Decision support systems (DSS) tools in the water management sector are usually developed upon hydrologic simulation models, to which they provide at least an interface for facilitated use beyond the restricted group of model developers. They quite often provide also routines for decision analysis and decision making (e.g., optimization methods). In some cases they also include functionalities targeting the management of participatory processes (e.g., elicitation of stakeholders’ preferences, group decision making, and conflict resolution).
The EU funded SPLASH project (Coordinating European Water Research for Poverty Reduction, http://www.splash-era.net/) has thus included in its activities the writing of this report on Using modern decision support systems for evidence based policy making in IWRM developing countries with a general objective to harness the potential of modern decision support systems for policy making in the field of integrated water resources management in developing countries.