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LatinNews Regional Monitor: Andean Group - 27 September 2018
Water offers Moreno chance to soothe political tensions
Water is one of the most politically explosive issues in Latin America. Water protests have been a key feature of the political landscape since the 1980s and 1990s when efforts to privatise and commodify water started to accelerate. In Ecuador, earlier waves of mobilisation contributed to a change in the direction of water policies. The 2008 constitution entrusts water management to the state and community and prohibits privatisation. Yet, efforts to establish a water regime based on the constitution have proven problematic. The legislative proposals by the previous government led by President Rafael Correa (2007-2017) triggered mass mobilisations and led to a deterioration in relations with the main national indigenous movement, Confederación de Nacionalidades Indígenas del Ecuador (Conaie). The current government led by President Lenín Moreno has followed a less conflictive path and placed indigenous leaders in prominent positions in the water bureaucracy. However, while this has helped improved relations with the indigenous movement and community water associations, important issues remain unresolved and the government’s economic programme will likely generate fresh tensions.
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