NatuReS II Regional Learning Exchange

24 – 26 February 2026, East London Industrial Development Zone, East London, South Africa

The Natural Resources Stewardship Programme II (NatuReS II), implemented by GIZ, brought together a vibrant and diverse community of practice spanning the private sector, public sector and civil society from South Africa, Zambia, Tanzania and Ethiopia. Over three intensive days in KuGompo City (East London), South Africa, participants embarked on a shared learning journey to explore how Stewardship Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships (SMSPs) are reshaping the future of water security, industrial resilience and socio-ecological transformation across the region.

Rather than a conventional workshop, the exchange unfolded as a carefully curated learning experience, moving from strategic reflection to real-world demonstration and finally to collective visioning for action.

Strategic Focus: Water as the Foundation for Industrial Futures

The exchange opened with a powerful and unambiguous message: water security is not a sectoral issue – it is the foundation of industrial development and economic resilience. Without it, there can be no sustainable industrial future.

Using the East London Industrial Development Zone (ELIDZ) as a prime example, speakers illustrated how industries ranging from automotive manufacturing to aquaculture depend fundamentally on reliable and secure water systems. However, a clear consensus quickly emerged: technology alone cannot deliver water-smart industrial futures. GIZ emphasised that lasting resilience depends on something far more complex and powerful – trusted partnerships, shared accountability and coordinated action across sectors and scales.

From this foundation, the first day transitioned into a rich series of thematic discussions that unpacked how stewardship is being embedded into both industrial systems and national policy frameworks.

Keynote speaker Professor Mike Muller set the tone by describing South Africa’s “water mosaic,” – a system shaped by ageing infrastructure, climate volatility and institutional complexity. In this context, he argued, industries must increasingly act as “responsible citizens within shared water systems”.

This framing was deepened by inputs from Mahadi Mofokeng (Department of Water and Sanitation) and Thami Klaasen (Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (dtic) who provided a grounded overview of the country’s water challenges and industrial implications.

A dynamic panel discussion followed, where speakers collectively emphasised that water stewardship is no longer optional, but rather a strategic requirement for economic stability and long-term investment security.

Importantly, the dialogue highlighted a shared responsibility model: while the government provides the regulatory and enabling framework, it is the proactive engagement of the private sector in managing shared water risks that ultimately determines system resilience. Participants further underscored the growing pressures of climate change, ageing infrastructure and governance fragmentation as further strategic constraints and called for water stewardship principles to be more deeply integrated into national industrial policy.

Stewardship in Practice: From Ideas to Real-World Systems

If Day One grounded participants in strategy, it was the second phase of the exchange that brought stewardship vividly to life.

Through case studies, site visits and interactive demonstrations, participants moved from conceptual understanding to lived experience of how partnerships are already transforming water systems on the ground.

On the first day of practical learning, the partners from the uMhlathuze Water Stewardship Partnership (UWASP) in South Africa demonstrated how investments in upstream ecological restoration directly translate into downstream water security for industry. In the same session, the Atlantis Special Economic Zone (ASEZ) showcased its pioneering “Net-Zero Water” approach -positioning itself as a first mover in designing systems that significantly reduce freshwater demand through advanced water recycling, reuse and rainwater harvesting technologies. In contrast, the East London Industrial Development Zone (ELIDZ) presented its emerging efforts to replicate and adapt similar Net-Zero Water principles within its own industrial context, while also sharing its ongoing journey towards becoming an Eco-Industrial Park. This transition is aimed at enhancing the zone’s long-term sustainability, resource efficiency, climate resilience and competitiveness, while strengthening its attractiveness and readiness for future investment.

To deepen this experience, participants embarked on a series of field visits across East London, each offering a different lens into water stewardship in action.

The ELIDZ Water Testing Laboratory, provided insight into the importance of continuous monitoring, compliance systems and data-driven water governance, while a visit to the Seawater Extraction Facility demonstrated how industries are actively diversifying water sources to alleviate pressure on municipal potable water supply systems. Together, these experiences illustrated a key message: resilience is not built in isolation within industrial fences, it is built through interconnected systems of infrastructure, innovation and shared resource management.

The following day’s visit to the Buffalo City Wastewater Treatment Plant added another critical dimension. Here, participants witnessed the long-term impact of a 30-year international cooperation partnership between the German Federal State of Lower Saxony and the Eastern Cape Government. The facility, enhanced through infrastructure upgrades and renewable energy installations illustrated how modernised public utilities can become central nodes in circular water systems, enabling safe reuse, improved efficiency and long-term cost savings.

Methodology in Action: The NRAF Framework

At the heart of the GIZ’s NatuReS approach lies the Natural Resources Risk and Action Framework (NRAF) which provides a structured pathway for transforming shared resource risks into collective action and long-term institutional sustainability.

