Introduction

While part 1 of this book discusses the need to restore basic water and sanitation services to alleviate human suffering and avert a humanitarian crisis in the immediate aftermath of armed conflict, part 2 considers how water can be harnessed to restore livelihoods and foster sustainable development in the near to medium term. By destroying water infrastructure—including irrigation canals, flood control systems, and dams—armed conflict can devastate the economy, exacerbate poverty, and undermine food security. Violent conflict also often forces civilians to abandon their homes and seek refuge elsewhere, thereby losing access to their traditional livelihoods. Finally, during conflict, ensuring the sustainability of water use to support diverse or alternative livelihoods is not a priority, and short-term coping strategies may create the potential for pollution or overexploitation of water resources and use of unsafe water supplies, contributing to the spread of disease.