Those with a vested interest

This post will just be another brief introductory post about the various stakeholders who have an interest and share the waters of the Okavango.

The Stakeholders:

There are three main stakeholders who rely on the Okavango River – Angola, Namibia and Botswana. Water abstraction from the river are unequal as Angola requires 51.4%, Namibia abstracts 39.1 % and Botswana 9.5% (FAO, 2015).

Angola-

There are 5 main ethnic groups who live in different parts of the basin: the Umbundo, Ganguela, Lunda-Tchokwe, Ambó and Xindonga (OKACOM, n/d). Other than the Ambó and Xindonga groups who are cattle farmers, the other communities practice traditional farming techniques. In the Ganguela community around 50% of them live in the basin – the highest proportion compared to the other ethnic groups (OKACOM, n/d).

Namibia-

Similarly there are 5 different communities that occupy the river basin from the West to East. The Kwangali and Mbunza groups make up 50% of the basin population. The other 3 main groups are the Shabyu, Gciriku and Mbukushu (OKACOM, n/d). The Bugakw group use traditional methods to catch fish, hunt and gather wild plant and the Xanekwe settlements heavily rely on the river for tier resources (OKACOM, n/d).

Botswana-

There are three main ethic societies who live near the river (Bahambukushu, Bayeyi and Batawana) whilst in the delta there are five separate ethnic groups who, like most of these communities, have their own languages and cultural traditions.

In all three stakeholder countries the traditional use of the river by different ethnic groups may lead to conflict especially if climate change and population growth means there is an increased demand but a reduced supply. Clashes between different communities over water are not uncommon for example, in Nigeria due to damming upstream in the Hadejia-Jama’are rivers’ reduced river flow caused tension between local farmers and nomadic pastoralists as farming became more difficult and so the grazing by cattle caused more damage than in the past.

The varying uses of the Okavango by its riparians may also cause conflict as a growing population may want to use the water for urban supply but nations who have a strong tourism industry based on the river and delta may need water levels to remain the same. International stakeholder may also have a vested interest  in the river for example tour-operators who plan recreational activities based on the river and even conservation groups such as WWF who may argue against upstream dams in order to protect the biodiversity found in the delta. 

Traditional fishing methods along the Okavango (source: National Geographic)

Sharing the Jewel of the Kalahari

As the title suggests in this blog I will be looking at how different stakeholders share the Jewel of the Kalahari - the Okavango River. I will discuss the different actors who rely on the river as well as the management plans that can help mitigate any conflicts in later posts but this first post is just to give readers a little bit of background...

Area:

The Okavango River is in southwest Africa and is the 4th longest river system in Southern Africa. The river runs 1600km southeast from the highland plateau in Angola (as the Cubango and Cuito Rivers) through Namibia until it drains into its' outlet the Okavango Delta in Botswana (UNDP, 2011). The areal extent of the basin is greater than its contributing area (OKACOM) with the principal flow comes from sub-humid and semi-arid region in the Angola, a total of 11 billion cubic metres flows in the river in a year. The river relatively pristine as not much human modifications have occurred on the river, it is also unique in that it does not drain to the sea but into an inland delta system of lakes, evaporation pans, canals and a swamp in the Kalahari Desert. This inland delta is an important source of water for local people, income from tourism and is ecologically significant as it supports a diverse range of organisms (25000 different plant species, 65 fish, and 650 birds) and habitats which is why it was given World Heritage status in 2014.

The Okavango River Basin (source: EcologyandSociety)

At the moment the basin supports a population of 921, 890 (OKACOM) who mainly live in less developed rural settlements along the river and in Namibia and Botswana only a part of population living near the river rely on its surface waters, however this figure is projected to rise to 1.28 million in 2025. These countries are also experiencing rapid urbanisation as populations grow, incomes rise, education enrolment increase and economies expand (Mendelsohn and Obied, 2004; Barnes et al. 2005) which in turn will cause an increase for water demand and pollution. 

This post was just a quick introduction to the region and the river- stay tuned for the next post where you'll meet the stakeholders!

The Jewel of the Kalahari - a view of the Okavango river and delta from Botswana

Predictions

Since I have been mentioning how climate change and a rising population will affect future water security and in turn hydropolitics in Africa I thought it would be best to share with you the predicted changes that will occur before we delve into some casestudies.

Africa's population is already five times what it was in the 1950s and is expected to continue rising (see graph below). It is predicted that the population will rise to 2.4 billion by 2050 and reach 4.2 billion by 2100. Despite a slowing growth rate in the continent more than half of the rise in world population between 2015 to 2050 (2.2 billion) will occur in Africa (UNICEF, 2014). This, along with an increasing population density will put more pressure on water resources and may lead to problems with supplying enough water to meet demand particularly in areas where water sources are shared with different stakeholders.

Predicted Population Projections in Africa (source:UN DESA)

This factsheet produced by UNEP provides a nice summary on the expected outcomes of climate change in Africa. 

