283
cally orientated measures to prevent further decline of the Dead Sea. Other aspects,
such as the technical feasibility to produce energy with saline water, have not been
taken into account from the beginning.
Particularly in Jordan, the interests of vested groups work against the implementation
of transformative political and administrative reforms (Yorke 2013 ). International
donors can even be regarded as being complicit in these outcomes, since their funding
of aid projects and budgets also underpinned state largesse from which these groups
benefi tted in the past (Yorke 2015 , in this volume, pp. 227–251). Therefore, the future
role of the international donor community should be evaluated critically, and their policies should match a common development strategy with projects and funds being fairly
distributed among riparian states. Specifi c competences and duties should be assigned
to each riparian according to their capacities, thus avoiding inconsistencies and enhancing effi ciency.
Jordan in principle has a strong incentive to reap the benefi ts of improved regional
cooperation. But a platform for such regional cooperation in the region is missing.
It could be the role of international donor organisations particularly in the light of
the planned RSDS Conveyance Project to provide such a platform for mutual
exchange as a means of trust building, to enhance transparency of the decisionmaking process and to provide reliable databases about water resource availability
and water distribution. At present, any advances in this direction have been blocked
by the failing Israeli-Palestinian “peace process”.
The infl uence of an “ideological narrative” rather than economic considerations
on agricultural planning is particularly evident in the Middle East. In some parts of
the Jordan Basin, giving up agricultural cultivation entirely or switching back to
dryland agriculture in favour of ecological rehabilitation projects could even create
win-win situations, especially where the contribution of agriculture to the state
economy is minor. Research in enhancing productivity of dryland agriculture should
therefore be intensifi ed (Bismuth et al. 2015b , in this volume). Also, the role of
“virtual water trade” in the resource strategies of the countries and its effect on the
economies, revenues and trade balances still need further research. The same applies
to the effects of global food shortages and price hikes.
17.4 Cross-Analysis of the Case Studies
Despite signifi cant differences and varying framework conditions between the two
case studies, we believe that it is exactly due to these variations in water management and water governance structures that allow us to defi ne overarching trends
regarding the management of MWEPs, to formulate open research questions and to
derive options for action.
Even though cultures, societies, historical backgrounds and political and economic systems differ considerably between the two case studies, they show some
striking parallels:
17 Lessons Learnt, Open Research Questions and Recommendations
cally orientated measures to prevent further decline of the Dead Sea. Other aspects,
such as the technical feasibility to produce energy with saline water, have not been
taken into account from the beginning.
Particularly in Jordan, the interests of vested groups work against the implementation
of transformative political and administrative reforms (Yorke 2013 ). International
donors can even be regarded as being complicit in these outcomes, since their funding
of aid projects and budgets also underpinned state largesse from which these groups
benefi tted in the past (Yorke 2015 , in this volume, pp. 227–251). Therefore, the future
role of the international donor community should be evaluated critically, and their policies should match a common development strategy with projects and funds being fairly
distributed among riparian states. Specifi c competences and duties should be assigned
to each riparian according to their capacities, thus avoiding inconsistencies and enhancing effi ciency.
Jordan in principle has a strong incentive to reap the benefi ts of improved regional
cooperation. But a platform for such regional cooperation in the region is missing.
It could be the role of international donor organisations particularly in the light of
the planned RSDS Conveyance Project to provide such a platform for mutual
exchange as a means of trust building, to enhance transparency of the decisionmaking process and to provide reliable databases about water resource availability
and water distribution. At present, any advances in this direction have been blocked
by the failing Israeli-Palestinian “peace process”.
The infl uence of an “ideological narrative” rather than economic considerations
on agricultural planning is particularly evident in the Middle East. In some parts of
the Jordan Basin, giving up agricultural cultivation entirely or switching back to
dryland agriculture in favour of ecological rehabilitation projects could even create
win-win situations, especially where the contribution of agriculture to the state
economy is minor. Research in enhancing productivity of dryland agriculture should
therefore be intensifi ed (Bismuth et al. 2015b , in this volume). Also, the role of
“virtual water trade” in the resource strategies of the countries and its effect on the
economies, revenues and trade balances still need further research. The same applies
to the effects of global food shortages and price hikes.
17.4 Cross-Analysis of the Case Studies
Despite signifi cant differences and varying framework conditions between the two
case studies, we believe that it is exactly due to these variations in water management and water governance structures that allow us to defi ne overarching trends
regarding the management of MWEPs, to formulate open research questions and to
derive options for action.
Even though cultures, societies, historical backgrounds and political and economic systems differ considerably between the two case studies, they show some
striking parallels:
17 Lessons Learnt, Open Research Questions and Recommendations