Presented by IWMI's Amgad Elmahdi at a water accounting webinar series hosted by FAO, on June 9, 2020.

1. Water Accounting Team
and Reporting Framework
Dr Amgad Elmahdi
Head of MENA Region-IWMI
9th June 2020

2. Who we Are
• Think tank conducting research
to generative Innovative Water
Solutions for Sustainable
Development
• Provider of science for a
transformative agenda (science-
based products and tools)
Food – To improve food
security will sustainably
managing water resources and
ecosystems.
Climate – To adapt to and
mitigate climate change while
building resilience to water
related disasters and disruption.
Growth – To reduce poverty
and advance inclusion with
equality as agriculture
transforms, energy transitions
and urbanization intensifies.
• Facilitator of learning to
strengthen capacity and achieve
uptake of research findings

3. What is Water Accounting
Water accounting as a discipline is not new
UNSD, UN-Water, FAO, IWMI, IWMI-IHE, ICID, Aust
Gov
Preconditions for successful water management:
• knowledge of the current status of water
resources,
• the capacity and condition of water supply
infrastructure and
• trends in water demand and use
principle method of water accounting is statistical.
• water a scarce resource in the area
• water sharing plan in place
• regularly publish water information reports

4. What is Water Accounting
Water accounting can be defined as the systematic quantitative
assessment of the status and trends in water supply, demand,
distribution, accessibility and use in specified domains, producing
information that informs water science, management and
governance to support sustainable development outcomes for
society and the environment (FAO, 2012, 2016)

5. Why do we do water accounting?
Planning and real situation are different WA can account the real
situation of water in an spatial
domain
Water shortage problem is happening and
can be appeared in many places
WA can inform improving
productivity and efficiency of
water
Not enough information about water cycle WA give clear view of water
resources management to
planner and DM

6. Questions, need for Multi-scalar analysis
River basin or watershed
Irrigation scheme
Field or land holding
➢Scope for augmenting water resources availability for
rainfed and irrigated agriculture
➢Potential for improving basin level efficiency and
productivity by capturing return flows and minimising large-
scale non-beneficial consumptive water uses.
➢Spatial analysis of levels of variability and equity in
supply and demand to different irrigation units or user groups.
➢ Potential for improving scheme-level efficiency and
productivity by e.g. improved scheme
governance/management, better O&M
➢ Identification and evaluation different user-level drivers
e.g. profit, risk minimisation, reduced labour costs etc
➢Potential for improving field or landholding productivity
by e.g. Improved irrigation agronomy, better connection to
markets, better farming systems
Spatial scales Typical WA&A focus /questions

8. Water Accounting : Purpose
• Provides answers to key questions on water:
available, entitled and used, traded
(virtual water or between boundaries),
and lost on a standard format
• Increase transparency of water
management and accountability across the
country
• Provides comparable information: spatially
and temporally
• Guides policy makers, regulating authorities
and other water managers on water
resources planning and investment
Decisions
• Improved awareness of general public on
the status of water availability and use
• highlights gaps and inconsistencies in
data, knowledge, and methods, allowing
improvements to be made to water
information base.
Photo: Thomson reservoir (Alison Pouliot)

9. Water Policy Questions
• Is water flowing to the highest value
users?
• Are water providers achieving full cost
recovery?
• What are the economic, environmental
and social impact of changes in water
resources allocation and use?
• Are virtual water markets open and
efficient?
• Are water uses and the water supply
infrastructure supports this
economically efficient and sustainable?
• Is there consistency in water pricing
across sectors and between
jurisdictions?
• Are environment and other public
benefit outcomes being achieved?
M. Pedro-Monzonís et al., 2016

10. Support Decisions in Harsh Climate to
Support Water managers
Drainage
Urban
growth
Water
security
Water use
behaviour
Environmental
flows
Allocation DroughtIntensification
Economic
Development
Data
Monitoring/
Availability

11. Water Accounting Reporting System Framework
WA
Reporting
WA
Line items
WA
Tools
How much
Available
How much use
Who has right to
use
What and
where,
indicators
Sources ( SW,
GW, WW, Desl,
ect)
Changes of
availability
Changes of use
Changes of right
to use
Data (primary
and secondary)
Estimated
(Models
&analysis)
WA+, SEEW, WB,
etc
Expert opinion
Purposeandcasestudy
casestudy
casestudyandAudience
everyone
(Amgad Elmahdi, 2020 “Guided Paper: Water Accounting Reporting System –WARS Framework from Concept to Implementation for Sustainable
Water Management” Int J Environ Sci Nat Res : 23 ((4)), https://juniperpublishers.com/ijesnr/pdf)
Stakeholders and Users Engagements

