project – Additional Financing (P155226) US$35M • Afghanistan Irrigation Development and Rehabilitation Project – Additional Financing (P152892) US$70M • Sindh Water Sector Improvement Project Phase I (P084302) US$150M • India National Ganga River Basin Project (P119085) US$1B • India National Hydrology Project (P152698) US $175M • India Uttar Pradesh Water Sector Restructuring Project Phase II (P122770) US$360M • Nepal Power Sector Reform and Sustainable Hydropower Development (P150066) US$20M • Nepal Kali Gandaki A Hydropower Plant Rehabilitation Project (P132289) US$27M • Nepal Energy Sector Development Policy Credit (P154693) (P170248) US$172M • India Bihar Kosi Basin Development Project (P127725) US$250M • India’s West Bengal Major Irrigation and Flood Management Project (P162679) US$145M • Assam Integrated River Basin Management Project (P158260) US$200M • Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience Regional Project (P154477) US$4M • Bangladesh Weather and Climate Services Project (P150220) US$113M • Climate Smart Agriculture and Water Management Project (P161534) US$120M • Bangladesh Sustainable Coastal and Marine Fisheries Project US$240M • Sustainable Forests and Livelihood Project (161996) US$175M • Bangladesh Regional Waterway Transport Phase 1 US$360M • Coastal Embankment Improvement Project (P128276) US$375M • Integrated Coastal Zone Management - India (P097985) US$220M • National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project (P144726) US$310M • Multipurpose Disaster Shelter Project (P146464) US$375M • Punjab Rural Water Supply and Sanitation project (150520) US$248M 53 Program Development Outcome Indicators Progress Update Objective for PDO • India National Groundwater Management Improvement Program (P158119) US$450M • India Neeranchal National Watershed Project (P132739) US$178M • South Asia Region Climate Adaptation and Resilience Program US$36M • South Asia Power Electricity Market (P167971) US$3.7M FY19 Intermediate Results Result Indicators Progress Update Milestone 1. Trust and 1.1 Number of 4/4 *Met Expectations* confidence in regional and SAWI’s value add includes convening diverse stakeholders, providing a regional or basin basin/landscape neutral platform, bringing issues of gender and climate change onto the water management dialogues facilitated agenda, and using technical discourse to facilitate dialogue and discussion increased by or supported by on a range of sensitive issues. dialogue processes SAWI IRB (1) (1) Indus Basin Knowledge Forum (IBKF) and Joint Research Program on Climate Change. A secretariat was installed to advance the research program and began planning IBKF4 (taking place in August 2019). GRB (0) In line with target. BRB (1) (1) Brahmaputra Dialogue, including the first multilateral international workshop held within China under the dialogue process. SUN (1) (1) Sundarbans BISRCI, supported by SAWI, continued to work behind the scenes to advance the dialogue process while elections took place in both Bangladesh and India in FY19. REG (1) (1) Regional Workshop on Managing Water Extremes in South Asia brought together 100 participants from the seven SAWI countries. 2. Stakeholder 2.1 Number of 5/4 *Met Expectations* input to government regional, basin/ These participatory processes that bring together diverse stakeholders are decision making landscape or an offshoot of the basin-level dialogues and are helping to raise awareness strengthened by sub-basin level and share knowledge and best practices across multiple sectors, and to participatory participatory advance understanding on sensitive issues outside of formal dialogue (often processes processes through structured consultative processes). that facilitate that support transboundary transboundary IRB (1) knowledge knowledge (1) Consultative process under the Indus Basin (Pakistan) Groundwater generation and generation and Analysis activity to identify data and information sources and understand sharing sharing and principal concerns of groundwater managers working at the provincial and stakeholder input national levels in the basin. to government decision making 54 FY19 Intermediate Results Result Indicators Progress Update Milestone GRB (1) (1) Consultative process under the Sustainable Water Resources Development for HEP in Nepal (RE) activity on strategic environmental and social assessment to support a basin-wide approach for hydropower development planning. BRB (0) In line with target. SUN (1) (1) Focus group discussions under the Targeted Environmental Studies activity with women in the Sundarbans to understand the expected impacts of salinization of water in a changing climate on maternal and child health. REG (2) (1) Inaugurated Hindu Kush Himalaya Glaciers and Mountain Economy Platform, which will focus on championing greater regional cooperation across various levels on the issue of glacier melting. (1) Consultative process to review cross-sectoral convergence and conflicts in the Government of Rajasthan’s policies in energy, groundwater and agriculture and proposals to design an alternative model of subsidy delivery to farmers in the State. 3. Capacity of 3.1 Number of 155/70 *Exceeded Expectations* water resources professionals SAWI has responded to rising demand for capacity building from organization trained in the stakeholders, which has included targeted training, exposure visits and strengthened in aspects of water technical workshops to embed new tools and knowledge for better water areas relevant to management, resources management. transboundary water policy or cooperation water diplomacy IRB (0) relevant to basin- In line with target. scale planning and management GRB (93) or regional (25) A hydropower project and contract management training course for cooperation government agencies in Nepal. (46) A five-day hands-on training on using remote sensing and Google Earth Engine tools to assist with IWRM and basin plan development and operation for officials from governments in India. (10) Nepalese university masters students (the next generation of water professionals) completed fellowships on water resources management at Wuhan University in China. (12) Nepalese university faculty members participated in a faculty exchange with Wuhan University to build better university curricula for preparing the next wave of water professionals in Nepal. BRB (0) Target not met. While professional capacity was indirectly strengthened under the Bhutan and Bangladesh hydro-met services activities, the built technical capacity pertains to management organizations rather than individuals “trained” within these organizations. 55 FY19 Intermediate Results Result Indicators Progress Update Milestone SUN (0) In line with target. REG (62) (25) Seminar on Risk Informed Dam Safety and International Contractual Practices for Government of Bhutan officials. (19) Stakeholder workshop on dam safety for Government of Bhutan officials. (11) Stakeholder workshop on experienced challenges with civil work contracts in large hydropower for Government of Bhutan officials. (7) Task Group workshops to apply the new hydropower guidelines to the Dorjilung project and visits to proposed sites for the Dorjilung powerhouse and dam for Government of Bhutan officials. 3. Capacity of 3.2 Number of 30/5 *Exceeded Expectations* water resources water management SAWI’s strategy is to target its capacity building toward organizations and organizations organizations key professionals who are involved in water management and cooperation, strengthened in with policy or and to focus on technical areas where there is strong need, demand and areas relevant to technical capacity relevance to basin-scale planning. By enabling stakeholders to participate transboundary significantly in a range of training events, SAWI is helping to enhance understanding of cooperation strengthened by good practice from international experience, deepen knowledge on specific SAWI activities issues, introduce new models and tools to improve efficiency, and help to in areas relevant stimulate new ways of beginning to address old, intractable problems. to basin-scale planning or regional IRB (0) cooperation In line with target. GRB (20) Under the WRM in Transboundary Basins activity: (1) Ground Water and Water Audit Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh (1) Central Ground Water Board (1) Water Resources Department, Government of Chhattisgarh (1) Central Water Commission (1) Central Water & Power Research Station (1) Water Resources Department, Government of Gujarat (1) Ground Water Department, Government of Kerala (1) Water Resources Department, Government of Karnataka (1) Irrigation Department, Government of Kerala (1) Groundwater Surveys and Development Agency, Maharashtra (1) Water Resources Department, Government of Maharashtra (1) Irrigation and Flood Control Department, Government of Manipur (1) Water Resources Department, Government of Odisha (1) Department of Irrigation, Government of Punjab (1) Water Resources Department, Government of Tamil Nadu (1) Ground Water Department, Government of Telangana (1) Public Works Department (Water Resources Wing) - Tripura (1) Ground Water Department, Uttar Pradesh Under the Sustainable Water Resources Development for HEP in Nepal activity: (1) Water and Energy Commission Secretariat (1) Nepal Electricity Authority 56 FY19 Intermediate Results Result Indicators Progress Update Milestone BRB (3) Under the Bhutan Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience Regional Project: (1) National Center for Hydrology and Meteorology Under the Strengthening Hydro-met Services and DRM in Bangladesh: (1) Bangladesh Water Development Board (1) Bangladesh Meteorological Department SUN (0) In line with target. REG (7) Under the HEP Environmental and Social Planning activity: (1) Department of Hydropower and Power System (Bhutan) (1) Bhutan Electricity Authority (1) Druk Green Power Corporation (1) Mangdechhu Hydroelectric Power Authority (1) Tangsibji Hydro Energy Limited (1) Punatsangchhu I & II Hydroelectric Power Authority (1) Kholongchhu Hydro Energy Limited 4. Regional, basin 4.1 Number of 39/15 *Exceeded Expectations* or sub-basin- regional, basin/ As part of its strategic outreach and dissemination activities, SAWI has not level knowledge landscape or only generated innovative knowledge products but has also ensured that increased and sub-basin-level these products are disseminated appropriately. Most of the products are accessible to knowledge products developed in close partnership with key stakeholders and thus embedded stakeholders, and shared with within existing systems to strengthen quality of planning and management including decision key stakeholders, and to ensure their uptake. makers including decision makers IRB (2) (1) Proceedings Report: Third Indus Basin Knowledge Forum ‘Managing Systems Under Stress: Science for Solutions in the Indus Basin (1) Indus Basin Groundwater Analysis Stakeholder Consultation Report GRB (9) (1) Ganga River Basin Planning Assessment Report (1) Ganga River Basin Model and WIS Report and Documentation (1) Software and Data Files for the River Basin Model and Information System to Support Strategic Planning of the Ganga Basin (1) Strategic Basin Planning for Ganga River Basin in India: Project Management Report (1) Preparation of River Basin Plans and Hydropower Development Master Plans and Strategic Environmental and Social Assessment (Inception Report) (1) An Introduction to Real-Time Hydrological Information System (1) Screening Different Equipment Makes and Models for Specific Site Conditions 57 FY19 Intermediate Results Result Indicators Progress Update Milestone (1) Web-Based Flood Forecasting and Information Dissemination System for Bagmati-Adhwara and Kosi Basin in Bihar State: Modeling Report for Bagmati-Adhwara (Final Report) (1) Nepalese Student Fellowship Report: “Cooperation for Capacity Building Program on Education of Future Generation of Water Resources Development Professionals” BRB (6) (1) Write Ups for the High-Level Commission on Key Topics of Interest for North East Water Resources (1) North East India Actionable Roadmap: Proper Management of Water Resources (1) Framework for Integrated River Basin Evaluation: SAWI Discussion Note (1) Building Up Bhutan’s Resilience to Disasters and Climate Change (1) Climate-Water-Energy Nexus and South-South Cooperation: Workshop Summary (1) The Intangible Values of Water: Concept Note SUN (17) (1) Aquatic Salinization and Mangrove Species in a Changing Climate: Impact in the India Sundarban (1) The Cyclone’s Shadow: Historical Storm Impacts and Population Displacement in Bangladesh, West Bengal and Odisha (1) Mangrove Spatial Distribution in the Indian Sundarbans: Predicting Salinity-Induced Migration (1) Quantifying the Protective Capacity of Mangroves from Storm Surges in Coastal Bangladesh (1) Accounting for Regional Differences in Mother and Child Health: Bangladesh, West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand (1) Co-Location, Socioeconomic Status and Perceptions of Environmental Change in the Indian Sundarbans (1) Protection from Cyclones: Benefits of Integrating Green and Gray Infrastructure (1) Can Mangroves Mitigate Catastrophic Consequences of Cyclone-Induced Storm Surges? (1) Needs Assessment and Detailed Planning for a Harmonious Hydrometeorology System for the Sundarbans, which consists of three volumes (Vol 1: Existing Hydrometeorological Set Up in Sundarbans covering both India and Bangladesh; Vol 2: Looking at Comparable Deltas: Experiences from the Mekong Delta; and Vol. 3: Specific Requirements: Sea Level Stations, Water Stations and Logistics for the Entire Sundarbans Landscape). (1) Inventory of Freshwater Resources in the Sundarbans Landscape (1) Evolution and Geomorphology of the Sundarbans Landscape (1) Conceptual Proposal for Preparation of an Integrated Asset Management System for the Sundarbans in India; Proposal for Development of Joint Hydrometeorological Services for the Entire Sundarbans Region (1) Water Quality Analysis and Salinity Intrusion Analysis (1) BISRCI digital knowledge and news platform (www.sundarbansonline. org) (1) Institutional Structure for Joint Action in the Sundarbans (1) Benefits of Cooperation: Focus on the Sundarbans (1) Report on Sundarbans Media Platform 58 FY19 Intermediate Results Result Indicators Progress Update Milestone REG (5) (1) Regional Workshop on Managing Water Extremes: Reflections Report (1) Managing Groundwater for Drought Resilience in South Asia (1) Eight case studies demonstrating groundwater management approaches in different types of groundwater settings around the South Asia Region (1) HKH Regional Conference on Cryosphere, Glacier Melting and Mountain Economy Transboundary Solutions for Resilient HKH Mountains: Meeting Proceedings (1) Sources of Black Carbon Deposition to the Himalayan Glaciers in Current and Future Climates 5. Regional, basin 5.1 Number of 13/4 *Met Expectations* or sub-basin-level regional, basin or The focus areas have continued to make good progress in responding to interventions sub-basin-level emerging opportunities. In some cases, SAWI has leveraged funding or designed to feasibility studies or directly shaped larger policies and investments (e.g., Ganges, Brahmaputra), improve livelihoods intervention designs while in other instances SAWI is informing the design and implementation of and ecosystem informed by SAWI larger programs. Regional-level investments are yet to happen, but SAWI’s sustainability activities support to advancing the basin-level dialogues is a critical step toward that objective by continuing to build trust among various stakeholder groups across the riparian countries. SAWI also has traction with national and sub-national governments, particularly through the World Bank’s country investments. IRB (1) (1) The Indus (Pakistan) groundwater analysis is informing the design of the Sindh Water Sector Improvement Project Phase I . GRB (3) (1) Preparation of a plan to implement a white paper developed by WECS is informing the preparation of the Nepal Energy Sector Development Policy Credit project series. (1) Capacity building for WECS is informing the Power Sector Reform and Sustainable Hydropower Development Project. (1) The completed technical assistance to the Government of India and basin State governments in scenario-based river basin modeling and participatory river basin planning for the Ganges Basin, and the water resources management training activity, are informing the National Hydrology Project. *Elements of the basin modeling work are being considered by the National Clean Mission Ganga for uptake under the National Ganga River Basin Project. BRB (3) (1) A rapid assessment of water resources (appended to the HLC Report) and just in time support, including a time-bound and costed roadmap for rolling out the measures identified is informing the Government of India’s initiative on proper water resources management in the North East. A Technical Assistance to support the rollout of the recommendations of the EC and HLC Reports was under discussion. 59 FY19 Intermediate Results Result Indicators Progress Update Milestone (1) Through capacity building activities, SAWI continued to support the financing of the World Bank’s Bhutan Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience Regional Project component 3, which has the objective to strengthen the capacity of the NCHM to improve hydro-met monitoring, forecasting and service delivery to priority sectors in Bhutan. (1) Expert technical assistance was provided to help guide the Bangladesh Weather and Climate Services Regional Project in developing and delivering twice weekly agromet advisories to all 64 districts of Bangladesh (which involves combining weather, water and climate information with agronomical data and local situation reports to customize advisories for each district). SUN (4) (3) The recommendations coming out of the large body of technical and socioeconomic knowledge on potential cooperation on the Sundarbans, are informing the Bangladesh Weather and Climate Services Regional Project, the First Regional Waterway Transport Project for Bangladesh and the National Hydrology Project in India. *The studies completed under the Targeted Environmental Studies activity will be used to inform the Bangladesh Coastal Embankment Improvement Project, the Integrated Coastal Zone Management - India Project, the National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project, and the Multipurpose Disaster Shelter Project. It is too early to communicate how these studies will be directly used in investment design. (1) BISRCI’s influence on policy discussions led to a MoU (March 2019) between Bangladesh and India on passenger and cruise vessels on coastal and protocol routes and the launch of these services between Dhaka and Kolkata. REG (2) (1) Dam Safety Guidelines for Bhutan and standard bidding documents for civil works on new hydropower projects in Bhutan, along with the new hydropower guidelines (prepared at the end of FY18), will directly inform the upcoming update of the Hydropower Policy and Electricity Act in Bhutan and will guide future hydropower project development and operations. (1) The due diligence report for the Dorjilung hydropower project to ensure project quality and reduce associated project risks is informing the South Asia Power Electricity Market Project (of which Dorjilung is a part). *Once the Glaciers of the Himalayas activity studies are completed they will inform the Technical Assistance that will be provided under the South Asia Region Climate Adaptation and Resilience Program. ANNEX 2: ACTIVITY SUMMARIES 61 Pillar 1: Valuing the Environment and Ecosystem Services Pillar 2: Moving from Data to Information Services Pillar 3: Basin-Level Dialogue Pillar 1: Long-Term Ganges Pillar 1: Knowledge and Basin Development and Basin Capacity Building for Basin Investment Planning Focus Area Management and Pillar 2: Investments and Investment Planning Capacity Building for Water Indus Brahmaputra Pillar 2: Reducing Vulnerability and Energy Security Basin Basin to Floods and Erosion Focus Area Focus Area Pillar 3: Basin-Level Pillar 3: Basin-Level Dialogue Dialogue Pillar 1: Enhancing Bilateral Pillar 1: Knowledge Related Cooperation Sundarbans Regional Activities Landscape Cross Cutting Pillar 2: Capacity Building Pillar 2: Technical Cooperation Focus Area Focus Area Activities to Support Joint Management Pillar 3: Regional Flood Program Forecasting Management Pillar 4: Dialogue Process Program Management Strategic Communications Achieving Results PROGRAM MANAGEMENT Program Management SAWI sits within the World Bank’s South Asia Regional Integration and Engagement (SARRE) unit. A Regional Integration Program Committee (RIPC), chaired by the Director, SARRE, meets to endorse new activities for the South Asia regional trust funds, including SAWI. On a day-to- day basis, a small team in SARRE and the Water GP manage the program. The program management activity supports strategic oversight and coordination of the program across all Focus Areas and activities, financial management, and annual progress reporting and donor liaison. Donor liaison includes the annual donor meeting, mid-year check-in meeting, governance processes as laid out in the Administrative Agreements, and interactions with the partner organizations funded by Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) under their South Asia Sustainable Development Investment Portfolio (SDIP) and DFID’s South Asia Water Governance Program, in addition to participation in the annual reviews of those programs. Strategic Communications This activity supports implementation of the program Communications and Engagement Strategy. This includes advocacy, awareness building, dissemination and engagement with key stakeholders (government officials, NGOs, academia, civil society groups and the media). The activity works upstream to strengthen positioning at dialogues, national and international workshops and conferences, and extends support to Focus Area activities toward the delivery of programmatic results. 