Back to news
20 Feb 2015 | News

ICIMOD and partners launch project on community-based water use planning

ICIMOD hosted a workshop to launch the project ‘Reviving springs and providing access to solar powered irrigation pumps (SPIP) through community-based water use planning’ from 18 to 20 February 2015. The two-year project is funded by the CGIAR research programme on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE) under its Ganges Focal Region project. The project is led by ICIMOD in partnership with Helvetas (Nepal), ACWADAM (India), Atom Solar (India), and researchers from George Washington University and Harvard University.

2 mins Read

70% Complete
A delegation from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) visited ICIMOD to discuss current and prospective areas for collaboration with ICIMOD.

The workshop aimed to explain how the concept of water use master plan (WUMP) would contribute to reviving springs and piloting SPIP in Nepal and India, as well as to share some of the spring revival work done by ICIMOD and Nepal Water Conservation Foundation (NWCF) in 2014. There were five sessions spread across three days.  The first session announced the formal launch of the project. The WLE programme on reviving springs and promoting SPIP will carry out impactful research to improve policy and the livelihoods of people in the mid-hills and the Terai region of Nepal. While implementing the project, special attention will be paid to women to ensure that they are included in the local planning process, revival of springs and piloting of solar pumps.

The second session was on WUMP and its use in reviving springs and piloting solar pumps. WUMP is a participatory bottom-up approach used by Helvetas and its partners for comprehensive mapping of all water resources followed by an investment prioritization activity by the same community. Bottom-up water resource planning methods like that of WUMP can play an important role in spring revival activities in the mid hills of Nepal and in India. Similarly, implementation of SPIP can benefit from such local level water use planning and buy-in by local governments.

In the third session the focus was on spring revival activities. ACWADAM has been promoting spring revival through an integrated approach, with spring shed as the implementing unit. Socioeconomic and possible changes in rainfall pattern have led to drying up of springs. Community awareness and involvement, especially through the active participation of women, is essential to promote a culture of conservation. Spring revival has not yet received the kind of policy attention it deserves. A decentralized framework with synergies across various sectors and community participation is required for spring shed development.

The fourth and fifth sessions were on SPIP. A major challenge for adoption of SPIP is the high upfront cost. Bangladesh has followed a grant and equity model. In India, states offer high subsidy for the systems. Nepal is yet to finalize a SPIP policy but the Alternative Energy Promotion Centre and the Department of Irrigation are keen to promote the technology. An innovative model, Solar Power as a Remunerative Crop (SPaRC), was introduced. Practitioners and companies from Bangladesh, India and Nepal presented various case studies and discussed the challenges and opportunities in this sector. During group discussion, participants analysed various financial and institutional models for the pilot to be conducted in the Nepal Terai.

Stay current

Stay up to date on what’s happening around the HKH with our most recent publications and find out how you can help by subscribing to our mailing list.

Sign Up

RELATED CONTENTS

Continue exploring this topic

12 Feb 2015 News
Symposium on mountain forestry makes policy recommendations

In his inaugural address, Dr David Molden, Director General of ICIMOD, stressed the need for paradigm shift in managing Himalayan forests. ...

25 May 2015 News
ICIMOD to lead SAARC CCI’s climate-related activities

Participants from ICIMOD attended the 62nd Executive Committee and 20th General Assembly of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation Chamber ...

15 Sep 2016 News
Flood Mapping Made Easier in Bihar

Bihar, India’s most flood-prone state, is under constant threat of flooding. Every year, floods destroy lives, livestock, infrastructure and bring ...

30 Sep 2019 Livelihoods
Himalayan large black cardamom: Geographical indication key to developing value chain in the Kangchenjunga Landscape

During the workshop, Kinlay Tshering, Director of the Department of Agriculture, Bhutan, emphasized the need to capitalize on the unmet ...

19 May 2015 News
International Conference on Ecotourism in Protected Areas opens in Myanmar

The International Conference on Ecotourism in Protected Areas in Myanmar opened today afternoon at the Myanmar International Convention Centre (II), ...

Bhutan, India, and Nepal to Strengthen Regional Cooperation through Tourism in the Kangchenjunga Landscape

The event focused on sharing existing practices and improving the potential and future prospects of tourism as a major conservation ...

Emissions Study to Differentiate Characteristics of Paddy and Wheat Crop Residue Burning

Mehra collected wheat residue samples from the same districts, Kapilvastu and Rupendehi, where she had collected the paddy residue samples ...

19 Feb 2015 News
HICAP’s Work on Gender Applauded at CRM Expert Working Group Meeting

The study focused on the multiple drivers of change impacting women in Nepal and ...