Introduction: The Globalization of Governance: Transforming Water Management in South Asia?

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book examines the implications of the processes of the globalization of governance for water management in the region, particularly their influence on human well-being, the functioning of water management utilities and the relationship between State, markets and civil society. It shows that how the global discourses, particularly those of integrated water resource management and gender, have been embraced in the country and how they have been woven in the country's traditional and religious beliefs, under the unique Gross National Happiness index. The book looks at the challenges thrown up by the processes of urbanization—shaped by a curious intersection of globalization and local agency and power as demonstrated earlier—for water management in the region. It also shows that how water tanker markets fill a void left by the growing demand supply gap in Kathmandu.