62 Achieving Results (M&E) This activity supports M&E at the program and Focus Area levels. This includes tracking progress in achieving indicator targets at all links of the results chain—activities, outputs, intermediate results and ultimately outcomes. It includes regular reporting, including annual, “mid-term” and closing. M&E also includes qualitative narratives to report on and demonstrate impact in terms of tangible results aligned with the program objective. In FY19, the full design of a Management Information System (MIS) was completed. The SAWI team began using the MIS to provide better visualization and analysis of program and activity performance; track more granular detail for the SAWI results framework; provide a streamlined repository of all knowledge products for lesson sharing, communication and dissemination; and track latest program updates and upcoming events. An April 2019 Brown Bag Lunch (BBL) showcased the new MIS, including its functionality and user experience to SAWI task teams and World Bank staff managing other World Bank-managed trust funds. Additional BBLs will be conducted in FY20 to train SAWI management teams, Focus Area Leads, TTLs and donors in MIS operation. INDUS BASIN FOCUS AREA Objective To improve water resources management and coordination among the Indus Basin riparian countries—Afghanistan, China, India and Pakistan—to enhance water and energy security in the basin. Focus Area Theory of Change Given complex water challenges, high glacier dependency and growing per capita water scarcity, the Indus is the most vulnerable river basin in Asia. The uneasy relationships among riparian countries, different levels of capacity and the presence of a fragile, post-conflict country in the basin pose additional challenges to regional cooperation on water resources management. Given the World Bank’s role in the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty and the importance of neutral engagement, maintaining transparency in World Bank engagement in the Indus Basin is critical. In response to communications from key riparian stakeholders, investment in this Focus Area is relatively low and focuses on issues not under the purview of the Indus Waters Treaty. Activities focus on tractable efforts where client demand is clear, including: (1) identification of the need for and provision of technical assistance at the national level to enhance transboundary (including inter-provincial boundaries) water resources management capacity; and (2) continued support to the basin dialogue (commenced in 2013) focusing on development of joint research activities on climate change impact in the Indus Basin. Pillar 1 – Long-Term Basin Development and Investment Planning Indus Basin (Pakistan) Groundwater Analysis Scope: While the Indus region has a long history of major investment in surface water infrastructure, by contrast, the management of groundwater infrastructure has remained in private hands, contributing to uncontrolled expansion of access to groundwater. Poorly managed conjunctive use of the interconnected surface and groundwater systems has led to a corresponding deterioration of the groundwater resource. Institutional capacity for governance of these resources is weak and essential groundwater data that would facilitate improved governance are fragmented and not easily discoverable for a significant proportion of the Indus Basin. This activity aims to extract and synthesize knowledge of groundwater and its governance in the Indus Basin (Pakistan) and conduct an analysis of trends in available data. The work will contribute to an ongoing consolidation of the groundwater knowledge base in South Asia, and highlight opportunities for regional cross-learning on common groundwater management issues. It will complement the groundwater work already completed by the World Bank in the Indian Punjab portion of the Indus Basin. The work will also benefit from the current SAWI advisory work on managing groundwater for drought resilience in South Asia (under the Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Area). Timeframe: March 2018 - February 2020. Geography : Indus Basin; Pakistan. Grant Amount: $0.30M FY19 Progress: Ecoseal Development Pty Ltd was contracted to extract and synthesize knowledge of groundwater and its governance in the Indus Basin and to conduct an analysis of trends in available data. This work steadily progressed. A series of stakeholder consultation meetings were held in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi in September 2018 with 24 relevant federal and provincial institutions and 50 water experts, academicians and farmers to identify data and information sources for groundwater, to acquire unpublished literature and datasets held by government agencies on groundwater, and to understand the principle contemporary concerns of groundwater managers working at the provincial and national levels in the basin. Consulted stakeholders provided their views on strength and weaknesses of groundwater management in the country. Overwhelming and across the board opinion indicates that groundwater is an important resource for the water-based economy of Pakistan and has largely been ignored due to a greater focus on surface water resources. The activity began to combine information from these consultations and other sources 63 into an analysis of groundwater in the Pakistan Indus Basin. While the initial analysis findings are informing the Sindh Water Sector Improvement Project Phase I, progress on the overall analysis has been hindered by difficulty in obtaining datasets from agencies responsible for holding them. The report will conclude that discussions on data futures for Pakistan’s groundwater will need to consider a comprehensive groundwater monitoring strategy that includes an investment approach backed up by an asset management plan and a robust approach to data curation. FY20 Plan: The overall groundwater analysis will be finalized and used to inform provincial workshops in Punjab and Sindh and a national workshop toward the end of 2019 with participation from government, civil society, private industry and academia, on identifying and prioritizing strategic groundwater management needs at the national and provincial levels and ways to carry the identified priorities forward. Pillar 2 – Investments and Capacity Building for Water and Energy Security No active grants Pillar 3 – Basin-Level Dialogue Indus Basin Dialogue Scope: This activity aims to support dialogue in the Indus Basin to build confidence and trust in order to establish an enabling environment for basin-wide cooperation. SAWI utilizes the World Bank’s comparative advantage as a global knowledge (and neutral) broker in the basin through the Indus Forum (and Indus Basin Knowledge Forum), established in 2013 as a sub-group of a regional dialogue process facilitated by the World Bank and SAWI from 2007. This Track II dialogue process distinguishes itself from other Indus Track II dialogues, as it takes a basin-scale perspective and brings together participants from all four riparian countries to understand the basin in its totality. It has aimed to play a critical role in galvanizing the study of hydrology, glaciology, and climatic and socioeconomic processes at the basin level to enable informed decision making for sustainable water resources management. A joint research proposal put forward by the Indus Forum aims to address knowledge gaps to inform policymakers on basin-wide water availability scenarios and their impacts on people, along with adaptation strategies. The research program will accomplish this through a collaborative approach aimed at strengthening understanding of the range of climate change scenarios, establishing long-term benchmark glaciers, and developing a framework to examine the potential impacts of climate change scenarios on socioeconomic development. Timeframe: November 2014 – February 2020. Geography : Indus Basin; all riparians. Grant Amount: $0.90M FY19 Progress: The proceedings report of the 3rd Indus Basin Knowledge Forum (IBKF) (May/June 2018) was prepared. In an effort to institutionalize the IBKF, responsibility for facilitating and sustaining the dialogue process moving forward was transferred to ICIMOD, which was selected because of its regional mandate and for its experience working on Indus Basin water resources management through a bottom-up approach. The principal work under this activity in FY19 was to shepherd through the recipient-executed grant (as part of the Himalayan University Consortium grant restructuring) to enable ICIMOD to assume IBKF facilitation responsibilities and to act as the secretariat to advance the joint research proposal on climate change in the Indus Basin. With activity team support, planning for the 4th IBKF began in May 2019. FY20 Plan: The 4th IBKF, “Pathways to Impactful Research,” will be hosted by ICIMOD, and co-organized by IIASA, in Kathmandu in August 2019. It aims to explore priority areas to continue collaboration in the Indus Basin; strengthen networking among riparian countries, through existing networks and new mechanisms; explore the setting up of a journalist network that works between the linkages of science and policy to communicate and promote research that is being conducted in the riparian countries; and to draw on expertise from policy experts in each riparian country to recognize policy needs at the country and basin level. Due to the short window ICIMOD will have to implement IBKF4, SAWI will provide team support to ensure smooth IBKF4 delivery. ICIMOD, as secretariat of the joint climate change research program, will proactively fundraise to acquire the necessary capital to begin research program implementation. Once the research program is underway, ICIMOD will coordinate program activities, provide administrative support and ensure quality control of research. GANGES BASIN FOCUS AREA Objective To improve management and development of water resources in the Ganges Basin to support economic growth and improve resilience to climate variability and change. 64 Focus Area Theory of Change Countries in South Asia are unlikely to cooperate for effective basin management if water resources are not well-managed nationally. Therefore, the strategy for the Ganges Basin Focus Area is to support improved water resources management nationally and to facilitate connections between countries through technical dialogue and capacity building. In addition to improving water management nationally for economic stimulation and poverty reduction, these connected efforts build confidence in transboundary engagement and increase trust around knowledge and information exchange. In India, working to improve data sharing between the Centre and the States is a necessary precursor to broader public and international transparency. SAWI is supporting river basin planning in Nepal via accelerating development of hydropower (with associated work on watershed management for sediment control), and in India via the drive for river cleanup as well as environmental flows for healthy rivers, cross-sectoral water allocation and inland navigation. Work under the Focus Area supports the design and implementation of the World Bank-financed National Hydrology Project (NHP) in India that includes river basin planning on a platform of more open data access and sharing, in addition to informing other lending operations. Operationalizing flood forecasting in the Ganges Basin at the sub-basin-level focuses on activities in the Baghmati sub-basin to build technical competence and improve forecasting skill, as well as to strengthen cross-border cooperation in flood management between Bihar and Nepal. This work will guide larger-scale and longer-term efforts in flood forecasting planned under the NHP. Pillar 1 – Valuing the Environment and Ecosystem Services Strategic Basin Planning for the Ganges in India Scope: This activity is providing technical assistance to the Government of India and basin State governments in scenario-based river basin modeling and participatory river basin planning for the Ganges Basin in India. The activity aims to develop a comprehensive basin model for the Ganges in India that enables objective assessment of the likely effectiveness of different options for improving river health and the impacts these options have on the ability to meet consumptive water demands and support inland waterway navigation. The activity is being implemented via a major contract with Deltares for work on basin-scale modeling, surface water-groundwater interactions, environmental flows, stakeholder consultation and basin information systems. The work is proceeding in close cooperation with the Indian Ministry for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation (MoWR, RD & GR) (now Ministry of Jal Shakti) and relevant State government agencies. The activity is highly relevant to the NHP and is seen by the Government of India as a pilot for the multiple river basin modeling and planning activities to be progressed under this project. Timeframe: December 2014 – December 2018. Geography : Ganges Basin; India. Grant Amount: $4.03M FY19 Progress: SAWI completed its technical assistance to the Government of India and basin State governments in scenario-based river basin modeling and participatory river basin planning for the Ganges Basin in India. The work has delivered on strengthening the capability of relevant Central and State government agencies to undertake comprehensive evidence-based strategic basin planning for the Ganges River; building a stronger, more accessible information and knowledge base to guide ongoing dialogue and management of the basin; and establishing a multi- stakeholder engagement process to support strategic basin planning, which included 33 State workshops, four basin-wide workshops, three meetings with the Minister, MoWR, RD & GR, and multiple expert meetings with staff from the Central Water Commission (CWC), the Central Ground Water Board, and the National Mission for Clean Ganga, among others. Over the course of its implementation, the activity developed a detailed and robust water resources planning model for the entire Ganges Basin in India, and trained Central and State government engineers and planners in its use; undertook a multi-scale environmental flow assessment across the basin—an in-depth analysis of instream hydrological, ecological and socio- economic indicators—informing the scenario modeling; developed, documented and disseminated a set of plausible scenarios and strategies that balance significantly improving the health of the river while maintaining an acceptable level of economic productivity; and championed open exchange of data and information among all participants, and actively shared data and information in all workshops and trainings. The modeling suite and associated Water Information Dashboard (to display and interrogate modeling data) was transferred to the CWC. The CWC now holds responsibility for maintaining the central server, registering users and providing credentials to ensure the functionality of the central repository. In the reporting period, all deliverables were finalized, including Ganga River Basin Model and WIS Report and Documentation, Ganga River Basin Planning Assessment Report, software and data files for the river basin model and information system to support strategic planning of the Ganga Basin, and Strategic Basin Planning for Ganga River Basin in India: Project Management Report. Activity information, links to activity reports, the GIS database, the results dashboard and all analyses are available at www.gangariverbasinplanning.com. 65 FY20 Plan: Completed. The National Mission for Clean Ganga is considering adopting the comprehensive basin modeling suite and associated data dashboard. Opportunities for potential follow-on activities are being explored, including wider dissemination of activity deliverables. Power Sector Reform and Sustainable Hydropower Development Project (RE) Scope: This RE activity aims to strengthen the capacity of the Nepalese power sector to plan and prepare hydropower and transmission line projects according to international standards and best practices that take account of basin-wide water resource management issues, and to improve the readiness of the power and water sector for regulatory and institutional reforms. This activity is linked to the Power Sector Reform and Sustainable Hydropower Development Project. Executing Agency : Water and Energy Commission Secretariat (WECS) in the Ministry of Irrigation, Nepal Timeframe: June 2016 – December 2019. Geography : Ganges Basin; Nepal. Grant Amount: $0.50M FY19 Progress: WECS’ implementation of integrated water resource planning and management to guide sustainable hydropower development using a basin-wide approach continued. Tractebel (Lahmeyer International) and Changjiang Institute of Survey, Planning, Design and Research were contracted in early FY19 to carry out a strategic environmental and social assessment to support a basin-wide approach for hydropower development planning. The objectives of the overall study are to prepare river basin plans through IWRM principles for all rivers of Nepal (except Bagmati); to prepare hydropower master plans for all the major rivers of Nepal; to concurrently undertake Strategic Environmental and Social Assessment (SESA) of the river basin and hydropower development master plans; and to develop capacity within WECS and of other relevant agency representatives to carry out integrated water resources development and management planning at basin level to meet local, state and national level needs utilizing appropriate knowledge and information management systems, analytical and modeling tools and planning methodologies. An inception report—to provide an updated methodology and work plan for carrying out the project tasks—was finalized in January 2019, following review by a number of World Bank water, hydropower, environment and social inclusion experts. A study inception workshop was subsequently conducted by WECS (January 2019). The consultants completed consultations with various government and non-government agency stakeholders (200 people in seven provinces) on the purpose of the study and to identify study sources of data and information. Initial data collection and analysis for the overall study was underway in the second half of FY19. FY20 Plan: With the inception phase of the study completed in FY19, the draft reports on river basin plans, hydropower master plans, a standalone SESA and a strategic management plan will progress. The river basin plan and hydropower master plan for the first basin, Kosi, is expected by October 2019. A SESA training workshop and a river basin planning international study tour for WECS and other government agencies nominated by WECS will be implemented. Sustainable Water Resources Development for HEP in Nepal (BE) Scope: This activity will enable the World Bank to provide implementation support to the above RE activity. This activity aims to enhance the Government of Nepal’s water resources management and development capacity by: (1) increasing awareness of river basin planning as a mechanism to guide environmentally sustainable development hydropower balanced with water resource uses; (2) facilitating institutional and regulatory reform in the water resources sector; and (3) building capacity in environmental and social safeguards. By strengthening capacity in the government and supporting river basin planning and improved water management, the activity will enable the government to engage in a more informed and more confident way with downstream riparian countries in future transboundary discussions and negotiations. Timeframe: September 2014 – February 2020. Geography : Ganges Basin; Nepal. Grant Amount: $0.72M FY19 Progress: The activity continued to support enhancing the capacities of students and faculty of local academic institutions in hydropower and water resources management in order to strategically meet Nepal’s future professional capacity needs to manage a planned hydropower regime ten times what it is today. The ten masters students selected for a fellowship on hydropower and water resources at Wuhan University in China, four of which were women, completed the fellowship program. This ten-week fellowship helped the students to better understand critical water management issues, such as flash floods, debris flows, flow sediment morphology, stability analysis and safety control. To strengthen hydropower and water resources management education in-country, ten faculty exchange visits of at least one week were carried out between Kathmandu University and Wuhan University on joint hydropower research and curriculum development. The activity implemented a project and contract management training in April 2019 for 25 participants from the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA). The training taught participants to apply the theories behind program and project management; to understand World Bank-funded programs from conception to completion; and to become familiar with practical tools and techniques for managing donor-funded projects. Following the training, participants requested follow on in-depth clinics on these subjects. The activity supported a senior official from NEA responsible for two of the major energy projects in Nepal to attend a training program in Taiwan on sustainable environment and energy development and acquire knowledge on international experience in managing risks and safeguarding energy projects. 66 The activity supported just-in-time policy advice to WECS to assist with preparation of the country’s water resources policy and water resources act and Upper Arun Project, bringing in technical experts on specific topics, such as dam safety and procurement. The activity also supported WECS with development of a plan to implement a white paper WECS developed as part of the preparation for the World Bank-supported Nepal Energy Sector Development Policy Credit Project series, which aims to support the government’s efforts to improve the financial viability and governance of the electricity sector in Nepal. FY20 Plan: The student and faculty exchange program will be scaled up, with increased participation from students (30 expected) and faculty in Nepal. The activity will support implementation of the river basin planning international study tour for WECS and other government agencies nominated by WECS, under the RE activity. Based on demand, a consultant will conduct in-depth contract management clinics for NEA and other government agencies. The activity will continue to support the convening of periodic roundtables with government officials to discuss and review pressing matters on hydropower and water resources management and will provide experts to offer technical advice when requested. Pillar 2 – Moving from Data to Information Services Water Resources Management in Transboundary Basins Scope: This activity provides support to the preparation and implementation of the NHP by facilitating access to international best practice to inform project design—especially relating to river basin planning and management in transboundary basins. NHP focuses on the use of water data in planning and management, including via modeling in support of basin planning and basin water resources assessments, flood management and reservoir operations. Timeframe: November 2014 – February 2020. Geography : Ganges and Brahmaputra Basins; all riparians. Grant Amount: $0.70M FY19 Progress: An advanced hydro-met manual, An Introduction to Real-Time Hydrological Information System, which covers different aspects of data collection and transmission pertaining to surface water, groundwater, water quality, sediment transport and rainfall/weather, and includes comprehensive material on site selection and installation supervision and discharge measurement, was prepared. It is intended to serve as an exhaustive reference for all implementing agencies/government agencies under NHP. The manual was published online at nhp.mowr.gov.in, with print copies circulated to all implementing agencies. A two-day ‘modelers meet’ was organized in Delhi in September 2018 to encourage cross learning and sharing of progress on different modeling activities carried out in basins across India. Based on roundtable discussions among the attending 73 people (including 23 women) from various government agencies in the country and leading consultancy companies that appraise modeling activities, a comprehensive framework for building training modules, which is now being used to frame the training calendar under NHP, was drawn up. An online modelers profile tool was also developed as a result of participant feedback, and is available on the NHP website. An advanced workshop on emerging technologies in hydro-met instrumentation was organized in Guwahati in October 2018 for 30 participants (including six women) from various NHP-implementing agencies and 44 representatives from leading hydro-met manufacturers. Industry representatives presented the latest technologies in hydro-met instrumentation for possible adoption under the NHP. As a result of challenges communicated by NHP-implementing agencies at the workshop for selecting appropriate specifications and instruments, a robust e-tool, available on the NHP website, was subsequently developed to walk a user through the nuances of network design pertaining to hydro- met, including selection of appropriate instrumentation and corresponding specifications (screening different equipment makes and models for specific site conditions), cost estimation, and preparing reference bid documents and matching needs with appropriate vendors. To assist with development and operation of IWRM and basin plans, a five-day hands-on training on using remote sensing and Google Earth Engine tools (Water Information and Analytics Generation Using Free Online Tools) was organized at NWA Pune in November 2018. The training was attended by 46 participants (including 13 women) from various government agencies in India, including the Central Water Commission, Central Ground Water Board, and State groundwater departments. Combining classroom and hands-on software sessions, the training covered topics such as introduction to java script, language and introduction to remote sensing, an overview of the Google Earth Engine and its applications; and showcasing results/outputs of analytics as Apps. FY20 Plan: The advanced hydro-met manual will be widely disseminated. The e-tool will undergo further enhancement to add greater functionality. A plan for better hydro-met data sharing in the BBIN region will be explored and potentially developed. Pillar 3 – Basin Dialogue Ganges Basin Dialogue Scope: Building on the national-level technical assistance in river basin modeling and planning in both India and Nepal, this activity supports basin-wide dialogue on hydrologic and water resources modeling. The activity aims to connect technical institutions in the region with scientists and academics around the world that are actively engaged in modeling the Ganges Basin. A key element of the original design of this activity was to bridge river basin modeling work supported under SAWI in India and Nepal. 