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LuWSI Strategy Launch : A Vision for Water Security in Zambia

Written by a.linke on . Posted in Countries, Zambia.

On December 13, 2024, the Lusaka Water Security Initiative (LuWSI) unveiled its 2025–2029 Strategic Plan in an event that brought together over 70 distinguished guests from government, business and civil society organisations. Co-sponsored by GIZ NatuReS Zambia, Zambian Breweries and LuWSI, the launch underscored the critical role of multi-stakeholder collaboration in addressing water security and sanitation challenges in Lusaka and beyond.

Official Launch of the LuWSI Strategy led by Engineer Peter Mutale – Chief Inspector at the National Water Supply and Sanitation Council, Ms Nalucha Nganga Ziba – Country Director of WWF Zambia and Ms Adjoa Parker Country Coordinator of NatuReS GIZ (left to right). ©GIZ

The Urgency of Water Security

Water security remains one of Zambia’s most pressing challenges, as evidenced by the 2024 drought and resulting power shortages due to hydropower disruptions. These crises have had far-reaching effects on agriculture, energy, and economic development, underscoring the urgent need for collective action. The World Bank in a snap shot overview of the country explains it further; “This climatic disaster has slowed real GDP growth to 1.9% year-on-year in the first half of 2024 from 4.3% during 2023, reflecting contractions in the agriculture and energy sectors, and subdued performance in administrative and support services”.

As noted by Mr. Pasca Mwila, the Assistant Director of the department of resources and development in a speech he read on behalf of the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Water Development and Sanitation “Water security remains one of the most pressing issues that affects both human health and economic development and events like these are a significant step towards ensuring collective steps are undertaken to secure a sustainable water future for Zambia”.

This sentiment aligns with LuWSI’s mission to foster partnerships that safeguard natural resources while promoting equitable and sustainable access to water for all.

Community ensemble Arts dance group showcase their spectacular traditional dance moves and make a call for collective action during the opening ceremony of the Strategy Launch. ©GIZ

A Vision for the Future

LuWSI’s 2025–2029 Strategic Plan is a testament to the power of collaboration in addressing natural resource-related risks. Guided by a vision of a water-secure Zambia where residents and businesses thrive, the strategy outlines clear objectives and actionable steps to drive impactful change.

Key insights from the strategic plan include:

  • Water Security as a Development Cornerstone: Recognizing water security as vital for sustainable development, the plan emphasizes the importance of cross-sector collaboration to champion a shared agenda.
  • Alignment with National Priorities: The strategy aligns with the Eighth National Development Plan (8NDP), reflecting stakeholders’ growing demand for nationwide multi-stakeholder collaboration to address water challenges.

Four Strategic Objectives

  1. Enhance Stakeholder Collaboration: Strengthen partnerships across sectors to foster unified efforts.
  2. Catalyze Sustainable Resourcing: Secure funding and resources to sustain collaborative initiatives.
  3. Streamline Procedures and Processes: Improve operational efficiency to support LuWSI’s expanded mandate.
  4. Strengthen Governance and Secretariat Capacity: Build internal capacity to effectively implement the strategic plan.
The Interim Coordinator of LuWSI Engineer Kasenga Hara giving an overview of the new LuWSI Strategy. ©GIZ

Celebrating Champions of Water Stewardship

The event also celebrated excellence in promoting water stewardship and good governance, applauding private sector companies and individuals for their impactful contributions. Initiated in 2018, these private sector awards are preceded by a rigorous evaluation process, conducted by LuWSI partners. The goal is to encourage and recognise companies that align their production processes to good water stewardship practices in order to protect resources. For 2024, Zambian Breweries received first place for its outstanding efforts, while Zambia Sugar secured second place.

Individual awards went to Mr. Jonathan Phiri (Water and Sanitation Association of Zambia- Wasaza), Mr. David Nonde Mwamba (GIZ NatuReS), and Mr. Gershom Pule (Worldwide Fund for Nature – WWF), who were honoured as 2024 Water Security Champions for their dedication to fostering collaboration and championing water security on the LuWSI Platform.

The private sector awards ceremony led by Ms. Yankho Mataya LuWSI Board Chairperson and Wateraid Zambia Country Director, Mr. Pasca Mwila the Assistant Director of the department of resources and development and Fungai Musana Chief External Engagements Officer WWF (right to left). ©GIZ

Looking Ahead

The LuWSI Strategy Launch 2024 marks a significant milestone in Zambia’s journey toward water security. By leveraging the power of partnerships and aligning with national priorities, LuWSI is on course to drive transformative change over the next five years.

