The project was conceived as part of a longer-term, two Phase programme. Phase I (this project) will assess the viability of establishing practical guidelines and address critical issues such as the constraints imposed by lack of, or poor, quality data. Following this, the specification for an integrated water information system will be designed and a pilot system developed for dissemination and demonstration purposes. The potential for further development in Phase II (not included in this project) would aim to take this work forward and develop a full prototype system once the viability and outline system framework have been clearly established and demonstrated.

The project is planned to run for 27 months and is divided into two main stages.

Stage 1: Guidelines for assessing water demand, use and allocation will be developed drawing together best-practice and improved methodologies for estimating key parameters and variables.

• Review and co-ordinate with complementary initiatives
• Comprehensive literature search and review of current methods
• Define requirements and methods to overcome data constraints
• Formulate guidelines and assessment methods
• Application, review and finalisation of guidelines
• Produce, publish and disseminate guidelines (including training)

Stage 2: A pilot IWIM system will be developed, demonstrated and disseminated.

• Review of system and users needs
• Develop framework and specification for IWIM system
• Develop demonstration IWIM system for pilot area
• Disseminate demonstration system

Output 1 - Guidelines for improved assessment of multi-sectoral water demand, allocation and current use developed

It is important that detailed formulation and implementation of the research project is carried out within the context of complementary initiatives in Zimbabwe, including those supported by DFID. Specific examples include capacity building programmes within the WRMS and KAR Project No. R7137 "Integrated Planning and Management of Water Resources" led by the Institute of Hydrology. Close liaison will be maintained with the Senior Engineering Advisor in Harare and HR will act as lead co-ordinator with R7137. Specific actions will include six-monthly meetings with IH project staff in the UK and periodic meetings in Zimbabwe, to which representatives from our respective collaborating organisations will be invited. The first in-country meeting will take place during Visit 1.

The work will be initiated by a literature search and review of current methods which will focus on both developing and developed country contexts. Consultation with UK and overseas planning departments/agencies will be initiated and a first visit to Zimbabwe undertaken to formulate detailed planning of the project and to obtain the Zimbabwe perspective - Visit 1. Discussions with planners in the Department of Water Resources (DWR), other government departments (MLGRUD, NAC, RWA, EMA, ZESA, etc.) and other key stakeholders (CFU, ZFU, CZI, etc.) will be held and an informal network established with DWR at its hub.

Identification of data sources and preliminary data collection will be initiated and coordinated by DWR. The scope and requirements of guidelines will be undertaken in close consultation with DWR and other potential users during a Visit 2 to Zimbabwe. Guideline specifications will be defined in detail, data collection for a pilot area initiated, and constraints due to lack of or poor quality data assessed. The potential for proxy indicators to overcome data constraints will be investigated.

Draft guidelines will be developed and include chapters on data requirements, data collection methods, methods of analysis and presentation of data. Techniques for economic assessment of water use will be reviewed and a specialist water resource economist consulted. As a result, methods for further analysis of baseline information, including economic aspects, will be developed and incorporated into the guidelines. It is important that the guidelines are logical and coherent, and are in a form that can be readily used. As potential users of the guidelines, staff at DWR will have a major role in the formulation and assessment of the guidelines.

Visit 3 will focus on training DWR staff in the use of the guidelines and initiate a trial application in a pilot catchment or sub-catchment. Use will be made of readily available data/information and no field data collection is planned. Following the trial application and assessment, a thorough peer review and updating of the guidelines will be undertaken before final publication and dissemination of the output.

Output 2 - Demonstration integrated water information management (IWIM) system developed

Output 2 is dependent on activities undertaken in Output 1 but its inter-relationship with Output 1 means they can be partially worked on in parallel. Initial requirements and constraints will be identified in collaboration with planners and engineers from DWR, literature reviews and interviews with water use experts in the UK and overseas.

Detailed and comprehensive draft specifications will be developed based on the development of the guidelines but also bearing in mind the need for a framework which enhances information availability, exchange and communication at national, regional and local levels. A mid-term review and assessment will be made during Visit 3 before finalising the system framework and specification.

Based on the specification, work on the development of modules of the pilot system, and inter-linkages between them, will begin. The pilot IWIM system is likely to combine relational databases and GIS technology to produce user-friendly spatial representations of the required features in a desk-top IT format. Modules are likely to include data entry and checking, manipulation and presentation, and associated post-processing and analysis tools. Pilot system development will be reviewed during Visit 4. This visit will also train DWR staff in the basic concepts. Example data/information from the pilot area will be collated and utilised in the demonstration system.

The objective of Visit 5 is to disseminate the demonstration system among potential users in Zimbabwe. An open-day at DWR and presentation at a regional forum will be included.