67 Timeframe: November 2014 – February 2020. Geography : Ganges Basin; all riparians. Grant Amount: $0.25M FY19 Progress: The activity continued to be placed on hold. FY20 Plan: The activity will remain on hold pending opportunities to advance basin dialogue. * The BMIS Flood Forecasting (BE) and Strengthening FMIS Capacity in Bihar (RE) activities completed implementation in FY18. Outstanding commitments were paid out in FY19 amounting to $108,091 and $176,101 respectively (Total: US$284,192). BRAHMAPUTRA BASIN FOCUS AREA Objective To improve the shared understanding and management of the Brahmaputra Basin as a means to strengthen resilience and economic growth for the riparian countries. Focus Area Theory of Change Activities under the Brahmaputra Basin Focus Area focus on addressing water-related challenges (flooding and riverbank erosion) and assessing economic opportunities, including from hydropower and inland navigation. Knowledge exchange activities, study tours and workshops and assessments conducted to support these issues will not only demonstrate economic benefits from cooperative management but will also provide a platform for riparian countries to come together and build the case for regional cooperation. Pillar 1 activities aim to develop a shared knowledge base for the Brahmaputra Basin to support investment planning and decision-making. This includes relevant assessments and modeling, decision support tools to assist policymakers in making informed, analysis-driven decisions, and capacity building activities within relevant agencies to operationalize these tools. The knowledge base will fill critical knowledge gaps and support basin-wide river management, investment planning at a national and/or basin level, adaptive management in deltaic regions, flood and sediment management and exploring cross-sector opportunities such as hydropower and navigation. Pillar 2 activities focus on reducing community vulnerability to water and climate-related risks and building community resilience. An adaptive management framework is used to strengthen riparian countries’ capacity to respond and adapt to changes in the basin. Activities include (1) improvements in investments and instruments, including early warning systems and flood mitigation measures; (2) improving the understanding of river morphology and sedimentation and erosion trends; and (3) capacity building, training and knowledge exchange activities, particularly focused on flood and erosion management. Pillar 3 provides a platform for riparian countries to discuss challenges and identify opportunities for collaboration through study tours, workshops and conferences. The overarching aim is to improve cooperation through increasing opportunities to engage and discuss common challenges. Pillar 1 – Knowledge and Capacity Building for Basin Management and Investment Planning Basin Modeling and Analysis Scope: This activity aims to fill critical knowledge gaps in the Brahmaputra Basin and serve as a launching pad for integrated basin planning. It will undertake a strategic basin assessment (in India) as a basis for basin planning, conduct detailed investment planning in selected sub-basins as pilots for scale-up in the future, and develop a comprehensive basin-wide knowledge base. The activity will include multi-stakeholder consultations and capacity building for State agencies. Timeframe: March 2016 – February 2020. Geography : Brahmaputra Basin; India. Budget Allocation: $1.50M FY19 Progress: SAWI continued to advance India’s initiative on proper water resources management in the North East, which is driven by the Prime Minister’s Office. SAWI’s technical support involved working closely with the High-Level Committee (HLC) (chaired by the Vice Chair of NITI Aayog and consisting of Secretaries of all water-related Ministries and Chief Secretaries from all North East States) and the Expert Committee (EC), and sitting on the technical EC. The HLC and EC are significant in that they are the first multi-agency and multi-state platforms established to address the water resources issues of the North East. The Rapid Assessment on Water Resources in the North East was finalized at the beginning of FY19, and the HLC Chairman subsequently instructed that the HLC Report on proper water management in the North East, under preparation at that time by the HLC, draw heavily from it. In addition to the timely preparation of the Rapid Assessment, the task team provided just-in-time support to the preparation of the HLC Report, including a series of notes on key topics of interest to the EC and HLC, such as the critical role of women in WRM in 68 the NE, flood hazard mitigation, nature-based infrastructure, community-based disaster risk management, and distributed storage for multiple uses. The HLC Report was completed in fall 2018, with the Rapid Assessment appended in full as an annex, and was shared with the Prime Minister’s Office, in addition to Chief Secretaries and other officials in all North East States. The activity task team, in close collaboration with the EC and members of the HLC, prepared a time-bound and costed roadmap for rolling out the measures identified in the HLC and Rapid Assessment EC reports. A new lending Technical Assistance to support the rollout of the recommendations of the EC and HLC Reports is currently being discussed with GoI. FY20 Plan: All activity components have been completed. If the lending Technical Assistance to support the rollout of the report recommendations moves forward, the activity will move nimbly and hold a workshop to launch the Technical Assistance in Delhi in early FY20. Pillar 2 – Reducing Vulnerability to Floods and Erosion Bhutan Hydro-met Services and Disaster Improvement (RE) Scope: This RE activity builds on the Hydro-met Modernization in the Brahmaputra Basin activity to strengthen Bhutan’s capacity for hydro-met services and disaster preparedness through (1) strengthening the capacity of Bhutan’s Department of Hydro-met Services to improve hydro- met monitoring, forecasting and service delivery to priority sectors; (2) strengthening capacity for disaster preparedness and response (working through the Department of Disaster Management); and (3) funding the design of an agro-met decision support system, development and delivery of agro-met information products in two administrative and judicial districts, and training and capacity building (working through the Department of Agriculture). This is a $3.3M activity co-financed by the Global Facility for Disaster Risk Reduction and Recovery. Executing Agency : Royal Government of Bhutan Timeframe: October 2016 – May 2019. Geography : Brahmaputra Basin: Bhutan. Budget Allocation: $0.50M FY19 Progress: SAWI continued to support the financing of the World Bank’s Bhutan Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience Regional Project component 3 (co-financed with the World Bank’s Global Facility for Disaster Risk Reduction and Recovery), which has the objective to strengthen the capacity of the National Center for Hydrology and Meteorology (NCHM) to improve hydro-met monitoring, forecasting and service delivery to priority sectors in Bhutan. The activity strengthened aviation meteorology through the installation of an automatic weather observation system, ceilometers and a wind profiler at the Paro International Airport, and a ceilometer at Bumthang Domestic Airport, all of which were completed in November 2018 and are now operational. This work contributes to enhancing hydro-met services in the aviation sector, leading to flight operation safety. The activity installed and operationalized a Smart-Met system for enhancing weather forecasting; which is now being used by the NCHM for preparing its weather forecasts. Enabling weather forecasters to access all available observed data and forecasting inputs, which include data from hydrometeorological stations in the country, Global Telecommunication Systems, Himawari satellite images and the Numerical Weather Prediction models (Weather Research and Forecasting, Global Forecasting System and Global Environmental Multiscale Model), provides a well- organized systematic product generation, leading to increased reliability forecasts. Prior to the installation of the Smart-Met system, forecasters relied on individual screens of incoming data, a cumbersome task that reduced the level of accuracy when data was layered. The activity supported the Department of Agriculture to develop an agro-met decision support system for preparing farm advisories. The weather forecast from NCHM will be directly linked to this system once operationalized. Farmers will be able to use the system to increase their productivity and enhance crop resilience to weather extremes. FY20 Plan: Completed. Work on the World Bank’s Bhutan Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience Regional Project will continue under two other trust funds, including establishing a National Emergency Operation Center to enhance preparedness capacity. Strengthening Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience in Bangladesh Scope: Given the institutional capacity issues and the highly technical nature of the Bangladesh Weather and Climate Services Regional Project (BWCSRP), the activity focuses on documenting and applying regional and global good practices related to hydrological monitoring and forecasting; building capacity through regional training, twinning and consultative activities; and strengthening the hydro-met knowledge base in Bangladesh to better leverage the use of regional information resources available in the public domain within government agencies. While this effort will transform the scale of information availability in Bangladesh, support to address critical technical and capacity gaps is essential to ensure that the country is poised to utilize and translate modernized infrastructure investments into improved and innovative service delivery. Timeframe: October 2018 – January 2020. Geography : Brahmaputra Basin: Bangladesh. Budget Allocation: $0.25M FY19 Progress: Technical assistance consultancies were completed to support the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) (the hydrological agency) in conducting site surveys related to its observation systems and to strengthen the design of hydro-met modernization as 69 well as on services delivery for both the BWDB and the Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD). Expert technical assistance was provided to help guide the BWCSRP in developing and delivering twice weekly agro-met advisories to all 64 districts of Bangladesh (which involves combining weather, water and climate information with agronomical data and local situation reports to customize advisories for each district). These advisories are critical for strengthening climate resilience in the country, which sits in one of the most disaster-prone areas of the world. The activity task team had ongoing dialogue with NASA SERVIR—which works in partnership with leading organizations worldwide to help developing countries use information provided by earth observation satellites and geospatial technologies for managing climate risks and land use—on exploring cross-border collaboration between Nepal and Bangladesh on the use of the High-Impact Weather Assessment Toolkit (HIWAT) model. While there is strong ownership in the hydro-met services and disaster resilience agenda in Bangladesh, there have been delays related to the implementation of the BWCSRP, which has affected activity implementation. These delays relate to government processes and the lack of capacity in the relevant agencies. A proposed restructuring of the project is being planned to address these issues and there will be some reorientation in the activity’s components as a result. FY20 Plan: The activity will support the restructuring of the BWCSRP through provision of expert consultancies and technical staff time. A cross border sub-regional training on hydro-met is planned with the India NHP, Bhutan and Bangladesh to facilitate intensive knowledge sharing and exploration of a cross-communication initiative on hydro-met services and disaster resilience. The activity will continue to provide just-in-time technical assistance to the BMD and the BWDB to strengthen hydro-met knowledge and build institutional capacity (through regional training, twinning and consultative activities) in flash flood guidance and now-casting, coastal monitoring and storm surge forecasting, groundwater monitoring and management-related services, and beneficiary and client satisfaction monitoring on delivery of hydro-met and early warning services. Non-Monetary Values of Water - Concept Note Preparation Scope: This task will present evidence from selected South Asian countries that are riparian to the Brahmaputra river on the non-monetary values of water and will argue why attention to this aspect matters for policy design and practice in the water sector. To do so, it will draw on diverse sources of information, including historical accounts, religious texts and legal frameworks, for example, to show how water gained cultural, spiritual and legal significance in the region, given its agrarian context. It will also contrast the value water holds in South Asia against other regions, such as Africa and Latin America, where too water is used as a space to assert power and reinforce hierarchy, and is a significant resource around which entire communities are organized. Finally, it will present examples of successful policies, programs and projects worldwide that have focused on the non-monetary importance of water and in the process, changed norms, specifically around women’s association with the resource. Timeframe: May 2018 – December 2018. Geography : Brahmaputra Basin. Budget Allocation: $0.01M FY19 Progress: The activity team undertook an in-depth review of the literature on the methodological approaches available for valuation of natural resources and conducted interviews with experts on the subject matter. This was conducted along four lines of enquiry: (1) what are the different social, ethnic, religious, spiritual and cultural values associated with water? And how do these differ across communities, geographies, religions and identities? (2) Why should water managers account for these non-conventional, intangible values of water? (3) What are the different methodological approaches available for measuring intangible values of natural resources such as water? (4) How can social, spiritual and religious aspects of water be leveraged for modern day water administration and governance? A concept note and technical annex resulted. The review found that the intangible values of water is under-researched and that calculating techniques, such as accounting for cultural flows, are still emerging. The concept note and technical annex could potentially enrich a conversation that started within the World Bank and externally with its clients and development partners on the importance of intangible values of water to design and implementation of effective water-related interventions. FY20 Plan: Completed. Pillar 3 – Basin-Level Dialogue Brahmaputra Basin Dialogue Scope: This activity is increasing regional cooperation by providing a platform to discuss shared water challenges and opportunities. It is enhancing trust and working relationships among basin riparian countries to progress consideration of river basin management of the Brahmaputra Basin, considering country-specific needs and priorities. The activity is supporting national and basin-level meetings as well as capacity building events, dialogue events, workshops, roundtables, and study tours to facilitate the exchange amongst stakeholders of ideas, viewpoints, knowledge and development plans for the Brahmaputra Basin. It is also serving as a platform for engaging stakeholders in the development of knowledge products developed under the Focus Area and for dissemination. 70 Timeframe: January 2015 – February 2020. Geography : Brahmaputra Basin: all riparians. Budget Allocation: $1.1M FY19 Progress: The Brahmaputra Dialogue now involves institutions connected to government in each riparian country. Three events took place in the reporting period: (1) A national-level workshop in Dhaka in August 2018 provided an opportunity for in-depth discussions with various stakeholders in Bangladesh, including officials from inland water transport, water resources, and disaster risk reduction, on the need to better understand the country’s capacity on disaster risk management and to realize the potential of inland water transport through joint efforts. The participants identified a number of action points for advancing cooperation on both of these fronts, including by building the knowledge base, undertaking investments, and holding exposure visits to the other riparian countries to better understand their practices and priorities. These action points were shared with other Bank teams who are engaging on these fronts. (2) Various CSOs are engaging on the Brahmaputra through multiple activities, but they are working largely in isolation of one another. A CSO meeting in Guwahati, India in November 2018 was held to bring the major CSOs together to discuss convergence of activities and identify gaps that need to be filled, potentially through future activities under the Brahmaputra Dialogue. The first of its kind meeting was highly productive in identifying synergies and areas for future collaborative work. (3) The Climate-Water-Energy Nexus and South-South Cooperation Workshop was jointly organized with the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati and Shanghai Institute for International Studies in September 2018 in Shanghai. The workshop was attended by academicians and former government officials in both the water and energy sectors from Bangladesh, China and India (Bhutan was not able to participate because of elections). The workshop served as a platform for experts from these three countries to introduce country background and international experiences, as well as to discuss opportunities and obstacles for regional cooperation and collaboration in the water and energy sectors. Participants identified energy security under a changing climate as a potential entry point for regional cooperation in the Yarlung-Brahmaputra-Jamuna River Basin to realize benefits from and beyond the river. This workshop was the first multilateral international workshop held within China under the Brahmaputra Dialogue. It not only marks the Brahmaputra Dialogue’s full engagement in all four countries, but it also showcases China’s increasing interest in regional cooperation in the basin, which will be critical to move the dialogue process for stakeholder exchange of ideas, viewpoints, knowledge and development plans for the Brahmaputra Basin forward. In addition to these three events, a power mapping study was underway, building on the institutional mapping previously completed. The study is identifying power relationships and the influence of various institutions in devising policies and program related to (transboundary) water resources management in each of the riparian countries. Its results will allow the dialogue to more effectively engage with the riparian countries going forward. Work has also commenced on a book, Perspectives on the Yarlung-Tsangpo-Brahmaputra-Jamuna River Basin, which will be co-produced by institutions in each of the four riparian countries. This book is a first attempt at documenting the Yarlung-Tsangpo-Brahmaputra- Jamuna as one river system and creating a multi-layered understanding of the basin. FY20 Plan: Due to the success of the regional workshop in Shanghai, China is planning to host another, higher-level event, in Shanghai in late 2019 / early 2020. The power mapping study and drafting of the Perspectives book will continue. Targeted work on plastics in the Brahmaputra Basin will be explored and possibly taken up. SUNDARBANS LANDSCAPE FOCUS AREA Objective To operationalize joint management of the Sundarbans for sustainable development that delivers mutual benefits for the two countries. Focus Area Theory of Change Challenges in the Sundarbans, including extreme poverty, frequent natural disasters and erosion of ecosystem services, could be better managed if Bangladesh and India developed and implemented a joint conservation and development policy, and increased collaboration on plans and programs. While non-binding bilateral agreements were signed in late 2011 outlining a framework for collaboration on international waters, information sharing, disaster management and climate change, these are yet to be implemented. The Sundarbans Focus Area directly supports implementation of these agreements and country actions based on a landscape perspective. Focus Area support includes developing a stronger analytical basis to help governments move toward integrated planning and management. Bilateral dialogue, research and information exchange will support the analytical work and will build technical capacity. Technical analyses will be complemented by (1) advocacy work to generate public support for cooperation; (2) establishment of governance arrangements for joint planning; and (3) substantive joint actions (e.g. shared plans and policies) for conservation and sustainable development. Pillar 1 – Enhancing Bilateral Cooperation Sundarbans Dialogue Scope: This activity aims to build trust and working relationships between India and Bangladesh to further sustainable management of the Sundarbans based on country-specific needs and landscape-level priorities. The dialogue process (through identification and implementation 71 of specific cooperative activities) aims to create Sundarbans management ownership among government and non-government agencies and to facilitate the operationalization of the MoU on Sundarbans Cooperation signed between the two countries in 2011. Timeframe: April 2015 – February 2020. Geography : Sundarbans; Bangladesh, India. Budget Allocation: $1M FY19 Progress: As a result of the dynamics of national elections in Bangladesh and India in the reporting period, transboundary issues between the countries have been sidelined while internal issues have taken priority in national discourse. Cooperation over the Sundarbans has thus slowed, but SAWI has been involved in the background, working to continue strengthening the enabling environment for enhanced cooperation. The BISRCI continued to meet regularly and conduct strategic discussions and activities. BISRCI’s influence on policy discussions led to a MoU (March 2019) between the countries on passenger and cruise vessels on coastal and protocol routes and the launch of these services between Dhaka and Kolkata. BISRCI shared its experience at the Pacific Environmental Security Forum in Wellington, New Zealand in May 2019, including the structure of the joint platform and the initiative’s focus on evidence-based advocacy, climate change awareness and promoting mutual economic growth. A website (www.sundarbansonline.org) was launched, which offers a digital knowledge and news platform for continued dialogue among key stakeholders from the two countries on conservation of the Sundarbans Landscape. The knowledge platform (with content in English and Bangla, and soon carrying content in Hindi) is hosted and maintained by the BISRCI. Activity outputs will be added to the website on a rolling basis. A consultant was hired to improve upon a number of draft reports prepared under the activity so that the reports can be disseminated in the public domain, including the final report on the Vision for the Sundarban Region; Sundarban in a Global Perspective: Long-Term Adaptation and Development; The Economic Case for Cooperation on the Sundarban; Responsible Nature-Based Tourism for Sustainable Development of the Entire Sundarban Region; and Promoting Sustainable Transboundary Inland Navigation in the Sundarban Region, among other reports. FY20 Plan: All activity outputs will be finalized. A workshop engaging ministerial-level policymakers from Bangladesh and India is planned, with the purpose to share and disseminate the final outputs and recommendations from the activity. This workshop is expected to take place in October 2019. Pillar 2 – Technical Cooperation to Support Joint Management Landscape Hydro-met Design Scope: This activity supports the design of a hydro-met system for the Sundarbans that would include climate stations, tide gauges, wave rider buoys and water quality monitoring. It will develop a strategy for establishing and operating hydro-met and local weather forecasting systems, and analyze bathymetry, salinity intrusion and conservation need of the freshwater resources. Timeframe: July 2015 – December 2018. Geography : Sundarbans; Bangladesh, India. Budget Allocation: $0.40M FY19 Progress: This activity created a large body of technical and socioeconomic knowledge on potential cooperation on the Sundarbans; strengthened knowledge and capacity of officials in government and non-government organizations in the two countries working on Sundarbans issues; provided technical support to the Bilateral Working Group on Conservation of the Sundarbans; and enhanced understanding among multi-stakeholders, from the local to the national level in the two countries, on the possibilities and benefits of cooperation on the Sundarbans. As part of the research and data analysis process, the task team engaged several key stakeholders in both countries, including those in relevant government agencies, academicians, scientists, economists, community members (with special focus on women), and development partners. In the reporting period, all outputs were finalized, including through small technical meetings and roundtables with experts. The key activity output is a Needs Assessment and Detailed Planning for a Harmonious Hydrometeorology System for the Sundarbans, which consists of three volumes ( Vol 1: Existing Hydrometeorological Set Up in Sundarbans covering both India and Bangladesh; Vol 2: Looking at Comparable Deltas: Experiences from the Mekong Delta; and Vol. 3: Specific Requirements: Sea Level Stations, Water Stations and Logistics for the Entire Sundarbans Landscape. Other documents finalized, which serve as inputs to the above key output, include: Report on Inventory of Freshwater Resources in the Sundarbans Landscape; Evolution and Geomorphology of the Sundarbans Landscape; Conceptual Proposal for Preparation of an Integrated Asset Management System for the Sundarbans in India; Proposal for Development of Joint Hydrometeorological Services for the Entire Sundarbans Region; and Water Quality Analysis and Salinity Intrusion Analysis (prepared to support the technical papers prepared under the Sundarbans Targeted Environmental Studies activity). Dissemination of outputs will take place under largely under the BISRCI platform in FY20. All outputs have been disclosed on www.sundarbansonline.org. The recommendations coming out of the activity are feeding into discussions within the Joint Working Group and are supporting the development of a coordinated, harmonious hydro-met system covering the Sundarbans in both countries. Outputs are also informing the Bangladesh Weather and Climate Services Regional Project, the First Regional Waterway Transport Project for Bangladesh and the National Hydrology Project in India. FY20 Plan: Completed. Outputs will be used to inform workshops and events under the Sundarbans Dialogue. 