The VKP water management committee: An inspiring and successful experience for water management and stakeholder engagement

Abstract

Before the launch of the participatory process aimed at implementing a Shared Water Policy in 2018, several local consultations had been initiated at the beginning of the 2010s in catchment areas where concurrent water uses were becoming problematic. The very first experience of participation in New Caledonia took place in 2015 with the Voh-Koné-Pouembout local water management committee. This local experience was one of the cornerstones of the methodology used for the Shared Water Policy. This chapter recounts this shared experience. The municipalities of Voh-Koné- and Pouembout villages, located in the North-West of New Caledonia, faced unprecedented development generated by the establishment of an international scale nickel mining industrial complex, the Koniambo Nickel Project, from 2006 onwards. To cope with the risks of shortages, quality degradation and conflict over water rights, the Northern Province created a local water committee (the Water Management Committee of Voh-Koné-Pouembout—VKP WMC) to facilitate regional development while safeguarding water resources. The VKP WMC members (experts, customary leaders, farmers, etc.) have developed an integrated water resource management program using participatory methods. The authors, directly involved in this local participation process, describe the tools they used to facilitate water management coordination. This experience of governance was unique to New Caledonia and has been praised by all its members for its ability to unite and coordinate actions that benefit the population