“Together, we can secure a future where every Zambian thrives with reliable and sustainable access to water” stated the LuWSI Board chairperson Ms. Yankho Mataya. The initiative’s renewed commitment to collaboration and innovation promises to inspire and empower stakeholders to tackle water security challenges head-on. 

Breaking Barriers: Advancing Gender Inclusion in Tanzania’s Sustainable Water Management Partnerships (SUWAMA)

Written by a.linke on . Posted in Countries, Tanzania.

Catchment stewardship partnerships are crucial for managing water resources sustainably through collective action to address the myriad challenges of climate change, environmental degradation, and increasing water demand. These partnerships often bring together diverse stakeholders, including governments, private sector entities, communities, and non-governmental organizations. However, for such collaborations to achieve equitable and sustainable outcomes, gender inclusion must play an integral part in their design and implementation. 

Gender inclusion workshop introduction session with SUWAMA partners. © Agro Tanzania 

Gender Inclusion: A Cornerstone of Sustainable Water Management 

Gender inclusion in catchment stewardship partnerships is important because water access, use, and management often have gender-specific dynamics. In many societies, women bear the primary responsibility for collecting and managing household water supplies. Yet, they are frequently excluded from decision-making processes about water resource management. Addressing this imbalance is not only a matter of equity but also a practical step toward more effective and sustainable water governance. 

Additionally, women and men often use water resources differently. Women are more likely to focus on domestic and subsistence uses, while men might engage in agricultural or industrial water use. Furthermore, women and marginalized groups possess valuable local knowledge about water sources, seasonal variations, and sustainable practices, which can enhance the design and implementation of stewardship initiatives. Ignoring these differences can lead to policies that disadvantage one group over another. Therefore, when women and marginalized groups are excluded from water resources management decisions, their specific needs and insights are overlooked, leading to inequitable outcomes and potentially unsustainable practices.

Gender Inclusion Challenges in SUWAMA Partnerships 

Efforts to promote gender inclusion in the SUWAMA partnerships have revealed significant challenges rooted in systemic, cultural, and operational barriers. Despite some progress, deeply ingrained patriarchal norms and structural inequities continue to limit women’s participation in water resources management and governance.

A SUWAMA partnership member contributing on the gender inclusion challenges in the partnerships due to the lack of knowledge on the roles, rights and needs of women and marginalized groups. © Agro Tanzania 

Firstly, a key challenge is systemic exclusion that cements patriarchal traditions by prioritizing male leadership and decision-making, which become societal norms that assume men are better suited for such roles. Additionally, systemic exclusion also drives traditional perceptions of viewing women and marginalized groups as ‘less capable’ of handling physically demanding tasks; thus, discouraging their involvement in activities like furrow rehabilitation. Secondly, narrow advocacy and representation often leads to gender inclusion topics being treated as a ‘secondary issue’ with token representation in committees rather than systemic integration into governance processes. While progress has been made to address existing policy and implementation gaps, broader systemic reforms and robust implementation are lacking. Lastly, safety concerns caused by gender-based violence risks and traditional beliefs often discourage women’s involvement in roles requiring nighttime work, such as resolving furrow management conflicts.  

Boosting Gender Inclusion in SUWAMA Partnerships 

Understanding the roles, rights, and needs of women and marginalized groups raises awareness among SUWAMA partners on the need for structured and sustained efforts to empower this group in active water resources management. On 4th and 5th December 2024, 40 beneficiaries (members) of SUWAMA Weruweru (16) and Usa River (14) as well as other water resources beneficiaries from the communities (10 members) were invited to a dialogue aimed at better understanding and dismantling barriers to participation, exploring strategies to amplify the voices of under-represented groups and promote equitable decision-making processes.  

SUWAMA public sector partners brainstorming activities for the partnership gender action plan. © Agro Tanzania

To ensure the dialogue process provided a conducive environment for meaningful participation, the workshop organizers used appropriate facilitation styles and language, covered costs for participation, and provided a safe space to all the participants. Inclusive facilitation allows all voices, especially those of women and marginalized groups, to be heard, while using familiar language fosters understanding among rural participants. Covering costs and providing reimbursements removes financial barriers that may otherwise exclude participants. And ensuring safety during travel and at the venue addresses concerns, particularly for women and marginalized groups, enabling them to attend and engage without fear. These factors collectively created an environment that supported equitable and effective participation. 

Pathways to Progress: Transformative Recommendations 

The discussions on gender roles in irrigation systems identified opportunities for cross-gender collaboration and emphasizing women and marginalized groups’ potential to take on leadership and traditionally male-dominated roles. Women and marginalized groups advocated for more involvement in leadership, water resources protection, maintaining irrigation systems, and planning water allocations, viewing these as critical steps toward equity. 