72 Targeted Environmental Studies Scope: This activity is undertaking hydrological, ecological and econometric studies for vulnerability assessment of the Sundarbans ecosystem in a changing climate. This activity will enhance awareness about climate change risks, promote technical cooperation, build the knowledge base to support joint management, and facilitate planning a holistic approach to the sustainable management of this extremely fragile mangrove forest. Timeframe: April 2015 – December 2019. Geography : Sundarbans: Bangladesh, India. Budget Allocation: $1.05M FY19 Progress: In collaboration with researchers from Bangladesh and India (and with international consultants to bridge research gaps), a number of studies were carried out and finalized in the reporting period, including: Aquatic Salinization and Mangrove Species in a Changing Climate: Impact in the India Sundarban (July 2018); The Cyclone’s Shadow: Historical Storm Impacts and Population Displacement in Bangladesh, West Bengal and Odisha (July 2018); Mangrove Spatial Distribution in the Indian Sundarbans: Predicting Salinity-Induced Migration (published in the Journal of Management and Sustainability; January 2019); Quantifying the Protective Capacity of Mangroves from Storm Surges in Coastal Bangladesh (published in the journal PLOS One; March 2019); Accounting for Regional Differences in Mother and Child Health: Bangladesh, West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand (March 2019); Co-Location, Socioeconomic Status and Perceptions of Environmental Change in the Indian Sundarbans (February 2019); and a Database of Erosion and Accretion of Bangladesh and Indians Sundarbans: 1904-2016 (finalized in early FY19). These studies will inform the Bangladesh Coastal Embankment Improvement Project, the Integrated Coastal Zone Management - India Project, the National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project, and the Multipurpose Disaster Shelter Project. Focus group discussions were conducted (by academicians from Vishva University in West Bengal) with women in the Sundarbans to understand the expected impacts of salinization of water in a changing climate on maternal and child health. To achieve a comprehensive representation of the variation in water salinity levels in the region, fifteen Gram Panchayats were identified in the Hingalganj, Gosaba, Basanti, Kultali, Patharpratima, Namkhana and Sagar Blocks of the Indian Sundarbans. Fifteen focus group discussions were then conducted with the local leaders of women’s self-help groups. Information was collected on livelihood activities of women who spend long hours in saline water catching seafood; their average exposure time to saline water; and any diseases they may possess and suffer from. Local doctors in the Gram Panchayats were later consulted to ratify the incidences of ailments. To complement this data, a household survey, based on a sampling frame of 3,500 identified households, for collection of data on exposure of women and children to saline water, due to livelihood activities, as well as on corresponding household socioeconomic and health conditions, commenced. The task team trained the study team (five Ph.D. research scholars and one post-doctoral fellow) on how to conduct focus group discussions and household surveys, select stratified random samples and on survey data entry. At the end of the reporting period, the study team was collecting water samples from rivers, tubewells and ponds at each survey location and monitoring salinity in water to build a geocoded database of surface and groundwater salinity. FY20 Plan: The activity will complete the water salinity monitoring and household survey in the Indian Sundarbans; build a geocoded database of surface and groundwater salinity in the Indians Sundarbans; conduct an analysis of the impact of salinity on women’s health; and continue research on erosion and accretion of land, climate impacts and population dynamics in coastal Bangladesh and Indian Sundarbans. * The Landscape Scale Joint Environmental Plan activity completed implementation in FY18. Outstanding commitments were paid out in FY19 amounting to $39,681. REGIONAL CROSS-CUTTING FOCUS AREA Objective To build knowledge and capacity across the region in support of transboundary basin dialogue and cooperation. Focus Area Theory of Change The Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Area will improve the regional water resources knowledge base, undertake capacity building for shared water resources management and cooperation, and support broad-based regional dialogue to enhance cooperation and management of transboundary waters in South Asia. Pillar 1 – Knowledge Related Activities Himalayan University Consortium Grant (RE) Scope: This activity will enhance the partnership of research institutions participating in the Himalayan University Consortium (HUC) and strengthen their joint capacity for collaborative research. It will establish the HUC as a vibrant and active South-South forum of knowledge 73 generation and sharing, mountain curricula development, and capacity building among regional members, who will be able to leverage HUC participation and resultant benefits to provide water and mountain-related policy and technical advice to their respective governments. Executing Agency : ICIMOD Timeframe: January 2017 – December 2019. Geography : Regional; Hindu Kush Himalaya. Budget Allocation: $1.22M FY19 Progress: The HUC Grant was restructured to add a component on Indus Basin waters management. This component will support the establishment and operationalization of a secretariat within ICIMOD to carry forward the four riparian dialogue process (Indus Forum; Indus Basin Knowledge Forum) and to institutionalize the joint research program on climate change and take on its secretariat functions, including fundraising and mobilizing resources, coordinating activities, and ensuring quality control of research outcomes. The restructuring became effective in May 2019. FY20 Plan: Two major Indus Basin research partnership meetings will be held to advance the climate change joint research proposal. ICIMOD will execute its secretariat duties and lead the organization of the fourth Indus Basin Knowledge Forum, which will take place in August 2019 in Kathmandu. A Diagnostic Study on Groundwater-Energy-Agriculture Nexus Scope: This activity aims to design an alternative model of subsidy delivery to farmers in Rajasthan. The activity will review surface water, groundwater, energy and agricultural policies, schemes and associated subsidies with stakeholders, focusing on areas of convergence and conflicts between sectoral policies to identify opportunities for tapping into synergies for a virtuous nexus. It will engage closely with the Government of Rajasthan’s departments of energy, groundwater and agriculture programs, projects and schemes in these sectors for planning and detailed design of subsidy delivery mechanisms in the State. It will propose options of subsidy delivery, considering the current public policy choices of the government on concessional electricity tariff for agriculture, normative allocation of electricity instead of ‘duration restricted” power supply, and monetization of energy savings from normative allocation to create incentives for the farmers to save both energy and groundwater. The activity will engage farmers and other stakeholders in a meaningful consultation and participation to review and adapt the subsidy delivery model to the local context and design it for field testing to present “proof of concept” to the decision makers. Timeframe: May 2018 – February 2020. Geography : India. Budget Allocation: $0.15M FY19 Progress: Engaging closely with the groundwater, agriculture and energy departments in Rajasthan, data collection and consultations to review cross-sectoral convergence and conflict among government policies in energy, groundwater and agriculture commenced, with study analysis ongoing at the end of the reporting period. A workshop was organized in March 2019 (34 participants from Jaipur Vidyut Vitaran Nigam Ltd, the Rajasthan Agricultural Competitiveness Project, and the Ground Water Department, Government of Rajasthan), where the task team presented different business models for grid-connected solar irrigation, technical and financial analysis, institutional models and related policy scenarios to achieve a virtual nexus among the three sectors. Chaired by the Additional Chief Secretary (Agriculture), the workshop saw participants engage in discussions on the longstanding and complex issues of groundwater depletion, mounting farm power subsidies and stagnant income, and deliberate on the attractiveness and obstacles for each proposed model and the institutional options for implementing each model. FY20 Plan: The review report, Analysis on Regulation of Groundwater-Energy-Agriculture Nexus for Reduction in Cross-Subsidy in Rajasthan, will be completed. It will include detailed analysis of three proposed business models to implement solarization of agriculture feeders and recommendations for implementing pilots for field testing the models. Once the report is finalized, State-level workshops will be conducted to disseminate the findings to a wider group of stakeholders. If taken forward, initial support will be provided to the Government of Rajasthan to roll out the pilot testing. Glaciers of the Himalayas Scope: The activity will undertake first-of-its-kind studies looking at the impacts of climate change and black carbon on glacier and snowmelt in the Himalayas; scenarios of possible glacier and snow changes under different global and regional scenarios; and implications for water resources in the Ganges, Indus and Brahmaputra Basins. The science will look at how changes in glacier mass and seasonal snowpack affect the stability and reliability of regional water resources and global climate. The impacts studied will focus on implications of water availability for the various sectors and economies. The activity is also designed to bring policymakers, experts, development communities, civil society, academic researchers, journalists and other stakeholders in South Asia together to form a common and shared understanding of the challenges faced by the region. 74 Timeframe: May 2018 – February 2020. Geography : Regional. Budget Allocation: $0.45M FY19 Progress: The University of Colorado’s Comparative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences has been contracted to complete this work. The Institute has world-class expertise in remote sensing and GIS for glacier change detection and mass balance monitoring, with an emphasis on mapping debris covered glaciers. To ensure the study is scientifically sound, the research team is involving an external science advisory panel. Analyses on historic climate and transport of black carbon within the region and on impacts of aerosols on regional climate in the context of global climate have been completed. This work, which focused on developing the atmospheric inputs of the overall studies, will serve as necessary inputs to various ongoing snow, glacier and water resource modelling experiments. A journal article, Sources of Black Carbon Deposition to the Himalayan Glaciers in Current and Future Climates, was published in JGR Atmospheres (August 2018). A two-day conference in Kathmandu, Cryosphere, Glacier Melting and Implications on Mountain Economy in the HKH Region, was held in September 2018. The event was jointly organized with the Government of Nepal, the Centre for Green Economy Development Nepal, and ICIMOD, and opened by the Minister of Forest and Environment for Nepal. Participants—including government officials, researchers and members of civil society organizations from Afghanistan, Bhutan, India, Nepal and Pakistan (94 participants)—agreed to launch a ‘Hindu Kush Himalaya Glaciers and Mountain Economy Platform’, which will focus on championing greater regional cooperation across various levels on the issue of glacier melting. A draft declaration was also adopted, with a call for action on the need for this network to galvanize greater knowledge sharing and knowledge co-generation, capacity building, and partnerships between government and communities for sustainable mountain economies, with a focus on gender and local knowledge. The Platform was formally announced at COP24 in Katowice, Poland in December 2018. The Government of Nepal is taking a leading role in advancing its mandate. FY20 Plan: The Hindu Kush Himalaya Glaciers and Mountain Economy Platform will take part in an event at COP25 in Chile. The hydrological modeling component of the study will continue. Regional workshops will be held to disseminate the study and the activity will lead capacity building events in flood forecasting, cryosphere monitoring and remote sensing tools for a number of regional and country organizations in South Asia. The final overall study will be used to inform the South Asia Region Climate Adaptation and Resilience Program. Pillar 2 – Capacity Building Activities Capacity Building for Groundwater Management Scope: This activity is supporting improved groundwater management across South Asia by informing the design of the World Bank-financed National Groundwater Management Improvement Program (NGMIP) and by supporting India’s ongoing dialogue with Pakistan and Bangladesh to reduce reliance on groundwater and to better utilize the resource as a buffer against droughts. Timeframe: February 2016 – October 2019. Geography : Regional; India focus. Budget Allocation: $0.85M FY19 Progress: In partnership with IWMI, a diagnostic study of groundwater governance reforms and groundwater management actions that can guide strengthening of drought resilience in the region was near finalization at the end of the reporting period. The study involved developing an analytical framework for assessing interventions on major groundwater systems in South Asia, which considers different aquifer types and institutional settings and that draws upon and refines existing frameworks; and using this framework to select a suite of case studies that focus on drought resilience and consider both government and community-led interventions. The final synthesis report was supported by eight case studies that demonstrate groundwater management approaches in different types of groundwater settings around the region. FY20 Plan: A planned regional stakeholder workshop in Colombo (December 2018), to discuss the study findings, was placed on hold due to unforeseen circumstances. The activity team is working on dissemination alternatives. The final report and case studies will be shared with staff in World Bank country offices for review before online publication. HEP Sustainable Planning - Bhutan Scope: SAWI is contributing to improving quality of, and reducing risks for, hydropower projects in Bhutan. This activity is undertaking a gap analysis against Bhutanese guidelines/international good practice and developing recommendations on how to address these gaps (for at least one planned large hydropower project); improving bidding documents for construction of hydropower and dam safety guidelines; increasing institutional capacity within the main government authorities to apply the new national hydropower guidelines; and increasing awareness of the new hydropower guidelines and international good practice for hydropower development among key stakeholders. Timeframe: September 2018 – December 2019. Geography : Bhutan. Budget Allocation: $0.22M FY19 Progress: The activity could not proceed as planned due to the 2018 elections. Procurement of an international expert on dam safety was completed in November 2018. The expert participated in a mission to Thimphu in December 2018, which resulted in an agreed workplan to conduct the main components of the activity. As part of the capacity building sub-activity, the expert held a learning event for 25 participants 75 (six women) from DHPS, Druk Green Power Corporation and Nepal Electricity Authority on the subjects of international contractual practice and risk-informed dam safety in World Bank operations. In January 2019, detailed terms of reference were finalized and agreed with DHPS to procure an international firm to support the writing of Bhutanese National Dam Safety Guidelines (to address increasing public concern on dam safety and its consequences to the downstream and national economies); an international expert on contract management and geotechnical baseline reports (to prepare a common and standard set of bid documents for hydropower construction based on national policies, laws and regulations and international best practices for use in upcoming projects); an international hydropower expert to conduct a review of the 1125 MW pipeline Dorjilung Hydropower Project; and a national hydropower expert to support the international experts and to ensure the outputs are customized to the Bhutanese context. These experts were subsequently procured. In April 2019, the activity held a stakeholder workshop on dam safety (19 participants; 4 women); a stakeholder workshop on experienced challenges with civil work contracts in large hydropower (11 participants; three women); and task group workshops to apply the new hydropower guidelines to the Dorjilung project and visits to proposed sites for the Dorjilung powerhouse and dam (seven participants). Based on the results and feedback from these workshops and site visits, international experts finalized the national dam safety guidelines, civil works bidding documents for hydropower projects, and the due diligence report for the Dorjilung hydropower project. FY20 Plan: The draft outputs will be presented at a stakeholder workshop in Thimphu in early FY20. The dam safety guidelines will be consulted upon and adopted by the Government of Bhutan and standard bidding documents will be applied for new hydropower projects in Bhutan. Pillar 3 – Regional Flood Forecasting No active grants Pillar 4 – Dialogue Processes Regional Dialogue Scope: This activity is designed to open up government-dominated water management to participatory multi-stakeholder processes from the local to the river basin level. It supports a diverse suite of dialogue events and forums to engage a broad set of stakeholders, including new and past dialogue participants, across South Asia to build trust and confidence among riparian countries and create an enabling environment for sustainable management of transboundary water resources. Timeframe: December 2014 – February 2020. Geography : Regional. Budget Allocation: $1.25 M FY19 Progress: Building on previous SAWI regional dialogue events, the Regional Workshop on Managing Water Extremes in South Asia, was convened in December 2018 in Bangkok, with the aim (1) to strengthen the comprehensive understanding of the current and anticipated future water scarcity, drought and flood challenges and solutions in South Asia; (2) to facilitate knowledge sharing on disruptive technologies, institutions, and best practices for building resilience to water scarcity and floods, both for people and ecosystems, among different stakeholders in South Asia; and (3) to showcase strategies and methodologies to improve sharing of hydro-meteorological data and modernization and forecasting in South Asia. The event was also filled with opportunity for participants to engage with one another; to share experiences, best practices and lessons learned; to network; and to build partnerships. About 100 participants, ranging from policymakers to technocrats and academics, represented each of the seven SAWI countries, and Thailand. International experts from Australia, Canada, Malaysia, USA, IGOs and NGOs also participated to share tools, methodologies and experiences to manage water extremes applicable to the South Asia context. Participants considered a lack of political will/unfavourable political climate as the most critical of the barriers needing to be overcome to move the needle on managing water extremes. Effective communication (which is crisp and concise; from the right voice/champion; and done through both traditional and new mediums/platforms) was seen as the foremost key action to change political mindsets, to govern from community to cabinet and to close the science-policy gap. And, ultimately, participants concluded that managing and responding to the risks water extremes pose requires collective action at and across all levels—from the regional to the local. It is expected that participants will share tools and practices with their colleagues for possible uptake in their respective institutions and/or the tools and practices may be used to influence policy formation and implementation on water extremes issues. FY20 Plan: Scoping and possible implementation of a regional dialogue event on water security (working title: South Asia Water Security Forum). This event would aim to showcase SAWI’s various knowledge products relevant to water security in South Asia. *The Capacity Building Water Governance RE activity completed implementation in FY18. Outstanding commitments were paid out in FY19 amounting to $53,449. ANNEX 3: KNOWLEDGE PRODUCTS 77 Dissemination Output Format Status Indus Focus Area Indus Basin Groundwater Analysis Stakeholder Consultation Report Report Internal Proceedings Report: Third Indus Basin Knowledge Forum ‘Managing Systems Under Stress: Science Report Public for Solutions in the Indus Basin’ Ganges Focus Area Ganga River Basin Planning Assessment Report Report Public Ganga River Basin Model and WIS Report and Documentation Report Public Software and Data Files for the River Basin Model and Information System to Support Strategic Software and Public Planning of the Ganga Basin Data Files Strategic Basin Planning for Ganga River Basin in India: Project Management Report Report Internal Preparation of River Basin Plans and Hydropower Development Master Plans and Strategic Report Internal Environmental and Social Assessment (Inception Report) An Introduction to Real-Time Hydrological Information System Report Public Screening Different Equipment Makes and Models for Specific Site Conditions Online Tool Public Web-Based Flood Forecasting and Information Dissemination System for Bagmati-Adhwara and Report Public Kosi Basin in Bihar State: Modeling Report for Bagmati-Adhwara (Final Report) Nepalese Student Fellowship Report: “Cooperation for Capacity Building Program on Education of Report Public Future Generation of Water Resources Development Professionals” Brahmaputra Focus Area Write Ups for the High-Level Commission on Key Topics of Interest for North East Water Resources Report Public North East India Actionable Roadmap: Proper Management of Water Resources 2018 Slide Deck Public Framework for Integrated River Basin Evaluation: SAWI Discussion Note Discussion Public Note Building Up Bhutan’s Resilience to Disasters and