Strategic Opportunities for Living Rivers

About this grant

The International Rivers Network’s Strategic Opportunities for Living Rivers project supports a global network of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), grassroots groups and communities committed to protecting the environmental integrity of rivers and watersheds in developing countries. It addresses global policy and includes on-the-ground work in Latin America and Africa.Multiyear funding will enable the network to pursue objectives that include preventing the World Bank and other international financial institutions from backsliding on environmental and social safeguard policies; increasing commitments from international financial institutions to follow recommendations made by the World Commission on Dams; and working with NGOs to provide technical input into international financial institution water policy review processes. Latin America objectives include supporting NGOs and indigenous organizations to monitor and influence the development of new dams and industrial waterways; and influencing Inter-American Development Bank investments in river infrastructure in Latin America. Africa objectives include encouraging citizen participation in the Nile Basin Initiative; providing support to African groups monitoring large dam projects in Uganda, Mozambique and Lesotho; and promoting alternatives to large dams in Africa.During the past two years, accomplishments included convening more than 300 people from 62 countries for the conference, “Rivers for Life”; producing several reports analyzing World Bank loans and policy trends related to large dams; and providing organizations in Latin America and Africa with critical information about dam projects and guidelines.