Franco, Jennifer; Mehta, Lyla. (2015) The Global Politics of Water Grabbing

The contestationandappropriationofwaterisnotnew,butithasbeenhighlightedbyrecentglobaldebatesonlandgrabbing.Watergrabbingtakesplaceinafieldthatislocallyandgloballyplural-legal.Formallawhasbeenfosteringbothlandandwatergrabsbutformalwaterandlandmanagementhavebeenseparatedfromeachother—aninstitutionalvoidthatmakesencroachmenteveneasier.Ambiguousprocessesofglobalwaterandlandgovernancehaveincreasedlocal-leveluncertaintiesandcomplexitiesthatpowerfulplayerscannavigate,makingthemintomechanismsofexclusionofpoorandmarginalisedpeople.Asinformallandmanagementcorporateinflu-encehasgrown.Forlesspowerfulplayersresolvingambiguitiesinconflictingregulatoryframeworksmayrequiretippingthebalancetowardsthemostconge-nial.Yet,comparedwithlandgovernance,globalwatergovernanceislesscontestedfromanequityandwaterjusticeperspective,eventhoughlandisfixed,while waterisfluidandpartofthehydrologicalcycle;thereforewatergrabbingpotentiallyaffectsgreaternumbersofdiversewaterusers.Watergrabbingcanbeapowerfulentrypointforthecontestationneededtobuildcounterweightstotheneoliberal,corporatebusiness-ledconvergenceinglobalresourcegovernancediscoursesandprocesses.Elaboratingahumanrighttowaterinresponsetowatergrabbingisurgentlyneeded.