Sustainability in Integrated Water Resources Management: Systematic Literature Review

Morocco, like many developing countries, is facing a major challenge in terms of water resource management and the fight against floods and drought. Nowadays, the scarcity of fresh water will experience significant intensification and geographical expansion in the near future. In this regard, Morocco is obliged to adapt to this new structural variable. To achieve this, it is necessary to go through an Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) process, while adopting Nexus approaches aimed at ensuring water, energy, and food security in order to establish integrative solutions capable of maximizing synergies between the three “Water-Energy-Food” approaches and minimizing compromises, while simultaneously reducing environmental impacts, including water resources, at temporal and spatial scales. The objective of this document is to provide an overview of integrated water resources management and to analyze how Nexus WEF approaches have actually been implemented to support sustainable water resource management. Based on PRISMA guidelines, 93 articles were selected. The results have shown that the WEF Nexus is indeed highly relevant in reducing pressures on the environment and water resources through integrated management and governance, consequently enhancing the efficiency of resource utilization.