Transboundary water cooperation under SDG indicator 6.5.2: disaggregating data to provide additional insights at the aquifer level

Abstract

Abstract The acceleration of transboundary water cooperation is essential to support water security and ensure mutual benefits of sustainable development. The way that existing Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) monitoring data are used to raise its importance further up political agendas and inform future reporting rounds is, therefore, crucial to acceleration. Using data extracted from national country reports of SDG indicator 6.5.2 on transboundary water cooperation, we showcase the level of cooperation, as reported, per aquifer to complement the national approach currently followed by the official SDG framework. Our analysis uncovers a variety of insights and challenges to the transboundary aquifer (TBA) cooperation that otherwise might be difficult to visualize through official national reports. Reported aquifer cooperation is often not harmonized across international borders. A lack of groundwater data and information is a major contributing factor to uncoordinated reporting, highlighting the importance of a sound scientific baseline. However, harmonization issues are also interlinked to a national-focused reporting process where member states have the right to disagree over the status of their joint cooperation. These results can assist in improving future indicator coverage, both as an awareness-raising tool for co-custodian agencies and by countries through direct interventions and coordination with neighbors.