A Conceptual Framework for Flood Impact Mitigation Through Transboundary River Management

It is acknowledged that for successful mitigation of flood risk there is a need for an integrated, basin-wide approach. This is particularly important in transboundary river basins that cross administrative borders where the actions of multiple stakeholders must be coordinated from source to mouth. The Ciliwung River, Indonesia, presents an example of a complex urban basin that crosses multiple administrative borders. The increasing frequency and severity of floods in the downstream capital city of Jakarta has highlighted the urgent need for more effective governance arrangements to tackle flooding. However, it is not clear what form these arrangements should take to be effective. In order to understand how transboundary river management arrangements can be improved to mitigate flood hazard impacts, it is first important to identify the nature of the existing management arrangements and how they relate and interact with the flood hazard. To do this, a conceptual framework was developed. The framework firstly outlines the flood hazard itself in terms of drivers and impacts. It then goes on to establish the associated transboundary governance and river management arrangements and seeks to identify any interdependencies. Key concepts were drawn from a review of the literature, conducted using online databases and search engines. The review included published journal and conference papers as well as reports published by organisations which were identified through online searches. The framework highlights multiple interrelated drivers of flood risk, both human and physical. There are also a range of governance issues related to capacities, coordination of institutions and fragmentation of plans and policies identified within the river basin, which need to be overcome. Due to the complexities of flood risk and river management, this conceptual framework provides much needed clarity to facilitate future research on transboundary management in relation to flood risk in urban and peri-urban river basins. It sets a framework for the development of improved transboundary management arrangements in the Ciliwung River Basin.