Climate Change Blog Public Climate-Water-Energy Nexus and South-South Cooperation: Workshop Summary Report Public The Intangible Values of Water: Concept Note Report Internal Sundarbans Focus Area Aquatic Salinization and Mangrove Species in a Changing Climate: Impact in the India Sundarban Working Paper Public Mangrove Spatial Distribution in the Indian Sundarbans: Predicting Salinity-Induced Migration Journal Article Public 78 Quantifying the Protective Capacity of Mangroves from Storm Surges in Coastal Bangladesh Journal Article Public Accounting for Regional Differences in Mother and Child Health: Bangladesh, West Bengal, Bihar Working Paper Public and Jharkhand The Cyclone’s Shadow: Historical Storm Impacts and Population Displacement in Bangladesh, Working Paper Draft West Bengal and Odisha Co-Location, Socioeconomic Status and Perceptions of Environmental Change in the Indian Working Paper Draft Sundarbans Protection from Cyclones: Benefits of Integrating Green and Gray Infrastructure Blog Public Can Mangroves Mitigate Catastrophic Consequences of Cyclone-Induced Storm Surges? Blog Public Needs Assessment and Detailed Planning for a Harmonious Hydrometeorology System for the Report Public Sundarbans, which consists of three volumes (Vol 1: Existing Hydrometeorological Set Up in Sundarbans covering both India and Bangladesh; Vol 2: Looking at Comparable Deltas: Experiences from the Mekong Delta; and Vol. 3: Specific Requirements: Sea Level Stations, Water Stations and Logistics for the Entire Sundarbans Landscape). Inventory of Freshwater Resources in the Sundarbans Landscape Working Paper Draft Evolution and Geomorphology of the Sundarbans Landscape Working Paper Draft Conceptual Proposal for Preparation of an Integrated Asset Management System for the Working Paper Draft Sundarbans in India; Proposal for Development of Joint Hydrometeorological Services for the Entire Sundarbans Region Water Quality Analysis and Salinity Intrusion Analysis Working Paper Draft BISRCI digital knowledge and news platform (www.sundarbansonline.org) Website Public Institutional Structure for Joint Action in the Sundarbans Region Report Draft Benefits of Cooperation: Focus on the Sundarbans Report Draft Sundarbans Media Platform Report Draft Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Area Managing Water Extremes in South Asia: Reflections Report Report Public Managing Groundwater for Drought Resilience in South Asia Report Draft Eight case studies demonstrating groundwater management approaches in different types of Report Draft groundwater settings around the South Asia Region HKH Regional Conference on Cryosphere, Glacier Melting And Mountain Economy Transboundary Report Public Solutions for Resilient HKH Mountains: Meeting Proceedings Sources of Black Carbon Deposition to the Himalayan Glaciers in Current and Future Climates Journal Article Public ANNEX 4: PROGRAM AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT 80 Overview The SAWI program is supported by a Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF) administered by the World Bank on behalf of contributing development partners. This specific type of MDTF is known as a “Programmatic Trust Fund” to which donors commit funds designed to support a thematic framework rather than financing a specific project or activity. Within this framework, SAWI supports activities executed by recipient organizations as well as activities directly executed by the World Bank. Consistent with standard World Bank Trust Fund practices, donors pledge funding for SAWI (current pledges total US$30.8M) and funds are deposited on agreed schedules outlined in the administration agreements signed with the donors (current deposits total US$30.8M). Then, in accordance with SAWI’s strategic planning efforts, funding is allocated to specific activities (at the close of FY19, allocations were US$ 29.7M). Allocations are endorsed by the RIPC. SAWI works with clients (for recipient-executed (RE) activities) and World Bank Task Team Leaders (for Bank-executed (BE) activities) to develop Grant Funding Requests (GFRs) and related activity documentation. The World Bank then follows technical, legal and fiduciary procedures to establish activities and commits funds through its standard processes. Funds are disbursed according to the grant agreements and financing plans (cumulative disbursements are US$ 27.4M). Financial Summary (at June 30, 2019) Cumulative Allocations as of June Actual Expenditure Contractual Focus Area Expenditure since 30, 2019 for FY19 Commitments Inception Indus 2,820,518 136,255 2,563,623 66,624 Ganges 7,587,251 2,696,960 7,248,596 95,484 Brahmaputra 5,346,884 945,403 4,653,172 123,125 Sundarbans 3,210,560 523,156 3,101,758 23,413 Regional Cross-Cutting 7,711,881 1,041,846 7,090,175 182,822 Program 3,009,145 382,548 2,732,193 55,092 TOTAL $29.7M $5.73M $27.4M $0.55M 81 Disbursements by Activities Under Implementation in FY19 Cumulative Grant Amount Expenditure for Expenditure TF Number Activity Name US$ FY19 US$ Since Inception US$ Program TF014265 SAWI II Program Administration and Management 2,109,145 296,609 1,836,888 TF017869 Strategic Communications 700,000 34,028 697,341 TF0A2363 Achieving Results 200,000 51,911 197,963 Total Program 3,009,145 382,548 2,732,193 Indus Basin Focus Area TF018455 Indus Dialogue 900,000 30,034 807,604 TF0A7388 Indus Basin (Pakistan) Groundwater Analysis 295,000 106,221 130,499 Total Indus Basin 1,195,000 136,255 938,103 Ganges Basin Focus Area TF018129 Sustainable Water Resources Development for HEP in Nepal 720,000 190,050 653,316 (BE) TF018488 Water Resources Management in Transboundary Basins; 700,000 93,626 528,465 India TF018570 Power Sector Reform and Sustainable Hydropower 500,000 500,000 500,000 Development Project (RE) TF018717 Strategic Basin Planning 4,030,627 1,629,090 4,030,627 TF018509 Ganges Dialogue 251,309 0 150,870 TF0A1373 Bihar FMIS Flood Forecasting (unpaid commitment 370,959 108,091 370,959 disbursed in FY19) TF0A1269 Strengthening Flood Modeling Capacity in Bihar (RE) (unpaid 466,032 176,101 446,032 commitment disbursed in FY19) Total Ganges Basin 7,038,927 2,696,958 6,680,269 Brahmaputra Basin Focus Area TF018849 Brahmaputra Dialogue 1,122,000 157,662 931,811 TF0A2312 Basin Modelling and Analysis 1,500,000 518,497 1,199,208 TF0A3513 Bhutan Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience 500,000 211,308 499,857 Regional Project (RE) TF0A7705 Non-Monetary Values of Water 10,525 10,525 10,525 TF0A8696 Strengthening Hydro-met Services and DRM in Bangladesh 250,000 47,410 47,410 Total Brahmaputra Basin 3,382,525 945,401 2,688,811 Sundarbans Landscape Focus Area TF0A0121 Targeted Environmental Studies 1,050,000 186,447 1,000,900 TF0A0122 Sundarbans Dialogue 955,000 161,838 895,299 TF0A0986 Landscape Hydro-met Design 399,839 135,190 399,839 TF0A2516 Landscape-Scale Joint Environmental Plan 299,973 39,681 299,973 (unpaid commitment disbursed in FY19) 82 Cumulative Grant Amount Expenditure for Expenditure TF Number Activity Name US$ FY19 US$ Since Inception US$ Total Sundarbans Landscape 2,704,812 523,156 2,596,011 Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Area TF018766 Regional Dialogue 1,266,000 279,215 1,102,340 TF0A2044 Capacity Building for Groundwater Management 855,000 279,177 837,924 TF0A4131 Himalaya University Consortium Grant (RE) 1,220,000 0 965,302 TF0A7870 Glaciers of the Himalayas 450,000 194,683 194,864 TF0A7575 A Diagnostic Study on Groundwater-Energy-Agricultural 150,000 96,498 100,036 Nexus TF0A8509 HEP Sustainable Planning 220,000 138,824 138,824 TF0A3886 Capacity Building Water Governance RE 353,450 53,449 353,450 (unpaid commitment disbursed in FY19) Total Regional Cross-Cutting 4,514,450 1,041,846 3,692,740 Ongoing Activities Total 21,844,859 5,726,164 19,328,127 Closed Activities (Since TF Inception; Not Active in FY19) Cumulative Grant Amount TF Number Activity Name Expenditure Since US$ Inception US$ Indus Basin Focus Area TF014935 SAWI Indus FA Engagement 271,735 271,735 TF015737 Project Development: Glacier Monitoring in the Upper Indus Basin 101,825 101,825 TF016290 Learning Innovative Approaches to Glacier Monitoring to Address Climate 212,567 212,567 Change TF016430 Integrated Management of the Kunar River Basin 439,167 439,167 TF0A0640 Kabul/Kunar Basin Development 600,226 600,226 Total Indus Basin 1,625,520 1,625,520 Ganges Basin Focus Area TF0A0621 Managing Watersheds to Reduce Upstream Sediment for HEP: Nepal 219,713 219,713 TF015480 SAWI Ganges FA Engagement 348,611.06 348,611 Total Ganges Basin 568,324 568,324 Brahmaputra Basin Focus Area TF016291 Brahmaputra Basin Focus Area 40,218 40,218 TF016429 The Brahmaputra River Basin Assessment 35,526 35,526 TF017496 River Management Improvement: Bangladesh 268,213 268,213 TF017526 Brahmaputra Integrated Water Resources Management Study Tour 183,700 183,700 TF0A0642 Environmental and Social Management for Sustainable HEP: Bhutan 199,169 199,169 83 Cumulative Grant Amount TF Number Activity Name Expenditure Since US$ Inception US$ TF0A1154 Delta Management Investment Planning and Basin Analysis 798,000 798,000 TF018637 Hydro-met Modernization in the Brahmaputra Basin 243,728 243,728 TF015001 Concept Note Development Brahmaputra FA 195,807 195,807 Total Brahmaputra Basin 1,964,361 1,964,361 Sundarbans Landscape Focus Area TF017032 SAWI Sundarbans FA Engagement 327,448 327,448 TF0A1366 Delta Management Investment Planning 178,299 178,299 Total Sundarbans Landscape 505,747 505,747 Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Area TF015757 SAWI Cross-Cutting Knowledge, Dialogue and Consultation 252,366 252,366 TF016326 Transboundary Risk Management and Data Sharing 171,386 171,386 TF017907 Climate Change Impacts on HEP 337,045 337,045 TF018522 Snow/Glacier Contributions to Stream-flows and Climate 147,174 147,174 TF0A3877 Bhutan-HEP Environmental and Social Planning 288,961 288,961 TF0A1491 Climate Change Risks in Water Resources Management 531,854 531,854 TF019090 Capacity Building - WQ Monitoring and Analysis 305,493 305,493 TF018768 Capacity Building - Transboundary Water Governance 363,657 363,657 TF018290 Improving Watershed Management, India 121,118 121,118 TF0A3996 South Asia HEP Resilience Studies 190,862 190,862 TF018731 Improving Flood Forecasting in South Asia 499,493 499,493 TF0A1367 Capacity Building - IWRM in Transboundary River Basin; India 188,022 188,022 Total Regional Cross-Cutting 3,397,431 3,397,431 Closed Activities Total 8,061,383 8,061,383 84 Portfolio Spending and Efficiency Financial Expenditure SAWI resources have almost been fully allocated. There have been 57 activities under SAWI since program inception. In FY19, 28 activities were under implementation and eight activities were completed.13 Up to the end of FY19, the cumulative allocation to approved SAWI activities was $29.7M. Cumulative disbursement stood at $27.4M. Of this, disbursement in FY19 was $5.7M, up from a disbursement of $4.9M in FY18. The program had $0.55M committed in contracts at the end of FY19. A summary graph of expenditure across fiscal years is presented below. Focus Area Cumulative Expenditure Across FYs (US$) $8,000,000 $7,000,000 $6,000,000 $5,000,000 EXPENDITURE $4,000,000 $3,000,000 $2,000,000 $1,000,000 $0 FY14 FY15 FY16 FY17 FY18 FY19 IRB 750,000 835,020 1,648,253 2,124,407 2,427,368 2,563,623 GRB 330,000 842,866 2,428,695 3,590,509 4,551,636 7,248,596 BRB 300,000 834,569 1,670,857 2,828,244 3,707,769 4,653,172 SUN 10,000 1,010,587 1,210,539 2,050,599 2,578,604 3,101,758 REG 210,000 764,771 2,801,661 4,897,813 6,048,327 7,090,175 PRO 630,000 954,687 1,316,403 1,558,878 2,349,644 2,732,193 Value for Money SAWI is administered in accordance with World Bank established procedures to ensure that the funds are spent efficiently and effectively to deliver Value for Money following transparent standards. The World Bank has demonstrated efficiency through timely decisions to provide additional financing, claw back, add or drop certain activities where the external environment or demand has changed, or where there is changed scope for their uptake, including through larger investments. 13 Four of the seven completed activities in FY19 completed implementation at the end of FY18, but unpaid commitments were disbursed in FY19. 85 BOX 1: EFFICIENCY SAWI is one of the World Bank’s South Asia regional integration trust funds piloting under the World Bank TF reform. The objectives of this process are to: (1) increase strategic alignment of trust-funded activities to improve country ownership and feed into broader operational priorities and the lending program; and (2) enhance efficiency and simplification by combining allocation processes among multiple TFs through the Regional Integration Program Committee (RIPC). This new process reduces internal World Bank transaction costs while increasing alignment with the World Bank’s budget planning cycle to optimize the use of TFs with budget-financed activities. While not changing any of the agreements signed with donors, the process is leading to streamlined internal procedures within the terms agreed with donors for use of funds, including both geographic targets and key priorities and objectives. A lessons-learned exercise in April 2019 found the reform process to date was able to focus on substance of proposals rather than transactions and administrative TF requirements. Ad-hoc requests have been reduced and World Bank country units were able to rank and prioritize tasks. Demand for SAWI funds remains strong. Aligned with the SAWI Think Piece presented last year--which draws on lessons learned from SAWI implementation and explores key trends in cooperation in transboundary waters in South Asia as a basis for increased adaptive management of the SAWI program--six new activities were approved (see Annex 8). The activities are designed to ensure they will finish before the end of SAWI phase II. SAWI maintains economy in its procurement, minimizing costs and ensuring high quality, by requiring that all RE activities finance goods, works and services in accordance with the World Bank’s guidelines on “Procurement under IBRD Loans and IDA Credits” and the World Bank’s guidelines on the “Selection and Employment of Consultants by World Bank Borrowers,” jointly referred to as the “Procurement and Consultant Guidelines.” For all BE SAWI activities, the World Bank is responsible for procurement of goods as well as employment and supervision of consultants in accordance with applicable policies and procedures, including travel according to established procedure. The guidelines provide specific instructions for use of World Bank documents (standard bidding documents, requests for proposals, contract forms), conflict of interest, advance contracting, co-financing, fraud and corruption. BOX 2: ECONOMY IN DELIVERY Under the Brahmaputra Dialogue activity, efforts are made to ensure convergence and synergies among related activities. The CSO workshop is one example, where CSOs, which work largely in isolation of each other, came together to discuss convergence of activities, and to identify gaps that need to be filled and potential collaborations. The task team is also coordinating with Bank teams who are working on disaster risk mitigation and inland water transport to ensure that there is no duplication of effort. To this end, one of the planned activities, capacity building on disaster risk mitigation, was dropped because the task team realized that it is being adequately addressed in other Bank engagements in Bangladesh, Bhutan and India. SAWI is achieving effectiveness in a number of ways. Firstly, SAWI sits within the SARRE and is able to leverage technical expertise and draw on lessons from across different Global Practices within the Bank. Secondly, activities are closely aligned with larger World Bank investments (currently about US$5.7B), and are leveraging the World Bank Group’s wider partnerships in the region. The TF modality enables SAWI to use diverse entry points and deliver incremental results that contribute to a positive effort toward regional collaboration, and offers client governments the opportunity to access independent, international expert advice that would otherwise not be accessible. 86 BOX 3: EFFECTIVENESS SAWI remains effective in leveraging funds to inform project design and saving on long-term costs. For example, hydropower projects in Bhutan have suffered large cost overruns and delays in commissioning. The development and adoption of the Hydropower Guidelines, for which SAWI has supported preparation and is operationalizing, will reduce the risk of such cost overruns (which are typically 20 percent; potentially saving hundreds of millions per project) and loss of opportunity cost due to delayed commissioning (potentially US$250M per year per project). Financial Management and Fiduciary Risks Ethics: All trust fund beneficiaries and bidders are required to observe the highest standard of ethics in World Bank-financed grants and contracts. SAWI grants are subject to the World Bank’s Anti-Corruption Guidelines, the Procurement and Consultant Guidelines, and the Standard Conditions for Trust Fund Grants, which delineate standard operating procedures for any fraud issues. The Anti-Corruption Guidelines provide for certain actions to be taken by grant recipients to prevent and combat fraud and corruption, and the Standard Conditions provide for suspension and/or cancellation of disbursements, as well as the refund of disbursed grant proceeds in the event that fraud and corruption does occur. Audits and Financial Management: The World Bank provides donors, within six months following the end of each World Bank FY, with an Annual Single Audit Report in respect of all cash-based trust funds, comprising: (1) a management assertion together with an attestation signed by the external auditors concerning the adequacy of internal controls over cash-based financial reporting for trust funds as a whole; and (2) a combined financial statement together with the external auditor’s opinion thereon. The Single Audit Report finds no instances of corruption or fraudulent conduct in FY19, and is available at: www.worldbank.org/financialresults For RE trust funds, recipients are required to maintain adequate financial management systems, prepare annual financial statements in accordance with accounting standards acceptable to the World Bank, and to have these statements audited by independent auditors acceptable to the World Bank. The recipient is also required to submit interim financial reports acceptable to the World Bank. Each RE trust fund operation involves a Financial Management Specialist who reviews financial management compliance of the recipient and is responsible for reporting instances of non-compliance. ANNEX 5: GENDER MAPPING 88 SAWI continues to work at multiple levels to bring greater attention to gender equality and empowerment. This remains incremental, as achieving shifts in mindsets across various stakeholders takes time, analysis and data on the connections between transboundary water resources management and gender are limited, and traditionally, decision makers have tended to give priority to other pressing issues. SAWI strives to mainstream gender equality, empowerment and inclusion across the portfolio, although progress remains non-uniform. SAWI’s approaches represent relatively small but important steps toward increasing understanding of and buy-in for gender and social inclusion in a field that has traditionally been ‘gender blind’. Transboundary National and Sub-National M&E Regular M&E tracking, including monitoring gender disaggregated results, assessing progress and prioritizing gender approaches. All SAWI TTLs are required to report on gender mainstreaming actions. The completed Management Information System includes fields specific to gender aspects and gender participation tracking. Public The Cryosphere, Glacier Melting and Implications on The critical role of women in water resources management Awareness Mountain Economy in the HKH Region conference launched was spotlighted in the HLC Report (based on inputs from the & Social the Hindu Kush Himalaya Glaciers and Mountain Economy case studies prepared by SAWI) and Rapid Assessment/ Marketing Platform, which will focus on championing greater regional EC Report for proper planning and management of water cooperation across various levels on the issue of glacier resources in the North East Region of India (Basin Modeling melting. A draft declaration was adopted, with a call for and Analysis activity). This work is planting the seeds to action on the need for this network to galvanize greater facilitate greater inclusion and engagement of women in knowledge sharing and knowledge co-generation, capacity campaigns, consultations and local-level governance for building, and partnerships between government and proper water resources management in the North East. communities for sustainable mountain economies, with a focus on gender and local knowledge. Targeting & Under the Targeted Environmental Studies activity, fifteen The Hydropower Guidelines (Guidelines for the Development Participating focus group discussions were conducted with women in of Hydropower Projects Bhutan 2018; preparation supported the Sundarbans (the local leaders of women’s self-help by SAWI) have been adopted by the Royal Government of groups) to understand the expected impacts of salinization Bhutan. The guidelines are now being applied as guidance of water in a changing climate on maternal and child health. for design of new hydropower projects. They cover technical, Information was collected on livelihood activities of women environmental and social aspects, and were informed by who spend long hours in saline water catching seafood; their international good practice for hydropower development average exposure time to saline water; and any diseases and customized to Bhutanese context. One entire section they may possess and suffer from. Local doctors in the Gram (Section B: ESIA and ESMP Processes, Methods and Panchayats were later consulted to ratify the incidences Topics) covers environmental and social aspects. Gender of ailments. To complement this data, a household survey, does not have any specific section in the guidelines, but is based on a sampling frame of 3,500 identified households, mainstreamed in the preparation process. In other words, for collection of data on exposure of women and children it is guided that gender aspects must be considered in the to saline water, due to livelihood activities, as well as on stakeholder process and in the baseline description. corresponding household socioeconomic and health conditions, commenced. The data will be analyzed to Twenty-three women from various government agencies in estimate the impact of salinity on women’s health. Suggested India participated in a two-day ‘modelers meet’ to encourage policy interventions will enable governments in Bangladesh cross learning and sharing of progress on different modeling and India to improve health outcomes among mothers and activities carried out in basins across India. children. These health gains will help the countries attain the specific goals set forth during the 65th World Health Assembly for improvements in maternal and child health by 2025. In dialogue events, special effort is made to facilitate high levels of participation by women and to include women in organizing and presenting/facilitating roles. Women’s representation in key roles under the Brahmaputra Dialogue and Regional Dialogue was significant in the reporting period. For example, 32 percent of the participants at the regional workshop under the Glaciers of the Himalayas were women. A session on Engagement and Inclusiveness for Impactful Research is planned for IBKF4 in August 2019. 