Rather than functioning as a theoretical model, the NRAF was experienced throughout the workshop as a practical navigation tool for complex partnerships.

This became particularly evident during the second day’s high-level panel discussion, “Unpacking the NRAF for Stewardship”, where representatives from South Africa, Zambia, Tanzania and Ethiopia reflected on their diverse experiences in navigating the five phases of the NRAF.

The discussion highlighted how the framework supports partnerships in moving from initial risk assessment to commitment, to implementation and ultimately to systemic scale. A recurring theme was the critical role of intermediaries like GIZ in building trust, enabling coordination and maintaining momentum between stakeholders who do not traditionally collaborate.

Speakers also emphasised the importance of formalising partnerships through agreements and institutional arrangements, ensuring that collaboration extends beyond individual projects into sustained governance structures.

Challenges such as stakeholder fatigue, institutional complexity and multi-level governance tensions were openly discussed, but these were framed not as barriers, rather as real-world conditions that stewardship approaches are specifically designed to navigate.

The following day, Sarah Beerhalter, Head of the GIZ’s NatuReS Programme provided a deep-dive into the NRAF. Following the presentation, the framework was brought to life in a more interactive format during the “NRAF Marketplace”, where each country presented its progress through the different stages of the stewardship journey.

South Africa demonstrated early-stage “Prepare & Assess” work focused on stakeholder mapping and industrial risk analysis. Representing the “Commit” phase, the delegation from Zambia illustrated how formalising cooperation through Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) provides the legal stability necessary for long-term public-private collaboration. Tanzania showcased practical insights from the “Act” phase through tangible ecosystem restoration interventions along river systems. Ethiopia presented a compelling “Scale & Exit” model, demonstrating how stewardship principles can be anchored and institutionalised within national government systems and academic curricula.

Reflections, Commitments and the Road Ahead

The final day of the exchange shifted from learning and demonstration to reflection and forward planning.

Participants worked in country groups to consolidate key insights and identify priority actions for implementation within their respective contexts. A strong emerging theme was the need to formalise collaboration structures, including the establishment of partnership secretariats such as UWASP and the development of City Improvement Districts (CIDs) to bridge and strengthen coordination between industry, government and local communities. A major priority which participants emphasised is accelerating the transition to circular water systems, with plans to implement Eco-Industrial Parks, expanded rainwater harvesting and greywater reuse systems – drawing inspiration from innovation models such as the Rosslyn Industrial Hub.

To support these ambitions, commitments were made to strengthen data systems, Environmental Management Systems (EMS) and monitoring frameworks, alongside the introduction of leadership initiatives such as the Amanzi Champions programme to foster local stewardship. Finally, to ensure the long-term viability of these projects, participants committed to advocating for enabling policy reforms and mobilising diverse financing mechanisms. In the South African context, this includes exploring opportunities to address constraints associated with the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) and leveraging funding instruments such as the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition’s (the dtic) Critical Infrastructure Programme (CIP) to rehabilitate ageing wastewater infrastructure and support more inclusive, community-oriented access to water services.

Closing Reflection: A Shared Regional Direction

The East London exchange reinforced a growing regional convergence around a simple but powerful truth: water security, industrial resilience and ecological sustainability are inseparable. Stewardship Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships are emerging as a practical and scalable mechanism for aligning economic development with long-term resource security and socio-ecological transformation. As climate variability intensifies and water risks deepen across the continent, the relationships, insights and collaborative models emerging from this exchange will become increasingly critical for shaping water-smart, resilient and inclusive industrial futures across Africa.

Building inclusive water stewardship requires more than technical solutions – it demands intentional reflection, dialogue and action. The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ)’s Natural Resources Stewardship Programme II (NatuReS II) brought this to life by hosting a dynamic Gender and Inclusivity training workshop from 23 – 26 March 2026 in Richards Bay. Taking place shortly after World Water Day, under the theme “Water and Gender”, the training formed part of a broader effort to advance more inclusive water governance and ensure that gender considerations are meaningfully and systemically integrated into stewardship processes.

This training contributes to the uMhlathuze Water Stewardship Partnership’s (UWASP) work supported by NatuReS II to strengthen inclusive, participatory governance approaches and ensure that women, youth and marginalised groups have a meaningful role in stewardship and Just Transition processes. It brought together partners from the public, private and civil society sectors to collectively strengthen inclusive participation in water stewardship and governance.

Participants included representatives from the Richards Bay Industrial Development Zone (RBIDZ), uMngeni-uThukela Water (UUW), the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS), Pongola-uMzimkhulu Catchment Management Agency (PUCMA), the City of uMhlathuze Municipality, Richards Bay Minerals (RBM), Foskor, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife and the Green Chapter Foundation. Facilitated by Gender Links, the training created a safe and dynamic space for reflection, dialogue and practical learning on how gender and social inclusion influence participation, decision-making and access within stewardship processes.