The project was conceived as part of a longer-term, two Phase programme. Phase I (this project) will assess the viability of establishing practical guidelines and address critical issues such as the constraints imposed by lack of, or poor, quality data. Following this, the specification for an integrated water information system will be designed and a pilot system developed for dissemination and demonstration purposes. The potential for further development in Phase II (not included in this project) would aim to take this work forward and develop a full prototype system once the viability and outline system framework have been clearly established and demonstrated.

The project is planned to run for 27 months and is divided into two main stages.

Stage 1: Guidelines for assessing water demand, use and allocation will be developed drawing together best-practice and improved methodologies for estimating key parameters and variables.

• Review and co-ordinate with complementary initiatives
• Comprehensive literature search and review of current methods
• Define requirements and methods to overcome data constraints
• Formulate guidelines and assessment methods
• Application, review and finalisation of guidelines
• Produce, publish and disseminate guidelines (including training)

Stage 2: A pilot IWIM system will be developed, demonstrated and disseminated.

• Review of system and users needs
• Develop framework and specification for IWIM system
• Develop demonstration IWIM system for pilot area
• Disseminate demonstration system

Output 1 - Guidelines for improved assessment of multi-sectoral water demand, allocation and current use developed

It is important that detailed formulation and implementation of the research project is carried out within the context of complementary initiatives in Zimbabwe, including those supported by DFID. Specific examples include capacity building programmes within the WRMS and KAR Project No. R7137 "Integrated Planning and Management of Water Resources" led by the Institute of Hydrology. Close liaison will be maintained with the Senior Engineering Advisor in Harare and HR will act as lead co-ordinator with R7137. Specific actions will include six-monthly meetings with IH project staff in the UK and periodic meetings in Zimbabwe, to which representatives from our respective collaborating organisations will be invited. The first in-country meeting will take place during Visit 1.

The work will be initiated by a literature search and review of current methods which will focus on both developing and developed country contexts. Consultation with UK and overseas planning departments/agencies will be initiated and a first visit to Zimbabwe undertaken to formulate detailed planning of the project and to obtain the Zimbabwe perspective - Visit 1. Discussions with planners in the Department of Water Resources (DWR), other government departments (MLGRUD, NAC, RWA, EMA, ZESA, etc.) and other key stakeholders (CFU, ZFU, CZI, etc.) will be held and an informal network established with DWR at its hub.

Identification of data sources and preliminary data collection will be initiated and coordinated by DWR. The scope and requirements of guidelines will be undertaken in close consultation with DWR and other potential users during a Visit 2 to Zimbabwe. Guideline specifications will be defined in detail, data collection for a pilot area initiated, and constraints due to lack of or poor quality data assessed. The potential for proxy indicators to overcome data constraints will be investigated.

Draft guidelines will be developed and include chapters on data requirements, data collection methods, methods of analysis and presentation of data. Techniques for economic assessment of water use will be reviewed and a specialist water resource economist consulted. As a result, methods for further analysis of baseline information, including economic aspects, will be developed and incorporated into the guidelines. It is important that the guidelines are logical and coherent, and are in a form that can be readily used. As potential users of the guidelines, staff at DWR will have a major role in the formulation and assessment of the guidelines.

Visit 3 will focus on training DWR staff in the use of the guidelines and initiate a trial application in a pilot catchment or sub-catchment. Use will be made of readily available data/information and no field data collection is planned. Following the trial application and assessment, a thorough peer review and updating of the guidelines will be undertaken before final publication and dissemination of the output.

Output 2 - Demonstration integrated water information management (IWIM) system developed

Output 2 is dependent on activities undertaken in Output 1 but its inter-relationship with Output 1 means they can be partially worked on in parallel. Initial requirements and constraints will be identified in collaboration with planners and engineers from DWR, literature reviews and interviews with water use experts in the UK and overseas.

Detailed and comprehensive draft specifications will be developed based on the development of the guidelines but also bearing in mind the need for a framework which enhances information availability, exchange and communication at national, regional and local levels. A mid-term review and assessment will be made during Visit 3 before finalising the system framework and specification.

Based on the specification, work on the development of modules of the pilot system, and inter-linkages between them, will begin. The pilot IWIM system is likely to combine relational databases and GIS technology to produce user-friendly spatial representations of the required features in a desk-top IT format. Modules are likely to include data entry and checking, manipulation and presentation, and associated post-processing and analysis tools. Pilot system development will be reviewed during Visit 4. This visit will also train DWR staff in the basic concepts. Example data/information from the pilot area will be collated and utilised in the demonstration system.

The objective of Visit 5 is to disseminate the demonstration system among potential users in Zimbabwe. An open-day at DWR and presentation at a regional forum will be included.

The outputs will be disseminated through HR's information networks (DFID Water Bulletin, GRID and the IPTRID network), presentation at a regional conference/meeting/forum, and at an open day at DWR. Other means of dissemination will also be investigated such as introducing the guidelines as a module within existing short courses.

Tel: +44 1491 835381
Fax: +44 1491 826352
Email: dfid-kar-water@hrwallingford.co.uk