1837 regional, and local levels), weak horizontal and vertical interactions, and the misalignment of different waterrelated temporal dynamics (normal conditions versus crisis situations) (Castro-Salvador, 2023). The implementation of the CRHCs received a major boost in 2010 through the Water Resources Management Modernization Project (PMGRH), which involved an investment of USD 43 million financed by the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank (ANA, 2010). This initiative promoted the establishment of CRHCs in six pilot basins: Chira-Piura, Chancay-Lambayeque, Santa, Ica-Alto Pampas, Chili-Quilca, and Tacna. More than a decade later, nationwide implementation remains incomplete, and the fifteen CRHCs created to date have gradually lost prominence, as well as the technical and financial support required to promote effective water management capable of addressing the main gaps identified in basin water resources management plans. These gaps include limited technical and financial resources, deficient hydraulic infrastructure, inadequate or non-existent population water treatment systems, insufficient instrumentation for generating updated hydrological information, and limited participation by basin water users, among others. As a result, CRHCs have become consultative mechanisms with constrained decisionmaking capacity, insufficient technical and financial resources, low levels of representativeness and legitimacy, and increasing questions regarding their effectiveness. In practice, their operational technical arm has often been reduced to a minimal secretariat role. At the same time, perceived water scarcity combined with competition among users for access to water constitutes one of the current challenges facing the mining sector. In high-Andean basins located above 3,000 meters above sea level, where mining projects and operations are typically situated, tensions related to water access and quality tend to occur with greater frequency and intensity. These tensions are often driven by negative community perceptions of mining activities and by the absence or limited presence of the State in the provision of basic public services. To address these gaps, a bidirectional and often exclusive dynamic has emerged between formal mining companies and local populations. Despite notable advances in wateruse efficiency within mining operations, territorial conflicts linked to water access and water-use permits persist. In this context, fostering collaborative spaces that ensure representative participation of local actors becomes critical for dialogue, coordination, and the planning of actions to address territorial water challenges, which are commonly associated with water availability and quality. This situation is further compounded by corporate social responsibility and community relations policies within mining companies that tend to frame social investment as a mechanism for facilitating extractive activities, rather than as development-oriented strategies involving all stakeholders present in the territory. Although approaches have gradually shifted toward improved social intervention practices, traditional mechanisms remain prevalent, often limited to the direct and indirect areas of influence of mining operations or restricted to predefined areas of social interest. Notably, these strategies frequently fail to align with the hydrological dynamics of the territory. In this regard, participatory spaces characterized by legitimacy and broad stakeholder engagement play a critical role due to their potential to manage waterrelated disputes among users and to agree on functional rules or consensual solutions, thereby making the use of shared resources more predictable and subject to collectively agreed arrangements (Ostrom, 2015). The objective of this article is to analyze the implications of establishing a thematic roundtable as a replicable model of local water governance, framed within the SNGRH, for water management in mininginfluenced territories. Specifically, it examines the Mesa Temática de Recursos Hídricos de Ichuña (METRHI) as an institutional strategy to address the disconnect between public water management and local water needs. Through the METRHI experience, the article details the steps, coordination mechanisms, and consensus-building processes established among stakeholders to strengthen IWRM on the local scale. In doing so, METRHI responds to local water-related challenges exacerbated by limited infrastructure to harness existing water resources, potential climate change impacts, and mistrust associated with the introduction of a new mining user in the territory. This article is structured into six sections. The first presents the conceptual framework on water governance, IWRM, local governance, and commons governance. This is followed by a description of the methodology and approach adopted for the recent establishment of METRHI. The subsequent two sections
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