Yes / This paper engages with policy on meeting development goals for water through interventions which promote good governance. Addressing an under-researched area, we propose a new analytical framework for understanding water governance, not as a set of abstract principles, but as interlinked processes with variable practical outcomes for poor people. The framework is informed by theories of governance, institutions and structuration, empirical research and field insights. We apply the framework to a case in Southwestern Tanzania, and we identify a range of issues for further research, particularly relating to water access for the poor.

Yes / In this paper we present a framework for understanding water governance, through which we critique some of the assumptions underlying the current consensus on good governance. Specifically, we suggest that current approaches are based on incomplete or partial understandings of the concepts of governance. We question the idea that governance can be identified as an abstract set of principles, without the need for contextualisation and localisation. In particular, we suggest that there is a general lack of understanding of the way local interactions shape and influence governance processes. Finally, and with specific reference to the MDGs and the water sector, we question the implicit assumption that `good¿ governance is necessarily pro-poor governance. The paper addresses these issues through a critical discussion of governance, from which we develop a framework for conceptualising water governance. The framework draws on theories of governance, institutions and structuration, but is also informed by recent empirical research and experiences from the field. We apply the framework to a specific case in Southwestern Tanzania and raise a number of issues and challenges for further research.