89 Capacity Since SAWI inception, 204 female professionals (36 in FY19) Thirteen women from various government agencies in India Building & have benefitted from capacity building and training under participated in a five-day hands-on training on using remote Organizational SAWI in a wide range of areas, from water diplomacy to river sensing and Google Earth Engine tools. Six women from Development basin modeling. various NHP-implementing agencies participated in an advanced training on emerging technologies in hydro-met One of the seven training modules developed under the instrumentation. Capacity Building Water Governance RE activity features a gender and hydro-diplomacy sub-module: “This topic Six women from the Department of Hydropower & Power will help you to understand the importance and meaning Systems, Druk Green Power Corporation and National of engendering hydro-diplomacy by answering: what does Electricity Authority on the subjects of international engendering hydro-diplomacy mean? Why is engendering contractual practice and risk-informed dam safety in World hydro-diplomacy important? And how do we engender hydro- Bank operations. Four women from these organizations diplomacy in the long-term [in South Asia]?” were trained on dam safety and three women were trained (https://www.southasianwaters.org/temp. on overcoming the challenges of civil work contracts in large php?video_num=43&module=17). hydropower projects. The modules went live at the end of FY18 and began to be utilized in FY19. Two academic institutions (South Asia To strategically meet Nepal’s future professional capacity University and Dhaka University) have agreed to adopt the needs to manage a planned hydropower regime ten times modules for a joint diploma course. what it is today, the four female masters students selected for a fellowship on hydropower and water resources at Wuhan University in China completed the fellowship program. This ten-week fellowship helped the students to better understand critical water management issues, such as flash floods, debris flows, flow sediment morphology, stability analysis and safety control. Gender The literature review undertaken on non-monetary values of water addressed the different social, ethnic, religious, spiritual Analysis and cultural values associated with water and how these differ across communities, geographies, religions, identities and gender. The review found that the intangible values of water is under-researched and that calculating techniques, such as accounting for cultural flows, are still emerging. The concept note and technical annex could potentially enrich a conversation that started within the World Bank and externally with its clients and development partners on the importance of intangible values of water to design and implementation of effective water-related interventions. In collaboration with researchers from Bangladesh and India, a number of studies carried out through a gender lens were finalized in the reporting period, including: Accounting for Regional Differences in Mother and Child Health: Bangladesh, West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand; Co-Location, Socioeconomic Status and Perceptions of Environmental Change in the Indian Sundarbans; and Mangrove Spatial Distribution in the Indian Sundarbans: Predicting Salinity-Induced Migration. These works will provide evidence on the multifaceted impacts of river salinization in the Sundarbans, which is leading to increased poverty and outmigration. ANNEX 6: COUNTRY ACTIVITY PROFILES (FY19 Highlights) 91 Afghanistan Summary SAWI efforts in Afghanistan are pursued under the Indus and Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Areas. Program activities are directed primarily toward supporting a dialogue for Afghanistan and other Indus Basin countries to build confidence and trust in order to establish an enabling environment for basin-wide cooperation. A joint climate change research proposal put forward by the Indus Forum is the first of its kind that aims to systematically assess the historic and likely future trends of water resources availability and socioeconomic impact across the entire basin and the four countries that share it. SAWI is also undertaking first-of-its-kind studies looking at the impacts of climate change and black carbon on glacier and snowmelt in the Himalayas, scenarios of possible glacier and snow changes under different global and regional scenarios, and implications for water resources in the Indus Basin, including Afghanistan. Participants from Afghanistan have also participated in in various Regional Dialogue events, including the one that took place in late 2018. Primary Organizations SAWI Engaged with in Afghanistan in FY19 Water Resources Department, Ministry of Water and Energy; Kabul University; Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock. Major Country Activities in FY19 • Indus Basin Dialogue (and restructuring under Himalayan University Consortium (HUC) Grant) • Glaciers of the Himalayas • Regional Dialogue FY19 Key Outputs • The proceedings report of the 3rd Indus Basin Knowledge Forum (IBKF) was prepared and disseminated to participants. • A SAWI recipient-executed grant was provided to ICIMOD (through a restructuring of the HUC Grant) to carry forward the four riparian dialogue process and to institutionalize the joint research program and take on its secretariat functions, including fundraising and mobilizing resources, coordinating activities, and ensuring quality control of research outcomes. • The Glaciers of the Himalayas work commenced, with an initial study, Sources of Black Carbon Deposition to the Himalayan Glaciers in Current and Future Climates, published in a peer-reviewed journal. At the two-day conference, Cryosphere, Glacier Melting and Implications on Mountain Economy in the HKH Region (September 2018), participants (which included government officials and researchers from Afghanistan) agreed to launch a ‘Hindu Kush Himalaya Glaciers and Mountain Economy Platform,’ which will focus on championing greater regional cooperation across various levels on the issue of glacier monitoring. • Five participants from Afghanistan took part in the Regional Workshop on Managing Water Extremes in Bangkok (December 2018), which aimed to strengthen the comprehensive understanding of the current and future water scarcity, drought and flood challenges and solutions in South Asia, including Afghanistan; and to facilitate knowledge sharing on disruptive technologies, institutions and best practices for building resilience to water scarcity and floods, both for people and ecosystems, among different stakeholders in South Asia. Looking Forward Dialogue: The 4th IBKF, Pathways to Impactful Research, will be hosted by ICIMOD, and co-organized by IIASA, in Kathmandu in August 2019. It aims to explore priority areas to continue collaboration in the Indus Basin; strengthen networking among riparian countries, through existing networks and new mechanisms; explore the setting up of a journalist network that works between the linkages of science and policy to communicate and promote research that is being conducted in the riparian countries; and to draw on expertise from policy experts in each riparian country to recognize policy needs at the country and basin level. Generating and Sharing Knowledge: ICIMOD, as secretariat of the joint climate change research program, will proactively fundraise to acquire the necessary capital to begin research program implementation. Two major research partnership meetings are planned to advance the research proposal toward implementation. The HKH Glacier and Mountain Economy Platform will take part in an event at COP25 in Chile to champion greater cooperation on glacier monitoring. Regional workshops will be held to disseminate the overall glacier research study and the activity will lead capacity building events in flood forecasting, cryosphere monitoring and remote sensing tools for regional and country organizations in South Asia, including for institutions in Afghanistan. 92 Bangladesh Summary SAWI efforts in Bangladesh are pursued under the Brahmaputra, Sundarbans and Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Areas. Program activities in Bangladesh (some of which are linked to activities in India) are directed primarily toward strengthening hydro-met modernization by addressing critical technical and capacity gaps and informing the design of the Bangladesh Weather and Climate Services Regional Project; facilitating a dialogue platform to discuss shared water challenges and opportunities among the four riparians of the Brahmaputra Basin; and building trust and working relationships between Bangladesh and India to further sustainable management of the Sundarbans, based on country-specific and landscape-level priorities. Primary Organizations SAWI Engaged with in Bangladesh in FY19 Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB); Bangladesh Meteorological Department (BMD); Institute of Water Modeling; CEGIS Major Country Activities in FY19 • Strengthening Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience in Bangladesh • Brahmaputra Basin Dialogue • Sundarbans Dialogue • Targeted Environmental Studies • Landscape Hydro-met Design • Regional Dialogue FY19 Key Outputs • A national-level workshop in Dhaka in August 2018 (Brahmaputra Dialogue) provided an opportunity for in-depth discussions with various stakeholders in Bangladesh, including officials from inland water transport, water resources, and disaster risk reduction, on the need to better understand the country’s capacity on disaster risk management and to realize the potential of inland water transport through joint efforts. The participants identified a number of action points for advancing cooperation on both of these fronts, including by building the knowledge base, undertaking investments, and holding exposure visits to the other riparian countries to better understand their practices and priorities. These action points were shared with other Bank teams who are engaging on these fronts. • The Climate-Water-Energy Nexus and South-South Cooperation Workshop in Shanghai (September 2018), under the Brahmaputra Dialogue, which was attended by academicians and former government officials in both the water and energy sectors in Bangladesh, in addition to participants from China and India, served as a platform for experts from these countries to introduce country background and international experiences, as well as to discuss opportunities and obstacles for regional cooperation in the water and energy sectors in the basin. The event marked the Brahmaputra Dialogue’s full engagement in all four riparian countries. • Technical assistance consultancies were completed to support the BWDB in conducting site surveys related to its observation systems and to strengthen the design of hydro-met modernization as well as on service delivery for both the BWDM and BMD. Expert technical assistance was provided to help guide the Bangladesh Weather and Climate Services Regional Project in developing and delivering twice weekly agro-met advisories to all 64 districts of Bangladesh. These advisories are critical for strengthening climate resilience in the country, which sits in one of the most disaster-prone areas of the world. • As a result of the dynamics of national elections in Bangladesh and India in FY19, collaboration between the countries on water management issues on the Sundarbans were largely sidelined. SAWI was involved in the background, however, working to continue strengthening the enabling environment for enhanced cooperation. The BISRCI continued to meet regularly and conduct strategic discussions. BISRCI’s influence on policy discussions led to a MoU between Bangladesh and India on passenger and cruise vessels on coastal and protocol routes and the launch of these services between Dhaka and Kolkata. • Maintained and hosted by the BISRCI, a web portal was launched (sundarbansonline.org), which offers a digital knowledge and news platform for continued dialogue among key stakeholders from Bangladesh and India on conservation of the Sundarbans Landscape. • Recommendations from studies produced under the Landscape Hydro-met Design activity, which were finalized in FY19, are feeding into discussions within the Joint Working Group on Conservation of the Sundarbans and are supporting the development of a coordinated, harmonious hydro-met system covering the Sundarbans in both Bangladesh and India. Outputs are informing the Bangladesh Weather and Climate Services Regional Project and the First Regional Waterway Transport Project for Bangladesh. • Bangladesh researchers collaborated with researchers from India on a number of studies under the Targeted Environmental Studies activity. These studies, which provide evidence on the multifaceted impacts of river salinization in the Sundarbans, will help set the agenda for the 93 dialogue process between the two countries and will be useful to inform the Bangladesh Coastal Embankment Improvement Project and the Multipurpose Disaster Shelter Project (Bangladesh). • SAWI brought together in-country stakeholders across Bangladesh agencies and provided technical support to help them prepare for participation in the inaugural South Asia Hydro-met Forum (September 2018). • See Afghanistan write up above for information on the Regional Dialogue, in which five experts and former government officials from Bangladesh took part. Looking Forward Dialogue: A workshop engaging ministerial-level policymakers from Bangladesh and India is planned, with the purpose to share and disseminate the final outputs and recommendations from the Sundarbans Dialogue activity. A regional event under the Brahmaputra Dialogue activity is planned for late 2019 / early 2020 in Shanghai, which will include participation from academicians and former government officials in water and water- related sectors in Bangladesh. A new activity aims to inform a process of dialogue among policymakers and stakeholders in Bangladesh and India on strategic environmental analysis toward an agreement on a comprehensive network plan and appropriately phased development of inland waterways across Bangladesh and India that prioritizes trade enhancement requirements and incorporates strategic environmental dimensions. Generating and Sharing Knowledge: Work will progress on a book, Perspectives on the Yarlung-Tsangpo-Brahmaputra-Jamuna River Basin, which will be co-produced by institutions in Bangladesh and each of the other Brahmaputra riparian countries. This book is a first attempt at documenting the Yarlung-Tsangpo-Brahmaputra-Jamuna as one river system and creating a multi-layered understanding of the basin. A power mapping study will progress, building on the institutional mapping previously completed under the Brahmaputra Dialogue. The study is identifying power relationships and the influence of various institutions in devising policies and program related to (transboundary) water resources management in each of the riparian countries, including Bangladesh. Its results will allow the dialogue process to more effectively engage with the riparian countries going forward. Work on plastics in the Brahmaputra Basin, including Bangladesh, is also being scoped. Capacity Building: SAWI will continue to provide just-in-time technical assistance to the BMD and the BWDB to strengthen hydro-met knowledge and build institutional capacity (through regional training, twinning and consultative activities) in flash flood guidance and now-casting, coastal monitoring and storm surge forecasting, groundwater monitoring and management-related services, and beneficiary and client satisfaction monitoring on delivery of hydro-met and early warning services. A cross border sub-regional training on hydro-met is planned with officials from Bangladesh, Bhutan and the India NHP, to facilitate intensive knowledge sharing and exploration of a cross-communication initiative on hydro-met services and disaster resilience. Bhutan Summary SAWI efforts in Bhutan are pursued under the Brahmaputra and Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Areas. Program activities are directed toward strengthening Bhutan’s capacity for hydro-met services and disaster preparedness, and contributing to improving the quality of, and reducing risks for, hydropower projects in Bhutan. SAWI is undertaking first-of-its-kind studies looking at the impacts of climate change and black carbon on glacier and snowmelt in the Himalayas, scenarios of possible glacier and snow changes under different global and regional scenarios, and implications for water resources in the Indus Basin, including Bhutan. Bhutan has also been actively involved in the dialogue activities under the Brahmaputra Dialogue, in addition to SAWI-facilitated regional dialogue events. Primary Organizations SAWI Engaged with in Bhutan in FY19 Department of Hydropower and Power Systems (DHPS); Druk Green Power Corporation; Bhutan Electricity Authority; Mangdechhu Hydroelectric Power Authority; Tangsibji Hydro Energy Limited; Punatsangchhu I & II Hydroelectric Power Authority; Kholongchhu Hydro Energy Limited; National Center for Hydrology and Meteorology; Bhutan Water Partnership; NEC Major Country Activities in FY19 • HEP Sustainable Planning - Bhutan • Brahmaputra Basin Dialogue • Glaciers of the Himalayas • Bhutan Hydro-met Services and Disaster Improvement (RE) • Regional Dialogue 94 FY19 Key Outputs • SAWI continued to support the financing of the World Bank’s Bhutan Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience Regional Project component 3, which has the objective to strengthen the capacity of the National Center for Hydrology and Meteorology (NCHM) to improve hydro-met monitoring, forecasting and service delivery to priority sectors in Bhutan. The activity strengthened aviation meteorology through the installation of an automatic weather observation system, ceilometers and a wind profiler at the Paro International Airport, and a ceilometer at Bumthang Domestic Airport, all of which were completed in November 2018 and are now operational. This work contributes to enhancing hydro-met services in the aviation sector, leading to flight operation safety. • SAWI installed and operationalized a Smart-Met system for enhancing weather forecasting; which is now being used by the NCHM for preparing its weather forecasts. Enabling weather forecasters to access all available observed data and forecasting inputs, which include data from hydrometeorological stations in the country, Global Telecommunication Systems, Himawari satellite images and the Numerical Weather Prediction models (Weather Research and Forecasting, Global Forecasting System and Global Environmental Multiscale Model), provides a well-organized systematic product generation, leading to increased reliability forecasts. Prior to the installation of the Smart-Met system, forecasters relied on individual screens of incoming data, a cumbersome task that reduced the level of accuracy when data was layered. • SAWI supported the Department of Agriculture to develop an agro-met decision support system for preparing farm advisories. The weather forecast from NCHM will be directly linked to this system once operationalized. Farmers will be able to use the system to increase their productivity and enhance crop resilience to weather extremes. • An expert on dam safety held a learning event for 25 participants from DHPS, Druk Green Power Corporation and Nepal Electricity Authority on the subjects of international contractual practice and risk-informed dam safety in World Bank operations. In January 2019, detailed terms of reference were finalized and agreed with DHPS to procure an international firm to support the writing of Bhutanese National Dam Safety Guidelines (to address increasing public concern on dam safety and its consequences to the downstream and national economies); an international expert on contract management and geotechnical baseline reports (to prepare a common and standard set of bid documents for hydropower construction based on national policies, laws and regulations and international best practices for use in upcoming projects); an international hydropower expert to conduct a review of the 1125 MW pipeline Dorjilung Hydropower Project; and a national hydropower expert to support the international experts and to ensure the outputs are customized to the Bhutanese context. These experts were subsequently procured. • In April 2019 in Thimphu, SAWI held a stakeholder workshop on dam safety; a stakeholder workshop on experienced challenges with civil work contracts in large hydropower; and task group workshops to apply the new hydropower guidelines to the Dorjilung project and visits to proposed sites for the Dorjilung powerhouse and dam (seven participants). Based on the results and feedback from these workshops and site visits, international experts finalized the national dam safety guidelines, civil works bidding documents for hydropower projects, and the due diligence report for the Dorjilung hydropower project. • See Afghanistan write up above for information on the Regional Dialogue, of which six government officials and experts from Bhutan took part in the Regional Workshop on Managing Water Extremes. • See Afghanistan write up above on the Glaciers of the Himalayas activity. Bhutanese officials and experts are participating in the Hindu Kush Himalaya Glaciers and Mountain Economy Platform. • See Bangladesh write up on the Brahmaputra Dialogue. Bhutan was not able to participate in the regional event under the Dialogue due to parliamentary elections, but will continue to be engaged moving forward. Looking Forward Capacity Building: Work on the World Bank’s Bhutan Hydro-met Services and Disaster Resilience Regional Project will continue under two other trust funds, including establishing a National Emergency Operation Center to enhance preparedness capacity. The draft outputs prepared under the HEP Sustainable Planning activity will be presented at a stakeholder workshop in Thimphu in early FY20. The dam safety guidelines will be consulted upon and adopted by the Government of Bhutan and standard bidding documents will be applied for new hydropower projects in Bhutan. Dialogue: Government officials from Bhutan are expected to participate in the next regional event under the Brahmaputra Dialogue, scheduled for late 2019 / early 2020 in Shanghai. Generating and Sharing Knowledge: Bhutanese institutions will participate in writing the book, Perspectives on the Yarlung-Tsangpo-Brahmaputra- Jamuna River Basin. See Bangladesh write up above for information on the Brahmaputra Basin power mapping study and work on plastics. See Afghanistan write up above on study progression under the Glaciers of the Himalayas activity. 95 China Summary SAWI efforts in China are pursued under the Indus, Brahmaputra and Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Areas. Activities are directed primarily toward knowledge sharing and dialogue for improved water resources management in the Brahmaputra and Indus River Basins. Compared to other countries, China’s involvement in SAWI has been relatively limited and primarily restricted to non-government actors, but there appear to be increasing opportunities for broader engagement. Primary Organizations SAWI Engaged with in China in FY19 Shanghai Institute of International Studies; China Institute of International Studies; Yunnan University; Fudan University; Beijing Institute of Contemporary International Relations; China Reform Forum; Chinese Academy of Sciences; China Meteorological Division Major Country Activities in FY19 • Indus Basin Dialogue (and restructuring under Himalayan University Consortium (HUC) Grant) • Brahmaputra Dialogue • Regional Dialogue FY19 Key Outputs • Given SAWI’s activities in China are primarily through the basin and regional dialogue forums, the outputs also cut across engagements in other basin countries that have included participation of Chinese delegations. • The Climate-Water-Energy Nexus and South-South Cooperation Workshop was jointly organized with the Shanghai Institute for International Studies and Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati in September 2018 in Shanghai. The workshop was attended by academicians and former government officials in both the water and energy sectors from Bangladesh, China and India. The workshop served as a platform for experts from these three countries to introduce country background and international experiences, as well as to discuss opportunities and obstacles for regional cooperation and collaboration in the water and energy sectors. Participants identified energy security under a changing climate as a potential entry point for regional cooperation in the Yarlung-Brahmaputra-Jamuna River Basin to realize benefits from and beyond the river. This workshop was the first multilateral international workshop held within China under the Brahmaputra Dialogue. It not only marks the Brahmaputra Dialogue’s full engagement in all four countries, but it also showcases China’s increasing interest in regional cooperation in the basin, which will be critical to move the dialogue process for stakeholder exchange of ideas, viewpoints, knowledge and development plans for the Brahmaputra Basin forward. • See Bangladesh write up above regarding progress under the Regional Dialogue activity. Five academicians from China took part in the Regional Workshop on Managing Water Extremes. • Ten masters students from Nepal completed fellowships at Wuhan University in China. This fellowship helped students to better understand critical water management issues, such as flash floods, debris flows, flow sediment morphology, and stability analysis and safety control. To strengthen hydropower and water resources management education in Nepal, ten faculty exchange visits of at least one week were carried out between Wuhan University and Kathmandu University on joint hydropower research and curriculum development. This student and faculty exchange program with China is helping the Government of Nepal to strategically meet its future professional capacity needs to manage a planned hydropower regime ten times what it is today. • See Afghanistan write up above on the four riparian dialogue process in the Indus Basin. Looking Forward Dialogue: Delegates from China have committed to staying involved in the basin and regional dialogue processes. Due to the success of the regional workshop in Shanghai, China is planning to host another, higher-level event under the Brahmaputra Dialogue in Shanghai in late 2019 / early 2020. Generating and Sharing Knowledge: Chinese institutions will participate in the co-writing of the book, Perspectives on the Yarlung-Tsangpo- Brahmaputra-Jamuna River Basin (see Bangladesh write up above for more information, including on the Brahmaputra power mapping study and work on plastics). Academics from China will continue to take a leadership role in mobilizing resources for the joint research work packages on climate change adaptation in the Indus Basin. 