12. Adding value, informing decisions
Monitoring
Quality assurance
Archiving
Local reporting
Sharing—scaling up, standardising
Integration—combining data
Modelling—prediction, interpolation
Analysis and comparison
National insight
Forecasting
Data Providers
National Agencies
Water Accounting

13. Water Accounting – Elements
• Temporal Scale
Monthly, seasonally, annually
• Spatial Scale
Sub-Catchment, region, basin, irrigation area,
district, governorate, national, etc
• Scope
Water flow (hydrological boundaries)
Water economy (administrative/ jurisdictional
boundaries)
Combined
• Institutional
– Water Act/Law
– Data Regulations
– partnership
• Data management
– Central
– Scatter
– Reporting partners

14. Reporting
Private
Sectors
Ministry
ofwater
Institutions
Other
Ministries
WaterResourcesPlan
Institutions
System
Team
Data
Water Accounting Frameworks
Design
Roadmap: Tailored Water Accounting
Amgad Elmahdi (2019). Road Maps for Water Accounting Designing and Institutionalizing for Sustainable Water Management
in MENA Region. Int J Environ Sci Nat Res. 2019; 22(4): 556092)

15. Roadmap : Water Accounting institutionalizing
Water Accounting
institutionalizing
Purpose
Information &
Accuracy
Data
Requirements
& sources
Stakeholders
&
Users
Existing
Institutions &
polices &
plans
New
Mandates &
Accountability
Amgad Elmahdi (2019). Road Maps for Water Accounting Designing and
Institutionalizing for Sustainable Water Management in MENA Region.
Int J Environ Sci Nat Res. 2019; 22(4): 556092)

16. Reporting: Simple to Complex

17. Water Accounting Team

18. Water Accounting team

19. Joint Functions
• Discuss and decide on the temporal and spatial
boundaries of the water accounting targeting
region;
• Discuss the key components of the regions;
• Identifying the key data required and its sources;
• Agreed on the reporting structure to represent the
key component of the targeting region;
• Discuss the best methods to estimates water
accounting components and fluxes;
• Discuss the results of WA and how to improve it.

20. Producers

21. Analysts

22. Water
Accounting
Reports
WRP
Data
Models within
implementing
agency
Private
sector/industry
Other Gov
Agencies and
ministries
Governorates
Data Sources

23. Key Potential Users
Water Accounting
Information
Implementing
Agency
Cabinet
Other Gov
Agencies
Water
Sectors
Investors
Public
• Water Accounts relatively
new tool for policy
makers and researchers
• Potential in decision-
making and analysis yet
to be fully realized

24. Models WA
Frameworks
Data Reporting

25. Key Elements of Water Accounting Report
• Contextual Component
• Accountability Component
• Statement of Water Assets and Water Liabilities
• Statement of Changes in Water Assets and
Water Liabilities
• Statement of Water Flows
• Note disclosures

26. KEY FEATURES OF THE WATER
ACCOUNTING REPORT

27. Contextual Component
Understand the
physical and
administrative
aspects of the
water report entity
Contextual
information about
the water assets
and water
liabilities of the
water report
entity
Climatic
conditions
experienced
before and during
the reporting
period
Significant
conditions
included in, or
changes to,
institutional or
administrative
arrangements
Policies and
practices for
managing water
assets and water
liabilities that have
been adopted by
the management of
the water report
entity

28. Accountability Component
• Whether the report has been prepared in accordance with the
Country water laws Or not.
• Data providers

29. Water Accounting Components

30. Key Steps

31. Reporting
Tool

32. National

33. Regional

34. Regional/Local

35. Urban Water Accounting
0% Error

36. National Summary

37. By Industry

38. By system

39. Take home messages
• Water Accounting and its reporting framework
(tailored, integrated, detailed, standardised)
• Accountable team needs to be in place with clear
mandates
• Reporting framework needs to be designed with
stakeholders inputs in particular end-users
• WA and its team, providing data checking and
quality control for other products
• It is a collective action within team and between
teams
• WA Reporting is empowering the water managers
and users
• Investments sometime are needed

40. Thank You
Dr Amgad Elmahdi
Head of MENA Region
A.Elmahdi@cgiar.org