80
3 Water Resources Management Institutions
insist on comprehensive consideration to guarantee reasonable water requirements
and sustainable water resources development to provide water security for social and
economic development.
4
The 2018 governmental restructuring has reformed the MWR into an agency for
water infrastructure planning, construction, and operation, and for the management of
water resources, waters, and their shorelines. At present, it is too early to conclude that
the 2018 reform of the MWR is a finalized plan for the water sector over the next 20 or
more years or an interim plan for further reform. The 2018 restructuring has changed
the concept of “unified water resources management” in institutional design that the
water sector and the MWR have pursued since the 1980s and almost realized in 1998.
In 2018, the design of the water institution adopted a concept of “quantity and quality
separation, resources asset and resources management separation, daily management
and emergency management separation.” The water quantity management is assigned
to the MWR, with quality management assigned to the MEE. The resources asset is
managed by the MNR and resources by the MWR. The daily operations are handled
by the MWR, while the MEM is responsible for emergency response.
3.6 Summary: Transition of Water Resources Institutions
in China
In the 70 years from 1949 to 2018, with the country developing from an agricultural
to an industrialized economy, the role of the water sector has experienced significant
changes. The focus of the water sector has shifted first from water resources project
construction to water resources management and subsequently to water resources
saving and protection. The sector’s service purposes have been transformed from
agricultural to industrial, domestic, and eco-environmental. The sector’s functions
have changed from providing water supply for agriculture and hydropower development to water supply for urban and industrial sectors. The concepts of water have
changed from water supply, water resources, and water resources asset. In terms of
periodization, the 1950s focused primarily on agricultural water supply, while the
1960s prioritized both hydropower development and agricultural water supply. The
late 1970s when China launched its opening and reform policy was a turning point
for industrial and urban water supply, while the late 1990s saw the beginning of an
emphasis on water resources management.
All these changes mark on water resources institution. Over the past 70 years, the
key functions of the water resources management agency or MWR have undergone
several alterations, as shown in Table 3.1
At the same time, the cross-cutting functions between the MWR and other waterrelated agencies at the central government level could be investigated:
4 http://www.mwr.gov.cn/jg/zzjg/gyslb/.
3 Water Resources Management Institutions
insist on comprehensive consideration to guarantee reasonable water requirements
and sustainable water resources development to provide water security for social and
economic development.
4
The 2018 governmental restructuring has reformed the MWR into an agency for
water infrastructure planning, construction, and operation, and for the management of
water resources, waters, and their shorelines. At present, it is too early to conclude that
the 2018 reform of the MWR is a finalized plan for the water sector over the next 20 or
more years or an interim plan for further reform. The 2018 restructuring has changed
the concept of “unified water resources management” in institutional design that the
water sector and the MWR have pursued since the 1980s and almost realized in 1998.
In 2018, the design of the water institution adopted a concept of “quantity and quality
separation, resources asset and resources management separation, daily management
and emergency management separation.” The water quantity management is assigned
to the MWR, with quality management assigned to the MEE. The resources asset is
managed by the MNR and resources by the MWR. The daily operations are handled
by the MWR, while the MEM is responsible for emergency response.
3.6 Summary: Transition of Water Resources Institutions
in China
In the 70 years from 1949 to 2018, with the country developing from an agricultural
to an industrialized economy, the role of the water sector has experienced significant
changes. The focus of the water sector has shifted first from water resources project
construction to water resources management and subsequently to water resources
saving and protection. The sector’s service purposes have been transformed from
agricultural to industrial, domestic, and eco-environmental. The sector’s functions
have changed from providing water supply for agriculture and hydropower development to water supply for urban and industrial sectors. The concepts of water have
changed from water supply, water resources, and water resources asset. In terms of
periodization, the 1950s focused primarily on agricultural water supply, while the
1960s prioritized both hydropower development and agricultural water supply. The
late 1970s when China launched its opening and reform policy was a turning point
for industrial and urban water supply, while the late 1990s saw the beginning of an
emphasis on water resources management.
All these changes mark on water resources institution. Over the past 70 years, the
key functions of the water resources management agency or MWR have undergone
several alterations, as shown in Table 3.1
At the same time, the cross-cutting functions between the MWR and other waterrelated agencies at the central government level could be investigated:
4 http://www.mwr.gov.cn/jg/zzjg/gyslb/.