Effective Cooperation on Transboundary Waters : A Practical Perspective

Building effective cooperation on transboundary waters is always a lengthy and complex journey. Embracing cooperation is no simple task for a nation state, not least because of the perceived costs of the erosion of sovereignty, however small that erosion might be. While there are many examples of where cooperation is non-existent or weak, there are also examples – across countries and across time – of effective cooperation. This essay examines these issues through a practitioner’s lens to draw a few lessons from experience on why countries cooperate and how cooperation can be achieved.