Global statistics indicate the staggering level of poverty where there are still 1.2 billion people living without access to adequate drinking water and 2.6 billion without access to adequate sanitation facilities. The objectives of my research were to (1) review the status of global water resources development and management, the current paradigms, and identify gaps and potential for change, (2) to examine the vulnerability of drinking water due to contamination from salt water intrusion in Banda Aceh area, Indonesia, and (3) to explore potential change in the newly-proposed water institution in Indonesia towards a resilient human-ecology community.

I conducted an intensive review of current paradigms and approaches in global water resources management within the poverty eradication context. Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) was identified as the prevailing paradigm for managing water resources and the Rights-based Approach is an emerging development approach that calls for a paradigm shift in water management. I propose a hybrid conceptual management model termed as a Rights-based IWRM and develop the background for the implementation of such an approach.

I conducted analyses to examine the level of saltwater intrusion in coastal area of Banda Aceh City, situated in lower part of Krueng Aceh Watershed. Electrical conductivity (EC) values from 152 wells were recorded during May and October 2007. I used two geostatistical methods: ordinary kriging and indicator kriging. The observed EC values range from 41 to 51,600 μS/cm, with average values of 2733 μS/cm. The predicted values range from 389 to 4194 μS/cm, with average value of 1320 μS/cm. A probability map showed that half of Banda Aceh City has a high risk (>0.7) of exceeding the threshold, where high probability risk extends up to 7 km away from the sea.

Finally, I evaluated a newly-proposed institution for managing water resources in Indonesia. I determined the most effective institutional structure which allows water manager in Krueng Aceh Watershed to be able to fulfill water as basic rights and at the same time, maintaining the sustainability of the ecosystem in pursuit of a resilient human-ecosystem community.

Key words: Watershed, IWRM, Rights-based Approach, Resilience, Reliability, Vulnerability, Kriging, Coastal Watershed, Water Council, Aceh, Indonesia.