The formation of Dutch economic water diplomacy

Abstract

A well-functioning democracy requires transparent decision making in policy formation. To this end, this research aims to investigate the development process of the Dutch foreign water agenda between 1999-2014. Instead of looking at international trends, this research aims to unravel the domestic events shaping this policy, and to discover the role that knowledge has played in it. This role is investigated through Haas’ framework of “epistemic communities”, which looks at the influences of expert communities’ on policy development for non-self-interest purposes. It is found that the Dutch foreign water agenda started with integration of the water sector and increased international efforts, largely for contributing to the Millennium Development Goals, followed around 2010 by an increased focus on national economic self-interest. While the integration efforts were stimulated by an epistemic community with the regional water authorities at the forefront, the increase focus on economic diplomacy and liberal development aid was found to not have enjoyed the support of any epistemic community. Furthermore, the water authorities were at first a respected informal head of the epistemic community, but later, under threat of abolishment, became a tool for politicians to shape their liberal ideas of national economic interest at the cost of development goals. This liberal, economic diplomacy focus seems to have been kickstarted by the economic crisis starting in 2008, together with a liberal government that likes to promote itself as protagonists for the private sector. This means that episteme did play a role in the integration of Dutch foreign water efforts, but its economic focus should be explained otherwise.