Participants engaged with key themes including gender equity and social inclusion (GESI), unconscious bias, inclusive governance and gender-responsive planning, as well as the links between water security, climate resilience and social justice. These themes are central to the training’s design, which intentionally positions gender equity and social inclusion as foundational pillars of effective and sustainable water stewardship.

A key highlight of the training was its highly interactive and reflective approach. Through group discussions and practical exercises, participants explored how exclusion can manifest in everyday institutional practices and project implementation. Many reflected that the training prompted new ways of thinking and surfaced blind spots, challenged them to think differently about issues they had not previously considered in their work and reinforced the importance of creating intentional spaces for learning and dialogue.

Beyond capacity building, the training represents an important step toward embedding inclusivity more intentionally into UWASP’s collective work and strengthening how partners integrate the needs and rights of women and marginalised groups into stewardship planning and action.

As UWASP continues to advance collaborative responses to water security challenges in the uMhlathuze catchment, this training marks an important milestone in reinforcing that effective stewardship must also be deeply inclusive stewardship – centring people, equity, and participation at every step.

Author: Noxolo Mbebe

Berlin, Germany — 13th to 18th January, 2026

Earlier this year, Berlin hosted the 18^th Global Forum for Food and Agriculture (GFFA) under the theme “Water. Harvests. Our Future.” The forum brought together agriculture ministers, policymakers, researchers, and private sector leaders from around the world to confront one of the defining challenges of our time: how to secure water for food production in an era of growing climate stress. For GIZ and its partners in Zambia, participation in the GFFA was not simply an opportunity to observe global policy debate, it was a platform to demonstrate that the stewardship work underway on the ground in Zambia is directly relevant to and aligned with the international water governance agenda. With agriculture accounting for approximately 72% of total global water use, the GFFA placed the water-agriculture nexus at the centre of international dialogue. The forum organised discussions across four thematic areas: using water sustainably, strengthening the blue bioeconomy, resolving competing water uses, and improving international water governance. Ministers from 61 countries gathered for the Berlin Agriculture Ministers’ Conference on 17 January, debating concrete commitments on water resilience, sustainable food systems, and climate adaptation.

Zambia’s Strategic Delegation

Zambia was represented by a multi-sectoral delegation that embodied the country’s integrated approach to water governance. Led by Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Water Development and Sanitation, Eng. Romas Kamanga accompanied by Dr Choongo, Principal Water Officer for the Department of Water Resources Development, the delegation included technical experts from the Ministry, the Director of the National Water Supply and Sanitation Council (NWASCO) — who also serves as Secretariat for the Lusaka Water Security Initiative (LuWSI) Eng Kelvin Chitumbo and senior representatives Ezekiel Sekele from Zambeef Products Plc and Dr Duncan Tembo from Zambia Sugar Plc as major agricultural water users and members of the Kafue Flats Joint Action Group (KFJAG) and a team from the GIZ Zambia Water And Energy Cluster who facilitated the mission including the Cluster Coordinator  Anke Peine Ellis, AWARE II Project Manager Christian Henschel and NatuReS Country Coordinator Adjoa Parker.

This public-private composition demonstrated to international partners that Zambia’s water governance model is not confined to government, it actively involves the private sector as responsible stewards of shared water resources.

From Fragmentation to Action: Zambia Speaks on the Global Stage

A highlight of the mission was Zambia’s participation in Expert Panel 4: “From Fragmentation to Action: Strengthening Water Governance for Resilient Agri-food Systems,” hosted by WaterAid, Welthungerhilfe, and the German WASH Network. PS Kamanga delivered a statement showcasing Zambia’s proactive legislative reforms as a model for climate-resilient water governance.

He highlighted the comprehensive amendment of the Water Resources Management Act — a modernisation of a 16-year-old legal framework aligned with the 2024 National Water Policy — and the new Statutory Instrument on Rainwater Harvesting and Storage. These reforms, developed in direct response to the devastating impacts of the 2024 El Niño drought, represent a shift from reactive drought management to a proactive resilience framework. The panel, which also featured Germany’s Water Director at the Federal Ministry for the Environment Dr Miriam Haritz, provided Zambia with international visibility and positioned the country as a forward-looking voice in global water governance.

Stewardship in Dialogue: Engagements with BMZ and German Water Partnership

Beyond the formal panels, the delegation engaged in bilateral meetings that translated global commitments into action. At a high-level exchange with the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), discussions focused on balancing competing water demands between agriculture and energy, a challenge that is acutely felt in Zambia’s Kafue Basin, where hydropower, irrigation, and ecosystem needs increasingly converge. The potential introduction of abstraction charges as a sustainable financing mechanism for water resource management institutions was explored as part of a longer-term vision for financial sustainability.

