The impact of this non-relational dynamic was most evident in last month's public squabbling and finger pointing during the water shortage in Maynilad-serviced areas in Metro Manila, where Angat Dam as the main water source was seemingly governed by a multitude of institutions and fragmented accountability.

While this is a legacy of past administrations, it is imperative for the Aquino administration to resolve this in its incumbency.

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2000-2010, the situation remains the same

Ten years ago, ESSC convened a meeting of water-related agencies, private companies, and professionals who work with water-related concerns. During that meeting in January 2000, ESSC presented the current set-up of water governance in the country and clustered them into specific functions (see diagram).

While this was an initial diagram that overlooked a number of agencies, the general presentation remains valid. And that is a general public impression of a labyrinthine, myriad, and fragmented water governance structure that does not work, relate, and function as one. Yet, they all deal with one major critical resource in the country: water.

Early this month, a private think tank policy group Forensic Law and Policy Strategies Inc (Forensic Solutions) released a critical policy paper "Tightening Water Regulation" that re-states this situation where government has resorted to "enacting laws or issuances creating regulatory bodies or granting additional powers to already existing agencies" instead of developing an integrated water resources management and development program.

While this study stated that the country has sufficient freshwater resources from rainfall, surface water and groundwater, there still remains a critical need for the country to genuinely develop a water table budget that will accurately present the water resources available in relation to the demands for potable and household needs of a 90-million population and water-dependent industries such as agriculture, water bottling and soda products, and other industries.

According to the DENR , the study shared that the country has abundant water resources, with dependable surface water at 125.8 billion cubic meters and groundwater potential of another 20.2 billion cubic meters. Annual rainfall ranges from a low of 965 millimeters to a high of 4,064 millimeters.

The 1976 Water Code of the Philippines (Presidential Decree 1067) and the 1995 National Water Crisis Act (Republic Act 8041) designate the primary functions of the NWRB , the Local Water Utilities Administration and the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System , but remain ambiguous as to how these agencies can effectively and realistically relate with other government agencies that do relate to water-related mandates and functions. The Philippine Clean Water Act of 2004 designates the DENR as the lead agency that will coordinate with NWRB and other government agencies.

"This menagerie of laws led to the current weak and fragmented institutional and regulatory framework in the water resources sector and the absence of an integrated water resources management that adopts a holistic approach to water sector demands," said Forensic Solutions. "With regulatory functions controlled by so many different agencies, enforcement becomes difficult, especially when mandates and accountabilities overlap."

The policy paper further stated that although the NWRB is designated under the Water Code of the Philippines as chief overseer of water resources management in the country, it actually shares and competes its "all-encompassing mandate" with more than 30 other government offices and corporations that deal with water supply, irrigation, hydropower, flood control, water management, and other water-related concerns.

As a further reflection of its neglect by national government, the NWRB's 2010 annual budget is only P35.98 million that is miniscule when compared to its counterpart in the energy sector, the Energy Regulatory Commission , that has a budget of P180 million.

Given this overlapping regulatory structure and the seeming inability of government agencies to relate and work together, the resulting confusion and finger-pointing are not unexpected when crisis times emerge. And during non-crisis times, these agencies work at cross purposes in the proper conservation, management, and allocation of the country's water resources amongst the different users. Click the following below

	The Government Agencies (PDF)
	Water-related Agencies in the Present Government Structure Clustered According to Function (PDF)
	Government Water Policies (PDF)