Access to water and peacebuilding

The nexus between access to water and peacebuilding has several dimensions and remains complex. Proper water resource management is vital for meeting basic human needs, restoring livelihoods and food security and, more broadly, in post-conflict recovery and peacebuilding. This chapter, drawing upon the evolution from traditional peacebuilding to ‘hybrid’ peacebuilding, explores how the normative and institutional mechanisms available under international law, specifically the human right to safe drinking water and international water law, may support equitable water resources management and thereby contribute to peacebuilding efforts. It argues that adopting an approach relying on principles and rules of international law to peacebuilding enables the better management of complex situations in post-conflict states, enhances the legitimacy and credibility of the state, fosters human rights, and sustains long-term peace.