Thematic Background Papers on Water Tenure for Food Security, Climate Resilience and Equity

Water tenure – the legal or customary relationship between people and water resources – plays a key role in water governance and the practices and processes around water management and allocation. Water tenure is vital in ensuring sustainable livelihoods, good governance, environmental protection, and sustainable economic development and, as such, is a key component in reaching many of the Sustainable Development Goals.

In preparation of a water tenure workshop, organised and implemented by adelphi, the three background paper introduce the topic of water tenure, focusing on its linkages to (1) food security, (2) social inclusion and (3) climate resilience.