Urban water security indicators: Development and pilot

Water security is widely recognised as an important and increasingly urgent policy challenge. To address this challenge, appropriate indicators are needed to stimulate policy action and measure the effectiveness of interventions. Indicators are more likely to have an impact on policy formulation when they are valid, credible and salient. This paper applies a co-production approach to develop a set of Urban Water Security Indicators which aim to meet these criteria. The approach was piloted in two cities, Singapore and Hong Kong. Data for a 15-year period were collected and stakeholder consultation and validation conducted. The paper reports on the indicator development process and findings, and reflects on the value of the Urban Water Security Indicators as a tool in policy formulation. The approach is being replicated in a larger group of cities as part of an ongoing research programme.