Rises in temperature are expected to be higher in Africa than globally and the average temperature is projected to rise 1.5-3°C by 2050. Warming will also lead to a sea-level rise which could increase flooding in Eastern Africa and will put Africa's 320 coastal cities at risk. There will be changes in annual and seasonal precipitation and an increase in extreme events (flooding and droughts). There is also great variability within the continent which could put nations in Africa under more pressure compared to other countries. Rainfall is expected to decrease in most parts of Africa but it is predicted that mean annual rainfall will increase in East Africa. Droughts will become more common in the tropics and subtropics and arid and semi-arid areas in Africa are expected to rise by 5-8% in 2080.  

Overall, climate change will place between 75 to 250 million people under a state of water stress by 2020 which could rise to 350-600 million by 2050. This will have knock-on effects on health, socio-economic conditions, food production and security.

Although there are uncertainties about population growth and climate change (and climate change variability) and the extent of their impacts, it is likely that they will place further stress on water sources. These factors may lead to water shortages as demand for freshwater cannot be met due to problems with access and the availability of water. Moreover, these problems may be even worse in areas of a shared river basin and so hydropolitics must address changes in population and climate to establish a fair agreement for water usage between stakeholders is made that will ensure water security.

First things first

So before we start I thought it would be a good idea to go over some key ideas to get a better understanding of what hydropolitics means and what it tries to address.

So firstly, hydropolitics is important because it’s all about water (obviously)!

‘No life as we know it is possible without the simple but remarkably versatile molecule H2O, water' 

Leif Ohlsson (1995)

Water is not just essential for sustaining life but also for its development. As mentioned by C.A. Mumma Mortinon (2010), waterways are vital for ‘trade, recreation, fishing, industry, agriculture, communication, tourism, culture and settlements’ and is a basic human right (Kofi Annan, 2001).

The wide variety of water usage and sheer volume of water consumption as well as growing populations result in a rising demand for freshwater and thus issues with supplying that demand.

Moreover, many sites of freshwater sources have become sites of contention as they are shared by multiple nations and users. In fact half of the Earth’s land surface is covered by 263 transboundary lakes and river basins (UN). The figure below shows the number of internationally shared basins in Africa and highlights why the issues of hydropolitics are important to the continent.

International River Basins in Africa (source:UN,TFDD)

Hydropolitics:
Elhance 's (1997) definition of hydropolitics (mentioned in the first post) looks at hydropolitics in terms of conflict and cooperation in international basins and sees the state as the main actor. However Meissner's (1999) definition of hydropolitics considers how different stakeholders (state, non-state, those outside and within the state) share national and international water resources. It also looks at the sovereignty over water and the authoritative allocation of water. Now whilst both these definitions look at an authoritative system of water allocation, it is increasingly recognised that hydropolitics involves: a range of actors working at different scales, requires decision making on the allocation of water which leads to trade-offs, most decisions lead to some contention and that water allocations need to consider a range of issues (social, food security, political, ecological, gender etc) (Turton, 2002).

On the whole hydropolitics aims to understand how water can be shared in a equitable and sustainable manner in order to avoid a state of water scarcity.

Water Stress Index:
This index produced by Falkenmark (1989) compiled data on water usage from multiple nations to produce a series of figures that indicate the water conditions of a country in terms of water usage per person.
The research suggested that a figure of 1700cm³ per capita water usage was a sufficient amount of water whilst an amount lower than that indicated a region facing water stress. A per capita usage of below 1000cm³ suggests a situation of water scarcity and a figure below 500cm³ a region facing absolute water scarcity.

The graph below shows that by 2025 no nation in sub-Saharan Africa will have above sufficient access to water and most countries will be facing a situation of water scarcity and stress. Thus to prevent water shortages leading to conflict and water wars it is imperative to come to agreements and resolutions on how to share water.

Water Scarcity in Africa (source: UNEP)

Water Rights:
One way water may be shared is through the allocation of water rights. Water rights may be informal or formal and the allocation of water rights can be another source of conflict. They are defined as the 'demands to use a flow of water, including privileges, restrictions, obligations and sanctions where it is key to make collective decisions on management (Beccar et al., 2002). Water rights go hand in hand with management where cooperation is needed for the efficient use of water. However, reaching agreements on water allocations can be difficult as stakeholders make different claims for shared water. This could include: local communities seeing water as a common property, traditional water rights, privatised water and water for markets, riparian, riverine and both internal and external sovereignty (Green Cross, 2000).

Therefore, water rights work at various scales and allocations are usually indicative of the power structures between and within nations. So to reduce disputes over water and prevent a 'tragedy of the commons', governance over allocations and management schemes need to cooperate with both local communities and different stakeholders to ensure a stable water supply for the future (UNESCO, 2006).

Several treaties and regulations have been drawn up by various organisations to help make sharing water resources more equitable but like all agreements trade-offs have to be made and these can often lead to conflicts. Conflicts which may only be exacerbated by rising demand and climate change. But more on the different agreements later (something to look forward to I'm sure!).

This post hopefully gave you a brief insight into the sort of issues and aims hydropolitics tries to address as well as a very brief introduction into the concepts of water scarcity and water rights. The rest of the posts will mainly deal with the different resolutions and claims countries make for water resources and will focus on nations in Africa where millions of people rely on water from shared river basins and, where a rising population and changing climate pose a serious risk to water security.