Community education and constitutional reforms were highlighted as tools to break patriarchal barriers and ensure women and marginalized groups’ representation. Participants also proposed alternative income generating activities, like recycling of plastic waste from rivers, to empower women and marginalized groups economically. Training initiatives and community support were deemed necessary to build women and marginalized groups’ confidence and encourage their participation in leadership. 

Environmental conservation, including river restoration and tree planting, were identified as a priority, with bylaws and funding needed to support these efforts. These recommendations underline the importance of empowering women and fostering collaboration to achieve sustainable water resources management. 

Turning Words into Action: Implementing Gender Inclusion in SUWAMA Partnerships 

Moving forward, a SUWAMA partner – Agro Tanzania – will serve as the gender focal person at the partnership secretariat level. The newly developed gender action plan activities will be integrated into the broader Partnership Action Plan under a new working area: “Gender Inclusion in Water Resources Management.” 

The gender task force will implement this action plan at both partnership and community levels, with support from the SUWAMA secretariat. The implementation will be conducted through training and workshops.  And progress will be monitored through beneficiary evaluations showcasing how the recommendations are being applied and used. These steps aim to transform gender inclusion from a discussion point into practical, measurable actions for sustainable water resource management. 

Water security for all in the uMhlathuze catchment

Written by a.linke on . Posted in Countries, South Africa.

The uMhlathuze catchment in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal region faces critical water security challenges, encompassing both quantity and quality issues. These challenges are closely tied to land use activities such as mining, agriculture, and industry, which put significant pressure on water resources. Unregulated overuse further exacerbates the situation, compounded by the impacts of climate change.

The severity of these issues became even more evident during the 2016 drought, which severely reduced water availability in the catchment. The drought had a profound impact on the Goedertrouw Dam, a vital water source for the uMhlathuze region, underscoring the urgent need for sustainable water management practices.

The Goedertrouw Dam in the uMhlathuzte Catchment. © Jasper Anhede

UWASP: A Collaborative Effort to Strengthen Water Security in the uMhlathuze Region

This led to the creation of the uMhlathuze Water Stewardship Partnership (UWASP), established to tackle water security challenges in the uMhlathuze region. The partnership focuses on improving water management and availability through collaborative resource management while enhancing livelihoods through strategic climate adaptation initiatives.

UWASP was formed by key stakeholders, including GIZ’s International Water Stewardship Programme (IWaSP)—now the Natural Resources Stewardship Programme (NatuReS)—alongside the National Business Initiative (NBI), Strategic Water Partners Network (SWPN), and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Prominent local businesses such as Tongaat Hulett, Mondi South Africa, Grindrod, Transnet, and Richards Bay Minerals, as well as government entities like the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) and the Pongola-uMzimkhulu Proto-Catchment Management Agency, also played an integral role in its formation.

By unlocking the value of water, the partnership delivers social, economic, and environmental benefits. The partnership´s vision is an “effectively managed uMhlathuze catchment that supports water security for all”. To realize this vision, UWASP adopts a collaborative and inclusive approach, fostering consensus among stakeholders to develop shared solutions and actionable strategies to address critical water resource challenges.

Building Climate Resilience in the uMhlathuze Catchment

The UWASP is advancing a five-year strategy (2024 –2029) to strengthen climate resilience in the catchment by enhancing water governance, improving service delivery, and fostering green economy skills. Key focus areas of the strategy include :

  • Enhancing the management of the freshwater coastal lakes and surface water dams that provide for the needs of uMhlathuze’s population.
  • Supporting water use efficiency and reducing water loss amongst downstream users.
  • Facilitating agricultural water stewardship and irrigation efficiency.
  • Securing ecological infrastructure through invasive species clearing and wetland rehabilitation.
  • Developing community water-related champions, entrepreneurs and micro enterprises.

To support these efforts, NatuReS, WWF, and NBI partnered with GroundTruth to conduct a scoping study to assess the feasibility of grey-green infrastructure project interventions to address water security challenges in the uMhlathuze catchment. The project aimed to contribute to the overall strategic vision and the five-year focus areas of UWASP by increasing the climate resilience of the uMhlathuze catchment to water-related climate change impacts, whilst addressing environmental and socio-economic development challenges in the catchment. Therefore, the scoping study evaluated the financial, social, economic and ecological feasibility of grey-green infrastructure interventions in the uMhlathuze catchment areas.

Proposed Grey-Green Interventions: Key Outcomes of the Study

Melmoth Dams: Melmoth Dams are a key water supply for the eMthonjaneni area for domestic and industrial use. The following interventions were proposed to improve the water quality and quantity of downstream users in the catchment; (i) the removal of the problematic bush encroachment, Invasive Alien Plants removal, (ii) improved buffer zone management and (iii) re-vegetation of indigenous trees/vegetation.

