Paper short abstract:

The Cape Town-based World Commission on Dams sought to overcome conflict over large dams by uniting supporters and opponents in one multi-stakeholder dialogue. This presentation traces the history and legacies of an institution that seemed to promise a different, more progressive kind of development

Paper long abstract:

The World Commission on Dams was established on the initiative of the World Bank and IUCN in the late 1990s, following extensive conflict over large dams in many countries around the world. Its base was in Cape Town, and its head, Kader Asmal, was a South African government minister and long-standing anti-apartheid activist.

The World Commission on Dams has often been called an ‘experiment in multi-stakeholder dialogue’, because it united dam opponents and supporters, from government, private sector, civil society, and academia, who were tasked with coming to a consensus about the future of large dams.

Against the odds, the Commission presented its final report in 2000, spawning hopes for a more progressive future, in which social and environmental considerations would be given much greater priority in large dam construction.

While its final report continues to be a point of reference for many, uptake of the Commission’s recommendations has been varied. Its influence on the current wave of large dam construction in African countries can be debated.

This presentation traces the unusual history of the World Commission on Dams as a global environmental policy forum that once held promises for the future of development.