The Hegemonic Order in Water Management as a Guarantee of the Unequal Access to the Resource in Cuba

Jorge Valido Alvarez

Southern perspective / Perspectiva austral, 10.56294/pa202543

Abstract: Introduction: Access to water has been considered one of the main challenges facing humanity today. Various narratives have framed water scarcity as an inevitable crisis, linking it to natural factors and population growth. However, this study analyzed whether this scarcity was genuinely a natural phenomenon or, instead, the result of a hegemonic order that promoted the commodification of water and the consolidation of unequal access. It examined how official narratives contributed to legitimizing policies that prioritized certain economic sectors to the detriment of the most vulnerable populations. Development: The study addressed the concept of domination in water management, understanding it as the imposition of administrative models by privileged groups that controlled access and distribution of the resource. It observed how government policies used scarcity discourses to justify the privatization and exploitation of water under market-driven logics. Internationally, it was evident that many nations adopted water management systems that favored the industrial and tourism sectors, while marginalized communities faced limited access to potable water. In the case of Cuba, the study identified the construction of an official narrative that concealed the precariousness of supply in vulnerable areas and used indoctrination mechanisms to minimize citizens' demands. Conclusion: The analysis concluded that the water crisis was not solely due to natural factors but was strongly influenced by political and economic decisions that reinforced inequality in access to the resource. The scarcity narrative served as a tool to legitimize water commodification, while the lack of an equitable approach to water management perpetuated social disparities.

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:dbk:perspe:v::y::i::p:202543:id:202543

DOI: 10.56294/pa202543

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