Perspective Chapter: Challenges of Water Needs – Water Management Experiences in the Chaco Region

Abstract

About 2.4 billion people in the world live in water-scarce regions. Approximately half of the world’s population suffers from water scarcity for at least part of the year and 52% will be severely water-stressed by 2050. These figures are expected to increase, exacerbated by climate change and population growth. In Argentina, there is a semi-arid sub-region representative of the South American biome known as Gran Chaco, in the Chaco Salteño area (northwest). Here, access to water in rural communities is a structural problem, representing the greatest constraint to the productive capacity and resilience to climate change of families. At the socioeconomic level, it is one of the regions with the worst rates of access to water and sanitation, and with the highest levels of unsatisfied basic needs. Indeed, one of the most pressing problems is the lack of water in sufficient volumes for consumption and production. In this context, it is imperative to manage access to safe water, with technical solutions appropriate to the social, cultural, and environmental context and that are sustainable over time. This document analyzes this problem in the region, presenting successful experiences of water management based on collaboration between the State and civil society.