La importancia de las aguas subterraneas en el desarrollo social y economico suele ser ignorada debido a que es un recurso oculto. Decisores de los gobiernos, inversionistas o productores locales on frecuencia subestiman el valor de las aguas subterraneas en la economia y para el desarrollo economico, ya que asumen que los manantiales y pozos, de los cuales dependen, continuaran abasteciendolos con agua dulce de alta calidad para siempre. De seguir con estos supuestos, se perderan los beneficios del agua subterranea para el desarrollo. Cuando la gestion de las aguas subterraneas es sostenible, sus contribuciones se reflejan en multiples dimensiones del desarrollo sostenible. La gestion sostenible de las aguas subterraneas puede asegurar el abastecimiento de agua resiliente al clima para ayudar a cumplir las metas de seguridad alimentaria, desarrollo energetico y acceso al agua potable. Puede abastecer de agua a las ciudades sostenibles y la industria. La gestion sostenible de acuiferos es clave para la conservacion de ecosistemas dependientes de las aguas subterraneas en areas de descarga.

This paper explores local rights and accountability in local water resource management. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and government agencies have an important role and responsibility to create an environment in which people can assume accountability and have a greater chance to get their rights to water fulfilled. A framework of research questions is proposed within a Right-based Approaches (RBA) framework. Answers to these questions could contribute to the policy responses necessary to ensure that rights of the underprivileged groups in particular in local communities are fulfilled and that they can assume their own share of accountability for the good use of available water resources.

The current water management style in the Middle East Region is characterized by centralized and top down management compounded by lack of stakeholders' involvement, uneasy communication and fragmentation of responsibilities among many actors. This potentially has created some conflict of interests among the different actors. In many cases such conflicts of interest have resulted from the different perception on the same issue. In some certain cases these conflicts of interest can be reasonably dealt with through direct negotiation among competing actors. However, in situations of war or occupation the margins of negotiation are often extremely narrow or non-existent. The context is even different such as the case of Palestine. The impact of ignoring Palestinian public participation during the previous era, by the occupying power, has developed a large gap and often a distrustful relation between the public service sector which is governed by the occupying power, and the Palestinian public in general. Moreover, it has left a fragmented and not coordinated public service sector including water sector. Water supply management has been characterized by top down management style with little or no room for public participation and no clear division of roles and responsibilities for the different bodies in charge of water management. Yet, the creation of the Palestinian Authority has improved the situation to a certain extent. However, there is still no adequate legal framework that ensures public participation in managing local resources. In the mean time public has not yet overcome the values inherited from the long term impact of occupation about this issue. Accordingly, public participation requires a major cultural change among public in a way that they act and participate as citizens and that they become aware that it is part of their right to participate in managing their local sources including water. It is also