Nkandla Landfill Site and Cemetery: The ‘Inkandla Landfill Site’ is located in the Nkandla local Municipality and includes the landfill and the wastewater treatment ponds. The following interventions were proposed as measures to preserve the health of the Goedertrouw dam; (i) enhancement of the existing wastewater treatment facility and (ii) enhancement of ecosystem services within the receiving freshwater ecosystem

Empangeni Catchment Management: This site focuses on the Mpangeni, Niwe and Ndabayakhe Lake, which flow directly into the uMhlathuze River. These lakes provide key ecosystem services for the Empangeni catchment including flood attenuation, sediment trapping and water for domestic use. The proposed interventions include (i) sustainable management of agricultural activities around the lake,(ii) management of inflow streams into the lakes through  litter booms and sediment fences in upstream channels, and (iii) freshwater management which can include clearing of invasive alien plants  and improving stormwater management.

Integrating Green Infrastructure for a Just and Inclusive Future

© Jasper Anhede

In addition to enhancing ecological outcomes, these interventions also tackle socio-economic challenges, contributing to a broader socio-ecological transformation. This transformation embodies a shift toward harmonizing economic development with social and environmental goals, exemplified by the expansion of the green economy and the growing emphasis on integrating green infrastructure with traditional grey infrastructure.

Harnessing the benefits of green infrastructure also plays a key role in supporting a Just Transition, i.e. greening the economy in a way that is equitable, inclusive and just for all actors of society. For the identified sites this could, for instance:

  • Socio-economic opportunities for surrounding local communities: The surrounding communities are characterised by high poverty levels and high levels of unemployment. Creating opportunities in the restoration economy (e.g. alien invasive clearing, management of bush encroachment, and rehabilitation of wetlands) will create new socio-economic benefits including for example job creation and capacity development, especially for the most vulnerable groups of society.
  • Social security – Strengthening the resilience of communities, particularly vulnerable groups in low income and informal settlement, through the creation of income generation opportunities and capacity building.
  • Climate adaption and resilience – Restoration of the wetland ecosystems will improve water security for downstream water users, and enhance water supply for everyone, especially for vulnerable groups. It will also enhance the flood attenuation capacity upstream, which will help to buffer the settlements from floods.
  • Sustainable urban development – Enhancing the functioning of ecosystems in the catchment will introduce a level of holistic development by harnessing green and grey infrastructure, which could become an opportunity for the municipalities to replicate and up-scale

What´s next?

As a next step, these results will now be further unpacked by UWASP to design interventions for these sites and find potential funders for them to support a water secure and socially inclusive future for the uMhlathuze catchment.

Development Beyond Growth: Global and Local Perspectives on Just Transitions

Written by a.linke on . Posted in Countries, Uncategorized.

Opening of the Development Beyond Growth: Global and Local Perspectives on Just Transitions conference. ©Emilie Schuster

The Natural Resources Stewardship Programme contributed to the dynamic discussions at the “Development Beyond Growth” conference, held from November 6th to 7th, 2024, in Bonn, Germany. Organized by the German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS) in partnership with the Next Economy Lab, the event provided a platform to explore transformative approaches to sustainable development within ecological boundaries.

Focusing on the theme of Development Beyond Growth, the conference brought together thought leaders, policymakers, and practitioners from both the Global North and Global South. Discussions centered on how to reconcile development with ecological limits in a socially just manner that leaves no one behind. With increasing global urgency, participants examined alternative economic models prioritizing sustainability and social well-being over purely growth-driven metrics. Topics included the concept of post-growth economies and practical examples of how such approaches are being implemented at local and national levels.

Stewardship Approaches for a Just Transition

As part of the conference’s second day, a workshop on Just Transitions featured Sarah Beerhalter, Head of NatuReS, who presented the programme’s innovative multi-stakeholder stewardship approach. NatuReS operates in Ethiopia, Tanzania, South Africa, and Zambia, supporting partnerships between public institutions, private sector entities, and civil society organizations to collaboratively tackle challenges in natural resource management. The stewardship approach emphasizes inclusivity, engaging all relevant stakeholders to co-create and implement joint solutions that promote sustainable natural resource management while driving socio-ecological transformation. The presentation highlighted practical examples of how partnerships facilitated by NatuReS have advanced these objectives in partner countries.

Advancing Just Transitions

The “Development Beyond Growth” conference underscored the importance of collaborative, systemic approaches to ensure that the shift toward sustainable practices benefits all sectors of society. By sharing its stewardship experiences and successes, NatuReS provided compelling insights into how inclusive partnerships can pave the way for a Just Transition.