96 India Summary SAWI efforts in India are pursued under the Indus, Ganges, Brahmaputra, Sundarbans and Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Areas. Program activities are directed primarily toward scenario-based river basin modeling and participatory river basin planning; informing the design of various investment operations in India through analytical work and exposure to international best practice; improving climate risk assessment and flood forecasting; improving groundwater management; building capacity through training in issues related to water resources management, including water quality and basin planning; facilitating dialogue platforms to discuss shared water challenges and opportunities among the riparians of the Brahmaputra Basin and the Indus Basin; and building trust and working relationships between India and Bangladesh to further sustainable management of the Sundarbans, based on country-specific and landscape-level priorities. Primary Organizations SAWI Engaged with in India in FY19 Ministry of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation; Central Water Commission; Central Ground Water Board; Ministry for the Development of Northeastern Region; Central Pollution Control Board; Water Resources Departments in Ganges and Brahmaputra Basin States; NITI Aayog; Department of Economic Affairs; Government of Rajasthan (departments of energy, groundwater and agriculture); IIT-Guwahati Major Country Activities in FY19 • Basin Modeling and Analysis • Strategic Basin Planning for the Ganges in India • WRM in Transboundary Basins • Indus Basin Dialogue (and restructuring under Himalayan University Consortium (HUC) Grant) • Targeted Environmental Studies • Sundarbans Dialogue • Landscape-Scale Hydro-met Design • Capacity Building for Groundwater Management • Brahmaputra Dialogue • Glaciers of the Himalayas • A Diagnostic Study on Groundwater-Energy-Agricultural Nexus • Regional Dialogue FY19 Key Outputs • SAWI completed its technical assistance to the Government of India and basin State governments in scenario-based river basin modeling and participatory river basin planning for the Ganges Basin in India. The work has delivered on strengthening the capability of relevant Central and State government agencies to undertake comprehensive evidence-based strategic basin planning for the Ganges River; building a stronger, more accessible information and knowledge base to guide ongoing dialogue and management of the basin; and establishing a multi- stakeholder engagement process to support strategic basin planning. The modeling suite and associated Water Information Dashboard were transferred to the Central Water Commission. In the reporting period, all deliverables were finalized, with activity information, links to activity reports and the dashboard made available at gangariverbasinplanning.com. • SAWI continued to advance India’s initiative on proper water resources management in the North East, which is driven by the Prime Minister’s Office. SAWI’s technical support involved working closely with the High-Level Committee (HLC) (chaired by the Vice Chair of NITI Aayog and consisting of Secretaries of all water-related Ministries and Chief Secretaries from all North East States) and the Expert Committee (EC), and sitting on the technical EC. The Rapid Assessment on Water Resources in the North East was finalized at the beginning of FY19, and the HLC Chairman subsequently instructed that the HLC Report on proper water management in the North East, under preparation at that time by the HLC, draw heavily from it. A new lending Technical Assistance to support the rollout of the recommendations of the EC and HLC Reports is currently being discussed with GoI. • An advanced hydro-met manual, An Introduction to Real-Time Hydrological Information System, which covers different aspects of data collection and transmission pertaining to surface water, groundwater, water quality, sediment transport and rainfall/weather, and includes comprehensive material on site selection and installation supervision and discharge measurement, was prepared. It is intended to serve as an exhaustive reference for all implementing agencies/government agencies under NHP. A two-day ‘modelers meet’ was organized in Delhi in September 2018 to encourage cross learning and sharing of progress on different modeling activities carried out in basins across India. 97 A comprehensive framework for building training modules, which is now being used to frame the training calendar under NHP, was drawn up. SAWI conducted advanced workshops on emerging technologies in hydro-met instrumentation and a hands-on training on remote sensing and Google Earth Engine tools for NHP stakeholders. • See Afghanistan write up above regarding progress under the Indus Dialogue • See Bangladesh write up above regarding progress under the Brahmaputra Dialogue. A CSO meeting in Guwahati, India in November 2018 was held to bring major CSOs together to discuss convergence of activities and identify gaps that need to be filled, potentially through future activities under the Brahmaputra Dialogue. The first of its kind meeting was highly productive in identifying synergies and areas for future collaborative work. • See Afghanistan write up above regarding progress under the Glaciers of the Himalayas activity • In partnership with IWMI, a diagnostic study of groundwater governance reforms and groundwater management actions that can guide strengthening of drought resilience in the region was near finalization at the end of the reporting period. The study involved developing an analytical framework for assessing interventions on major groundwater systems in South Asia, which considers different aquifer types and institutional settings and that draws upon and refines existing frameworks; and using this framework to select a suite of case studies that focus on drought resilience and consider both government and community-led interventions. The final synthesis report was supported by eight case studies that demonstrate groundwater management approaches in different types of groundwater settings around the region. • See Bangladesh write up above regarding progress under the Sundarbans activities. In collaboration with researchers from India and Bangladesh (and with international consultants to bridge research gaps), a number of studies were carried out and finalized under the Targeted Environmental Studies activity. These studies will inform the Integrated Coastal Zone Management - India Project and the National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project. Focus group discussions were conducted (by academicians from Vishva University in West Bengal) with women in the Sundarbans to understand the expected impacts of salinization of water in a changing climate on maternal and child health. • See Bangladesh write up above regarding progress under the Regional Dialogue activity. Five participants from India took part in the Regional Workshop on Managing Water Extremes. • Engaging closely with the groundwater, agriculture and energy departments in Rajasthan, data collection and consultations to review cross- sectoral convergence and conflict among government policies in energy, groundwater and agriculture commenced, with study analysis ongoing at the end of the reporting period. A workshop was organized in March 2019, where the task team presented different business models for grid- connected solar irrigation, technical and financial analysis, institutional models and related policy scenarios to achieve a virtual nexus among the three sectors. Chaired by the Additional Chief Secretary (Agriculture), the workshop saw participants from the Government of Rajasthan engage in discussions on the longstanding and complex issues of groundwater depletion, mounting farm power subsidies and stagnant income, and deliberate on the attractiveness and obstacles for each proposed model and the institutional options for implementing each model. Looking Forward Dialogue: A workshop engaging ministerial-level policymakers from Bangladesh and India is planned, with the purpose to share and disseminate the final outputs and recommendations from the Sundarbans Dialogue activity. A regional event under the Brahmaputra Dialogue activity is planned for late 2019 / early 2020 in Shanghai, which will include participation from India. A new activity aims to inform a process of dialogue among policymakers and stakeholders in Bangladesh and India on strategic environmental analysis toward an agreement on a comprehensive network plan and appropriately phased development of inland waterways across Bangladesh and India that prioritizes trade enhancement requirements and incorporates strategic environmental dimensions. Generating and Sharing Knowledge: The review report, Analysis on Regulation of Groundwater-Energy-Agriculture Nexus for Reduction in Cross-Subsidy in Rajasthan, will be completed. It will include detailed analysis of three proposed business models to implement solarization of agriculture feeders and recommendations for implementing pilots for field testing the models. Once the report is finalized, State-level workshops will be conducted to disseminate the findings to a wider group of stakeholders. If taken forward, initial support will be provided to the Government of Rajasthan to roll out the pilot testing. The report on the diagnostic study of groundwater governance reforms and management actions will be disseminated, with the final report recommendations shared with staff in World Bank country offices for review before online publication. Indian institutions will participate in the co-writing of the book, Perspectives on the Yarlung-Tsangpo-Brahmaputra-Jamuna River Basin (see Bangladesh write up above for more information, including on the power mapping study and work on plastics). Academicians from India will continue to take a leadership role in mobilizing resources for the joint research work packages on climate change adaptation in the Indus Basin. Building Capacity: The National Mission for Clean Ganga is considering adopting the comprehensive basin modeling suite and associated data dashboard. Opportunities for potential follow-on activities are being explored, including wider dissemination of activity deliverables. If the Technical Assistance to support the rollout of the report recommendations under the Basin Modeling and Analysis activity moves forward, the activity will move nimbly and hold a workshop to launch the Technical Assistance in Delhi in early FY20. A new activity will support the Government of India and the States of the North East to develop a framework for resilient and commercial agriculture in the North East Region. 98 Informing Investments: A new activity aims to inform ongoing development financing operations to demonstrate successful approaches to developing utility-scale floating solar photovoltaic generation projects in India. It will also help in informing such investments to make them sustainable such that environmental impacts are nil or minimal with appropriate mitigation measures in place as well as replicable. Nepal Summary SAWI efforts in Nepal are pursued under the Ganges and Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Areas. Program activities are directed primarily toward strengthening the capacity of the Nepalese power sector to plan and prepare hydropower and transmission line projects according to international and best practices; and building the knowledge base on the impacts of climate change and black carbon on glacier and snowmelt in the Himalayas. Primary Organizations SAWI Engaged with in Nepal in FY19 Nepal Electricity Authority; Water and Energy Commission Secretariat (WECS); Independent Power Producers Association of Nepal; Kathmandu University; Centre for Green Economy Development Nepal; Ministry of Irrigation Major Country Activities in FY19 • Sustainable Water Resources for HEP in Nepal (RE) • Reform and Sustainable Hydropower Development Project (RE) • Glaciers of the Himalayas • Regional Dialogue FY19 Key Outputs • WECS’ implementation of integrated water resource planning and management to guide sustainable hydropower development using a basin- wide approach continued. Consultants were contracted in early FY19 to carry out a strategic environmental and social assessment to support a basin-wide approach for hydropower development planning. The objectives of the overall study are to prepare river basin plans through IWRM principles for all rivers of Nepal (except Bagmati); to prepare hydropower master plans for all the major rivers of Nepal; to concurrently undertake Strategic Environmental and Social Assessment (SESA) of the river basin and hydropower development master plans; and to develop capacity within WECS and of other relevant agency representatives to carry out integrated water resources development and management planning at basin level to meet local, state and national level needs utilizing appropriate knowledge and information management systems, analytical and modeling tools and planning methodologies. The consultants completed consultations with various government and non-government agency stakeholders (200 people in seven provinces) on the purpose of the study and to identify study sources of data and information. Initial data collection and analysis for the overall study was underway in the second half of FY19. • SAWI continued to support enhancing the capacities of students and faculties of local academic institutions in hydropower and water resources management in order to strategically meet Nepal’s future professional capacity needs to manage a planned hydropower regime ten times what it is today. Ten masters students selected for a fellowship on hydropower and water resources at Wuhan University in China completed the fellowship program. This ten-week fellowship helped the students to better understand critical water management issues, such as flash floods, debris flows, flow sediment morphology, stability analysis and safety control. To strengthen hydropower and water resources management education in-country, ten faculty exchange visits of at least one week were carried out between Kathmandu University and Wuhan University on joint hydropower research and curriculum development. • SAWI implemented a project and contract management training in April 2019 for 25 participants from the Nepal Electricity Authority. The training taught participants to apply the theories behind program and project management; to understand World Bank-funded programs from conception to completion; and to become familiar with practical tools and techniques for managing donor-funded projects. Following the training, participants requested follow on in-depth clinics on these subjects. • SAWI supported just-in-time policy advice to WECS to assist with preparation of the country’s water resources policy and water resources act and Upper Arun Project, bringing in technical experts on specific topics, such as dam safety and procurement. SAWI also supported WECS with development of a plan to implement a white paper WECS developed as part of the preparation for the World Bank-supported Nepal Energy Sector Development Policy Credit Project series, which aims to support the government’s efforts to improve the financial viability and governance of the electricity sector in Nepal. • See Afghanistan write up above regarding the Glaciers of the Himalayas activity. The workshop under this activity was hosted in Kathmandu (jointly organized by the Government of Nepal, ICIMOD and the Centre for Green Economy Development Nepal) and included 75 participants 99 from Nepal, including government officials, experts and academicians. The Government of Nepal is taking a leading role in advancing the mandate of the Hindu Kush Himalaya Glaciers and Mountain Economy Platform. • See Bangladesh write up regarding the Regional Dialogue activity, of which three participants from Nepal participated in the Regional Workshop on Managing Water Extremes. Looking Forward Informing Investments: SAWI activities will continue to inform the World Bank’s Nepal Power Sector Reform and Sustainable Hydropower Development Project to support a basin-wide approach for hydropower development and climate resilient planning and designs. The study under the Glaciers of the Himalayas activity led by the Government of Nepal will be used to inform the South Asia Region Climate Adaptation and Resilience Program. Building Capacity: With the inception phase of the strategic environmental and social assessment to support a basin-wide approach for hydropower development planning study completed in FY19, the draft reports on river basin plans, hydropower master plans, a standalone SESA and a strategic management plan will progress. The river basin plan and hydropower master plan for the first basin, Kosi, is expected by October 2019. A SESA training workshop and a river basin planning international study tour for WECS and other government agencies nominated by WECS will be implemented. The student and faculty exchange program will be scaled up, with increased participation from students (30 expected) and faculty in Nepal. SAWI will continue to support the convening of periodic roundtables with government officials to discuss and review pressing matters on hydropower and water resources management and will provide experts to offer technical advice when requested. A new SAWI activity will support specific analytical and advisory services in support of the Nepal Water Strategy and Platform. Pakistan Summary SAWI efforts in Pakistan are pursued under the Indus and Regional Cross-Cutting Focus Areas. Program activities are directed toward supporting dialogue between Pakistan and the other Indus Basin countries to build confidence and trust in order to establish an enabling environment for basin- wide cooperation; and to extract and synthesize knowledge of groundwater and its governance in the Pakistan area of the Indus Basin and conduct an analysis of trends in available data. Primary Organizations SAWI Engaged with in Pakistan in FY19 Provincial Governments of Punjab and Sindh. Major Country Activities in FY19 • Indus Basin Dialogue (and restructuring under Himalayan University Consortium (HUC) Grant) • Indus Basin (Pakistan) Groundwater Analysis • Regional Dialogue • Glaciers of the Himalayas FY19 Key Outputs • SAWI began to extract and synthesize knowledge of groundwater and its governance in the Indus Basin and to conduct an analysis of trends in available data. A series of stakeholder consultation meetings were held in Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore in September 2018 with 24 relevant federal and provincial institutions and 50 water experts, academicians and farmers to identify data and information sources for groundwater, to acquire unpublished literature and datasets held by government agencies on groundwater, and to understand the principle contemporary concerns of groundwater managers working at the provincial and national levels in the basin. While the initial findings are informing the Sindh Water Sector Improvement Project Phase I, progress on the overall analysis has been hindered by difficulty in obtaining datasets from agencies responsible for holding them. • See Afghanistan write up above regarding progress under the Indus Dialogue • See Bangladesh write up above regarding progress under the Regional Dialogue, of which four participants from Pakistan took part in the Regional Workshop on Managing Water Extremes. • See Afghanistan write up above regarding the Glaciers of the Himalayas activity. 100 Looking Forward Generating and Sharing Knowledge: The overall groundwater analysis will be finalized and used to inform provincial workshops in Punjab and Sindh and a national workshop toward the end of 2019 with participation from government, civil society, private industry and academia, on identifying and prioritizing strategic groundwater management needs at the national and provincial levels and ways to carry the identified priorities forward. Academics from Pakistan will continue to take a leadership role in mobilizing resources for the joint research work packages on climate change adaptation in the Indus Basin. Pakistan will participate in the HKH Glaciers and Economy Platform to champion greater regional cooperation across various levels on the issue of glacier melting. Academics from Pakistan will continue to take a leadership role in mobilizing resources for the joint research work packages on climate change adaptation in the Indus Basin. Dialogue: Pakistan will participate in the 4th IBKF, Pathways to Impactful Research, will be hosted by ICIMOD, and co-organized by IIASA, in Kathmandu in August 2019. See Afghanistan write up above regarding the forward look for the Indus Dialogue. ANNEX 7: PARTNERSHIPS (Cumulative) 102 SAWI activities are carried out with national, regional and global partners. These partnerships aim to ensure the sustainability of SAWI activities, including beyond the duration of the program. They also help in crowding in knowledge and disseminating knowledge to multiple stakeholder groups. Most events are organized in collaboration with partners. Policy think tanks, civil society organizations and academics are active participants in knowledge generation. Sometimes the modality of this is the execution of an activity through an external implementing agency. In other cases, knowledge institutions are contracted as consultants. However, the majority of partnerships are not contractual in nature but congregate partners around common themes and interests. National authorities in all SAWI countries are involved in all SAWI activities. SAWI’s Government and Country-Specific Partners Afghanistan Bangladesh Bhutan China Inter-ministerial working group Dept. of Water Resources; Dept. of Hydropower and Chinese Academy of Sciences; on transboundary waters, Bangladesh Forest Dept; Power Systems; Druk Green China Meteorological comprising technical-level Joint Rivers Commission, Power Co; Bhutan Power Co; Division; Shanghai Institute staff representatives from the Bangladesh; Bangladesh National Center for Hydrology of International Studies; Ministry of Energy and Water, Fisheries Research Institute; and Meteorology; Dept. of Yunnan University; Fudan the Ministry of Finance, the Institute of Water Modeling; Hydro-met Services; Dept. University; Beijing Institute of Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Bangladesh Soil Research of Disaster Mgmt; Dept. of Contemporary International the National Environmental Institute; General Economics Agriculture; Royal Society Relations; Wuhan University; Protection Agency Division; Bangladesh for the Protection of Nature; China Reform Forum Water Development Board; Ministry of Agriculture and Bangladesh Meteorological Forests; National Environment Dept. Commission India Nepal Pakistan Ministry of Water Resources, Water and Energy Commission Ministry of Climate Change; River Development & Ganga Secretariat; Dept. of Soil Provincial Governments of Sindh Rejuvenation; Central Water Conservation and Watershed and Punjab Commission; Central Groundwater Management; Nepal Electricity Board; National Institute of Authority; Independent Power Hydrology; Brahmaputra Board; Producers Association of Dept. of Economic Affairs; Nepal; Kathmandu University; Central Pollution Control Board; hydroelectric power authorities NITI Aayog; Ministry for the Development of the North East; multiple State Governments in Ganges/Brahmaputra Basins 103 SAWI’s Development Partners Vishva Bharati TAF IIT-Guwahati IIT-Delhi University University of Colorado IUCN SaciWaters Deltares Ecoseal IWA IWM Development Pty Ltd RIMES RMSI WEF (Pakistan) TERI SAWI’s Nepal Water Development Conservation Partners Foundation UNESCAP RTI IIASA NCAR US State ICIMOD Department CISPDR The Third Pole BISRCI IWA, ORF, IDSA, USGS CSIRO PRI, EnGIO, WWF IWMI AWP Tractebel (Lahmeyer Intl) Legend Contracted Partnership AWP the Australian Water Partnership NCAR National Center for Atmospheric Research Knowledge Partnership BISRCI Bangladesh India Sundarban Region Cooperation Initiative ORF Observer Research Foundation CISPDR Changjiang Institute of Survey, Planning, Design and Research PRI Principles for Responsible Investment Inter-relationships CSIRO Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation RIMES Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System for Africa and Asia Indus Basin FA EnGIO Environment Governed International Organization TAF The Asia Foundation ICIMOD International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development TERI The Energy and Resources Institute Ganges Basin FA IDSA Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses UNESCAP UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Brahmaputra Basin FA IUCN International Union for the Conservation of Nature USGS United States Geological Survey IWA International Water Association WEF Water Environment Forum Pakistan Sundarbans Landscape FA IWM Institute of Water Modeling WWF World Wildlife Fund Regional Cross-cutting FA IWMI International Water Management Institute ANNEX 8: NEW ACTIVITIES (Beginning in FY20) 105 Overview Demand for SAWI funds remains strong. Aligned with the SAWI Think Piece presented last year—which draws on lessons learned from SAWI implementation and explores key trends and emerging entry points in cooperation in transboundary waters in South Asia as a basis for increased adaptive management of the SAWI program (see Box 1)—six new activities were approved by the RIPC (see Annex 4). BOX 1: THEMATIC ENTRY POINTS FOR SAWI ENGAGEMENT The SAWI Think Piece identified four emerging thematic entry points for SAWI engagement (in addition to Power and Trade (access to markets)): (1) Groundwater Management: There is massive storage capacity in the region, but groundwater is currently poorly managed, overexploited and seriously degraded. There is rising appreciation of the need for improved groundwater management as a key to future drought and climate resilience. (2) Inland Navigation: There is regional interest in reviving inland navigation in South Asia. Transport connectivity is currently extremely low, and it is costs more to ship within the region than to outside the region. No major continental-size region of the world has developed economically without inland riverine transport. There are cost and efficiency gains of riverine transport over other means, and environmental benefits. (3) Disaster Risk and Climate Resilience: The South Asia Region is highly prone to weather-related hazards, such as droughts, floods, tropical cyclones and thunderstorms that cut across national boundaries. Hydrological and hydrometeorological forecasting capacity needs to be strengthened, as does delivery of weather and water-related information services. Because weather patterns are transboundary in nature, collaboration in monitoring, understanding and predicting events is required at the sub-regional and regional scales. (4) Ecological Integrity: There is regional realization that improved management of ecological assets (mountains, river basins, oceans, biodiversity, etc.,) that connect countries can create new shared growth opportunities and manage water-related threats, including water extremes. New, innovative approaches are needed to properly manage the ecological asset base. The six approved activities are described below: GANGES BASIN FOCUS AREA Nepal Water Platform Scope: This activity will support specific analytical and advisory services in support of the Nepal Water Strategy and Platform. Through consultative support, the activity will explore and showcase the synergies and challenges among the different uses of water for energy, water for food, and water for people, and in particular, the conjunctive management of surface water and groundwater as a means to improve water security for irrigation and drinking water in Nepal. The activity will also scope the impacts of increasing pollution and contamination of drinking water sources in urban and rural areas. The study will map potential sources of pollution and carry out a qualitative assessment of potential problems from each pollution source. Activity findings will feed into the policy dialogue with the Government of Nepal on the overall national water strategy and will be used to inform future World Bank operations. Budget Allocation: $250,000 SAWI Think Piece Entry Point Linkage: Groundwater Management and Power and Trade Nepal River Basin Planning and Sustainable Hydropower Development in a Regional Context Scope: This activity will support integrated river basin development planning and sustainable hydropower development in a regional context for major rivers in Nepal. It will prepare river basin plans through IWRM principles, which will recommend development of water use schemes for each basin (such as hydropower, water supply and irrigation) through assessing water availability and demand within each basin, with due consideration of downstream flow, including transboundary impacts, diverse user requirements, and climate change and other uncertainties. The activity will also prepare hydropower development master plans for all the major river basins in the country, with the aim to recommend optimal development of hydropower, including site location, capacity and storage type for each basin. The activity will subsequently undertake an integrated Strategic Environmental and Social Assessment of the river basin plans and hydropower development master plans to ensure the 106 integration of environmental and social dimensions in the plans, from their inception to post evaluation. The activity will provide technical assistance on strengthening climate resilience of large hydropower projects in the country and will develop the capacity in WECS and provincial and local governments in creating and maintaining a decision support system for planning and management of water resources. Budget Allocation: $180,000 SAWI Think Piece Linkage: Power and Trade and Disaster Risk and Climate Resilience BRAHMAPUTRA BASIN FOCUS AREA Agriculture-Water Nexus, Resilient Agriculture and Access to Markets in North East India Scope: This activity will support the Government of India and the States of the North East to develop a framework for resilient and commercial agriculture in the North East Region (NER). (1) It will review the stressors and socioeconomic factors influencing climate risks and vulnerabilities in the water and agriculture sectors; address the synergies and trade-offs in the water and agriculture sectors affecting smallholders; analyze the policies and institutions pertaining to climate-resilient agriculture; and identify the key interventional areas to promote climate-resilient agriculture. (2) It will conduct a review of the agriculture sector with special focus on key agri-value chains where NER is already and potentially strategically positioned to derive competitive advantage and economic impact; analyze the constraints and challenges facing the development of these value chains and opportunities for investments, including the potential for their integration in domestic and regional markets; and recommend interventions and investments for agricultural development in NER that focuses primarily on wealth creation for farmers and economic development of the region. (3) It will document good practices and lessons from existing experience in the public and private sector on climate-smart agriculture and market access for small farms. It will conduct consultation workshops with key development partners in NER and with State Governments on status, issues and strategy on agriculture-water management in small farms and on agriculture market access for small farms. Budget Allocation: $130,000 SAWI Think Piece Linkage: Groundwater Management and Disaster Risk and Climate Resilience REGIONAL CROSS-CUTTING FOCUS AREA Practitioner Program on Transboundary Watershed Management in Mountain Economies of South Asia Scope: This activity aims to provide a forum for generating and sharing practical knowledge and good practices in sustainable management of watersheds of regional importance. The Program will focus on improving the use of disruptive technologies in water resources management (for gathering information, making things differently and using them institutionally, through the sharing economy). The activity will organize a regional practitioner meeting on integrated watershed management to identify national and regional data and knowledge gaps and take stock of best practices, including on environmentally and socially sustainable hydropower development and watershed management for landslide risk reduction. The activity will create a repository of guidelines, tools and other how-to guidance on integrated watershed management and identify a host for the repository. The activity will also organize a series of knowledge sharing events, including trainings using existing materials and good practices in sustainable watershed management. Budget Allocation: $200,000 SAWI Think Piece Linkage: Ecological Integrity Strategic Environmental Analysis for Integration of Large Water Resources Infrastructure with Inland Waterways Network Shared Between Bangladesh and India to Boost Bilateral Trade and Create New Jobs in the Local Communities, Especially Women Scope: Through scenario basin planning, this activity aims to inform a process of dialogue among policymakers and stakeholders on strategic environmental analysis toward an agreement on a comprehensive network plan and appropriately phased development of inland waterways across Bangladesh and India that prioritizes trade enhancement requirements and incorporates strategic environmental dimensions. Preliminary findings will be presented in multi-stakeholder dialogue events in Delhi, Guwahati, Agartala, Silchar and Kolkata (all in India) and Rajshahi, Kurigram, Khulna, Ashuganj and Dhaka (all in Bangladesh). These meetings will aim to validate the alternative scenarios and to generate awareness on the need to integrate short haul trade routes and the longer trade routes on the waterways that potentially create jobs for the local communities, especially women and small businesses. Once the Scenario Plan is near final (ascertained through individual 107 one-on-one meetings with key stakeholders and experts), it will be shared in two key dialogue events in Delhi and Dhaka, where stakeholders from both countries will participate along with representatives of other BBIN countries, to provide a final critical comment on the Scenario Plan, including on the development strategy contained. Budget Allocation: $75,000 SAWI Think Piece Linkage: Inland Navigation Technical Assistance and Knowledge Sharing Facility for the Development of Utility Scale Floating Solar PV Power Generation in India Scope: This activity aims to inform ongoing development financing operations to demonstrate successful approaches to developing utility- scale floating solar photovoltaic (FSPV) generation projects in India. It will also help in informing such investments to make them sustainable such that environmental impacts are nil or minimal with appropriate mitigation measures in place as well as replicable. The activity will finance resource mapping of FSPV potential; technical studies and reviews of feasibility and other preparation studies and bid documents for FSPV sub-projects; knowledge sharing and stakeholder engagement activities, including market sounding exercises, seminars, workshops and study tours; and knowledge products, such as technical notes, policy notes and presentations that collect and share experience in design and operation of FSPV power plants. These activity components aim to address knowledge and experience gaps of the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) and other stakeholders, in the development, construction and operation of utility scale FSPV, and disseminate lessons to market stakeholders and policymakers. Budget Allocation: $150,000 SAWI Think Piece Linkage: Power and Trade (access to markets) ANNEX 9: WORLD BANK INVESTMENTS / OPERATIONS INFLUENCED BY SAWI (Cumulative) Bank 109 Grant World Bank Investment/ Focus Area SAWI-II Grant Development Objective of World Bank Investment/Operation Duration Investment/Op ($USD) Operation Informed ($USD million) Indus Indus Basin 700,000 1. Pakistan Water Sector To improve the country’s management and investment planning of Jun 2008 to $35M Dialogue Capacity Building and water resources in the Indus River system through: a) capacity building Jun 2021 Advisory Services Project of and support to federal institutions in water resources planning and – Additional Financing management, b) improvement in water resources management and (P155226) development in Water and Power Development Authority and c) project management and additional studies. Kabul / 600,000 2. Afghanistan Irrigation To improve access to irrigation in targeted areas and strengthen capacity Apr 2011 to $70M Kunar Basin Development and for water resources management. Dec 2020 (plus $1M Development Rehabilitation Project Counterpart) – Additional Financing (P152892) Indus Basin 295,000 3. Sindh Water Sector To improve the efficiency and effectiveness of irrigation water distribution Sept 2007 to $150M (Pakistan) Improvement Project in Ghotki Area Water Board (AWB), Nara AWB, and Left Bank AWB, all in Dec 2019 (plus $25M Groundwater Phase I (P084302) the Province of Sindh, particularly with respect to measures of reliability, Counterpart) Analysis equity and user satisfaction. Ganges Strategic Basin 4,000,000 4. India National Ganga River To support the National Ganga River Basin Authority in: (a) building May 2011 to $1000M Planning for the Basin Project (P119085) capacity of its nascent operational-level institutions, so that they can Dec 2019 (plus $556M Ganges in India manage the long-term Ganga clean-up and conservation program; and Counterpart) (b) implementing a diverse set of demonstrative investments for reducing point-source pollution loads in a sustainable manner, at priority locations on the Ganga. 5. India National Hydrology To improve the extent, quality, and accessibility of water resources Jan 2017 to $175M Project (P152698) information and to strengthen the capacity of targeted water resources Nov 2024 (plus $175M management institutions in India. Counterpart) 6. India Uttar Pradesh Water To strengthen the institutional and policy framework for integrated water Aug 2013 to $360M Sector Restructuring resources management for the entire State and increase agricultural Oct 2020 (plus $155M Project Phase II (P122770) productivity and water productivity by supporting farmers in targeted Counterpart) irrigation areas. Power Sector 2,500,000 7. Nepal Power Sector To strengthen the capacity of the power sector agencies to plan and Apr 2014 to $20M Reform and Reform and Sustainable prepare hydropower transmission line projects following international Jun 2020 (plus $1.5M Sustainable Hydropower Development standards and best practices. To improve the readiness of the power Counterpart) Hydropower (P150066) sector agencies for regulatory and institutional reforms. Development 8. Nepal Energy Sector To support the government’s efforts in improving the financial viability Sept 2018 to $100M Project (RE) Development Policy Credit and governance of the electricity sector. Mar 2019 (plus $150M (P154693) and (P170248) Counterpart) Bank Grant World Bank Investment/ Focus Area SAWI-II Grant Development Objective of World Bank Investment/Operation Duration Investment/Op ($USD) Operation Informed ($USD million) Sustainable 1,200,000 As above As above Water Resources Development for HEP in Nepal (BE) Managing 220,000 9. Nepal Kali Gandaki To improve the reliability of power supply of Kali Gandaki A Hydropower Aug 2012 to $27M Watersheds to A Hydropower Plant Plant through rehabilitation and safety measures and to and improve the Jun 2017 (plus $3M Reduce Upstream Rehabilitation Project response capacity of Nepal in case of an emergency. Counterpart) Sediment for HEP (P132289) Water Resources 500,000 India National Hydrology See earlier Management in Project (P152698) Transboundary Basins Strengthening 475,000 10. India Bihar Kosi Basin To enhance resilience to floods and increase agricultural production Dec 2015 to $250M Flood Modelling Development Project and productivity in the targeted districts in the Kosi river basin, and Mar 2023 (plus $126.5M Capacity in Bihar (P127725) to enhance Bihar’s capacity to respond promptly and effectively to an Counterpart) (RE) eligible crisis or emergency. Water Resources 500,000 11. India’s West Bengal Major To strengthen Irrigation and Flood Management capacity in West Bengal. Under $145M Management in Irrigation and Flood Preparation Transboundary Management Project Basins Bihar FMIS Flood 500,000 As above As above -- -- Forecasting Brahmaputra Basin Modeling 1,200,000 India National Hydrology See earlier -- -- and Analysis; India Project (P152698) 12. Assam Integrated River To augment the institutional capacity for improved management of Under $200M Basin Management Project floods, erosion and sediments; and to support development and Preparation (plus $50M (P158260) operation of integrated floodplain and catchment erosion management Counterpart framework for Assam. Hydromet 250,000 13. Hydro-met Services To strengthen the Royal Government of Bhutan’s capacity for improved Sept 2016 to $4M Modernization in and Disaster Resilience weather and hydrological forecasting and disaster related early warning Jun 2020 the Brahmaputra Regional Project systems. Basin (P154477) 110 Bank 111 Grant World Bank Investment/ Focus Area SAWI-II Grant Development Objective of World Bank Investment/Operation Duration Investment/Op ($USD) Operation Informed ($USD million) Bhutan Hydro- 500,000 As above As above -- -- met Services and Disaster Improvement (RE) Hydromet 250,000 14. Bangladesh Weather and To strengthen Bangladesh’s capacity to deliver reliable weather, water, Jun 2016 to $113M Modernization in Climate Services Project and climate information services and improve access to such services by Dec 2022 the Brahmaputra (P150220) priority sectors and communities. Basin BD: Strengthening 250,000 As above As above -- -- Hydromet Services and Disaster Resilience Brahmaputra Delta Management 800,000 Bangladesh Delta Plan To realise a sustainable delta vision, long term strategy and plan, Jun 2015 to $4B in total and Investment 210014 agreed with all stakeholders, for an optimum level of water safety N/A Sundarbans Planning and food security as well as economic growth and a framework for its implementation. Delta Management 800,000 15. Climate-Smart Agriculture To enhance productivity and climate resilience of irrigated agriculture, Pipeline $120M Investment and Water Management improve water management, build institutional capacity for water and Planning Project (P161534) agriculture service delivery, and improve market opportunities for farmers small-holder farmers, especially women. Sundarbans Sundarbans 2,704,812 16. Bangladesh Sustainable To increase coastal and marine fisheries’ contribution to the economy, Jul 2018 to $240M Activities Coastal and Marine poverty reduction, and environmental stability. N/A (in prep) (plus $42M Fisheries Project Counterpart) (Sundarbans (P161568) Dialogue; Targeted Environmental 17. Sustainable Forests To improve collaborative forest management and increase benefits for Oct 2018 to $175M Studies; and Livelihood Project forest dependent communities in targeted sites. Sept 2023 (plus $4M Landscape-Scale (P161996) Counterpart) Hydro-met Design; 18. Bangladesh Regional To improve Inland Water Transport (IWT) efficiency and safety for Jun 2016 to $360M Landscape- Waterway Transport passengers and cargo along the Chittagong-Dhaka-Ashuganj Regional Dec 2025 (plus $40M Scale Joint Project 1 Corridor and to enhance sector sustainability. Counterpart) Environmental Plan) 14 Note: This is not a WB lending operation / loan (as is the case of the others). It is a plan that totals $4 billion. The SAWI-financed Delta Management and Investment Plan activity supported the preparation of a shorter-term investment plan for the Bangladesh Delta Plan 2100. Bank Grant World Bank Investment/ Focus Area SAWI-II Grant Development Objective of World Bank Investment/Operation Duration Investment/Op ($USD) Operation Informed ($USD million) Bangladesh Weather and See earlier -- -- Climate Services Project (P150220) India National Hydrology See earlier -- -- Project (P152698) 19. Coastal Embankment To (a) increase the area protected in selected polders from tidal flooding Jun 2013 to US$375M Improvement Project and frequent storm surges, which are expected to worsen due to Dec 2020 (plus $25M (P128276) climate change; (b) improve agricultural production by reducing saline Counterpart) water intrusion in selected polders; and (c) improve the Government of Bangladesh’s capacity to respond promptly and effectively to an eligible crisis or emergency. 20. Integrated Coastal Zone To assist Government of India in building national capacity for Jun 2010 to US$220M Management - India implementation of comprehensive coastal management approach in the Mar 2020 (plus $60M (P097985) country, and piloting the integrated coastal zone management approach Counterpart) in states of Gujarat, Orissa and West Bengal. 21. National Cyclone Risk To reduce vulnerability to cyclone and other hydro-meteorological May 2015 to $310M Mitigation Project hazards of coastal communities in project states, and increase the Mar 2021 (plus $80M (P144726) capacity of the state entities to effectively plan for and respond to Counterpart) disasters. 22. Multipurpose Disaster To reduce the vulnerability of the coastal population in selected coastal Dec 2014 to $375M Shelter Project (P146464) districts of Bangladesh to natural disasters. Sept 2020 Regional Capacity Building 310,000 23. Punjab Rural Water Supply To improve water and sanitation service levels, reduce open defecation, Mar 2015 to $248M Cross-Cutting – Water Quality and Sanitation Project and strengthen service delivery arrangements in targeted villages in Mar 2021 (plus $106M Monitoring and (P150520) Punjab. Counterpart) Analysis Capacity Building 310,000 India National Ganga River See earlier -- -- – Water Quality Basin Project (P119085) Monitoring and Analysis Capacity Building 200,000 India National Hydrology See earlier -- -- – IWRM in Project (P152698) Transboundary River Basins 112 Bank 113 Grant World Bank Investment/ Focus Area SAWI-II Grant Development Objective of World Bank Investment/Operation Duration Investment/Op ($USD) Operation Informed ($USD million) Capacity Building 400,000 24. Atal Bhujal Yojana - To improve management of groundwater resources in selected states of Jun 2017 to $450M for Groundwater National Groundwater India. Jun 2022 (in (plus $550M Management Management Improvement prep) Counterpart) Program (P158119) Improving 125,000 25. India Neeranchal National To support the watershed development component of PMKSY through Aug 2012 to $178.5M Watershed Watershed Project technical assistance to improve incremental conservation outcomes Mar 2022 (plus $178.5M Management (P132739) and agricultural yields for communities in selected sites, and adoption of Counterpart) more effective processes and technologies in participating states. Improving Flood 500,000 India Bihar Kosi Basin See earlier -- -- Forecasting in Development Project South Asia (P127725) Glaciers of the 450,000 26. South Asia Region Climate To enable a transformational shift towards climate resilient policies, Not Identified $36M Himalayas Adaptation and Resilience planning and investments in South Asia. The Program will establish a Program regional climate resilient technical and knowledge exchange to assist countries in making policies, capacities, planning and investments in relevant sectors. These climate resilient best practices will have regional as well as global benefits in sharing of knowledge, standards and experiences. HEP Sustainable 220,000 27. South Asia Electricity To support regional cooperation in the power sector and regional Oct 2018 to $3.7M Planning Markets Program electricity market in South Asia. It will comprise advisory, analytical and Jan 2022 (P167971) capacity building and knowledge sharing activities that will enhance country client readiness for power trade and energy cooperation; develop options for regional power market trade and development and foster the authorizing environment for regional power market trade and development. Investments / Operations 26 SAWI Activities Linked to World Bank Informed Investments/Operations = US$5.7B Grant Allocation Total = US$18.9M Investment Co-finance = US$2.3B SAWI is Linked to 27 World Bank Investments/Operations (Valued at US$5.7B)