Integriertes Wasserressourcen-Management (IWRM) im nördlichen Namibia

Integrated Water Resources Management in Northern Namibia – Cuvelai Delta Outline of the preliminary study

The feasibility study “Integrated Water Resources Management in Northern Namibia – Cuvelai Delta” relates to the Cuvelai Etosha Basin located in North-Central Namibia (see figure below). Approximately 50% of the population lives in this region, on 15% of the area of the most arid country in Sub-Saharan Africa. In addition to dryness, the model region is characterised by the high variability of available water: surface water is only available periodically; abundant volumes of water are available during the wet season so that the region is dominated by seasonal alterations of drought and flooding. It is assumed that these fluctuations will intensify under the influence of climatic change. The Cuvelai System is an ecologically sensitive environment in which especially the Etosha Pan with the related national park represents an ecologically protected area of high biodiversity, which is simultaneously of economic importance due to its use for tourism. Accessible groundwater tables are predominantly far too saline to be considered suitable for drinking water purposes.

A central and currently dominant element of the water supply infrastructure is a canal and pipeline scheme constructed in the 1960s and continually extended since then. Water is diverted from the Angolan side of the Kunene River which forms the border between Namibia and Angola. It is transported via an open canal (150 km) and then finally through a pipeline system (approx. 2,000 km) for distribution in the model region. The transported water can be used as drinking water. However the problems associated with the water supply cannot be permanently solved with this infrastructure system: Climate induced increases in the variability of rainfall runoff, which will also affect the Kunene, raise uncertainties in relation to the volume of available water. Further, it is to be assumed that the Angolan water requirements will increase in the future since additional hydroelectric power stations are planned and Southern Angola is progressively recovering from the effects of the civil war. Economic activity is promoted within the region and includes plans for irrigation projects. Angola could potentially use the contractually guaranteed volume of water supplied from the Kunene as a means of exerting political pressure, further increasing Namibia’s one sided dependence. In addition, the volume of water that Namibia draws from the Kunene river via the pipeline grid is growing since it is increasingly used for other purposes (e.g. watering livestock). At the same time the demographic development, with an annual population growth of 2.8%, unfolds its own problem dynamic: The increasing number of people to be provided with enhances the challenge not only for supplying water and for the disposal of waste water, but also for food security. Using a simple projection, it is to be assumed that population growth – without changes to the supply system – will result in an increased demand for water for drinking, domestic and industrial use and lead to further pollution (particularly in urban areas) of the few existing freshwater resources due to the lack or inadequacy of waste water disposal. This is also accompanied by an increase in hygiene problems, not only in the towns but also in rural areas where there are often no sanitation facilities. Further, food security is associated with an increase in both the water requirements for agriculture and the pressure on land resources (increasing degradation caused by poor farming practices, growing livestock herds). This results in an overall increase in the rivalry for use on various levels: between different sectors within the model region and between the model region and its neighbouring areas, in particular Angola.

Key findings

This gives rise to a problematic social-ecological situation in which the security of the water supply is entangled in questions of land use, biodiversity and regional development. Extension of the pipeline grid alone intensifies the problem dynamic described rather than reducing it; it would also heighten the exogenous dependence associated with the water supply.

This study sketches a concept for Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM), which aims to strengthen the use of endogenous resources as a means for problem reduction. Central to the concept is a multi-resource mix, which alongside demand-orientated management aspects (rational water use), aims to establish alternative water sources. In view of the existing, not only geological/ecological difficulties with water quality (e.g. the lack or inadequacy of sewage systems, e.g. leaking pipelines), the following various technologies, i.e. their combination, are considered as potential components of a multi-resource mix.

Implementation of technology must be integrated into the institutional and administrative processes of resource management. The current upheaval in the Namibian institutional landscape and particularly the restructuring of the water sector, resulting partly from the general decentralisation process, makes this a particularly favourable time for a cooperative, further development of the Namibian IWRM process with the partners on site. However the special problem of integration into the model region’s current IWRM processes has not yet been sufficiently resolved to enable development of a resource management that meets the demands of the general IWRM concept. This is obvious in two points that are essential for the IWRM development’s success in the model region: On the one hand, weaknesses are apparent in institutional structures on the level of dealing with the river catchment area and its interdependence with neighbouring catchment areas. On the other hand, it appears that above all, the establishment of the cross-sectional functions and perspectives within the IWRM process is just beginning to be solved. The issue of water resources is therefore presented as central at this point in time. However, related concerns such as land management, regional development, ecology and combating poverty are not sufficiently integrated. The rivalry between the various water use sectors can only be partially addressed under these conditions – or to put it another way: the potential and chances for sustainable development of the region are not adequately realised.

Analysing the potential and problems in the model region, the main goal for further conceptual development and practical implementation of an integrated water resource management (IWRM) is to imbed it in existing processes and to adapt to the specific political, social and economic conditions. A central task is to make a significant contribution to combating poverty and preventing crisis by securing the means of the population’s livelihood on a long term basis and developing opportunities for the creation and implementation of long term, stable development potential. The generation of income from (small scale) agricultural activities, i.e. the production of products for local markets could be an important issue in the fight against poverty and developing regional economic potential. Securing natural resources is a prerequisite here; especially the resources of land and water. Multi-resource mix represents part of this security. The various use sectors and associated rivalry for use are not sufficiently balanced out by the existing institutional bodies at the moment; the currently implemented water and land rights reforms are only loosely related to one another. This represents a great challenge for the IWRM process: water and the regional economy must become reciprocally stimulating factors. In order to consolidate the ongoing reform process, existing gaps in institutionalisation need to be bridged by participation and strengthening of governance structures. This requires great engagement and long term perseverance because the processes must be readapted again and again. The establishment of an exchange platform is intended to provide support here by facilitating interregional and intraregional dialogue. A suitable tool will be sought that is capable of opening up possibilities for the resolution of existing and potential conflicts in use (decision support system). Water and related sectors should be balanced and transferred into social-ecological regulation.

Differentiated empirical research forms a solid basis for the development of adapted technologies. Of central importance is that decisions facilitate sustainable development. This must include scenarios for possible future developments and models of interactive effects that meet in the decision support system. This requires the participation of various actors and suitable forms of capacity building.

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Integrated Water Resources Management in Northern Namibia – Cuvelai Delta Outline of the preliminary study

Key findings