At the German Water Partnership (GWP) premises, the delegation engaged in a Round Table discussion with private sector water technology companies working in irrigation, metering, wastewater treatment, rainwater harvesting, and solar-powered water solutions. These conversations opened concrete pathways for pilot partnerships in Zambia, with follow-up expected on topics including smart metering, energy contracting models, and bulk water supply through public-private partnerships.

A meeting with KfW established a roadmap for the Ministry to develop concept notes for water security projects, leveraging the Zambia Water Investment Programme (ZIP) to attract international financing for critical infrastructure gaps.

The WEFE Nexus: Connecting the Dots in Zambia

Underpinning much of the mission’s technical content was the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystems (WEFE) Nexus, the integrated planning framework that recognises water as a driver of national economic and food resilience rather than simply a utility to be managed in isolation. In discussions with GIZ and BMZ, the delegation explored how domesticating the WEFE Nexus in Zambia would help move planning away from fragmented, sector-by-sector approaches towards coordinated investment that serves agriculture, energy, and ecosystems simultaneously.

These discussions had direct implications for the Natural Resources Stewardship (NatuReS) Programme’s stewardship work. The Kafue Flats Joint Action Group (KFJAG), which brings together large agricultural water users in one of Zambia’s most water-stressed and ecologically significant basins, illustrates the cross-sectoral, multi-stakeholder approach that the WEFE Nexus demands. The GFFA reinforced KFJAG’s relevance as a model not only for Zambia, but for the wider region.

Why This Matters for NatuReS’s Work

The 18th GFFA affirmed what NatuReS has been building in Zambia: that sustainable water management requires strong governance frameworks, multi-stakeholder platforms, and a private sector that acts as a responsible partner not simply a user of shared resources. The global policy commitments made in Berlin resonate directly with NatuReS’s work on the ground:

• LuWSI, as a multi-stakeholder water security platform with strong buy-in from various stakeholders, embodies the inclusive, cross-sectoral governance that the GFFA called for in addressing fragmented water management.
• KFJAG demonstrates how industry can be engaged as a steward investing in catchment health, contributing to regulatory compliance, and co-managing shared water resources alongside government and civil society. All of this while enhancing operational efficiency and profitability.
• Zambia’s legislative reforms supported through NatuReS’s policy advisory work — are now visible on the international stage as practical examples of countries moving from fragmentation to action.

As global attention turns toward the 2026 UN Water Conference, Zambia’s participation in the GFFA has helped ensure that the country’s voice, its governance reforms, and its stewardship partnerships are part of the international conversation. The mission was not just about visibility, it generated tangible follow-up commitments with BMZ, KfW, and the German Water Partnership that will carry forward into NatuReS’ final implementation period and beyond.

Ethiopia’s shift towards a circular economy offers significant opportunities for sustainable development and green job creation, yet it risks reinforcing existing inequalities if the most vulnerable workers are ignored. In Addis Ababa, women and marginalized groups form the backbone of the waste value chain, while often enduring hazardous conditions, income insecurity, and systemic exclusion from decision-making spaces. To address this critical gap, the GIZ NatuReS Programme under the Partnership for Circular Value Chains in Addis Ababa has partnered with Eco-Justice Ethiopia, a civil society organization dedicated to climate and environmental justice to implement the initiative “Fostering a Just Transition in Ethiopia’s Waste Circularity: Empowering Women and Marginalised Groups Through Circular Economy”. This initiative aimed to empower waste workers by embedding gender sensitivity and social inclusion directly into the sector’s operational and policy frameworks.

The intervention began with a comprehensive gap assessment, revealing that despite national commitments to gender equality, institutional practices within the waste sector remained largely gender blind. In response, a targeted, evidence-based 3-day participatory training was delivered to representatives from government institutions, private companies, SMEs, and NGOs. By utilizing local case studies and guiding participating organizations to develop concrete, institution-specific action plans, the training moved beyond theoretical concepts to practical application. This approach directly supported the NatuReS objective of increasing knowledge regarding the roles, rights, and needs of women and marginalized groups in just transition processes, ensuring stakeholders were fully equipped to drive meaningful change.

The true success of the initiative is evident in how participants have actively demonstrated and applied their newly acquired knowledge to transform their workplaces. A post-training assessment revealed that ten participating institutions fully implemented their tailored action plans, leading to tangible improvements such as revised employment contracts addressing gender-based violence, the distribution of occupational safety kits, and the establishment of separate facilities for women. The impact of this shift was echoed by the participants themselves:

Abebe Reda, Head of the Awareness Creation Unit at Yeka Woreda 09, noted that understanding inclusion as a fundamental human rights issue motivated his office to appoint two women to leadership positions within local waste collection associations.

Similarly, Elsabeth Tsegaye, a Senior Project Manager at Reach for Change Ethiopia, emphasized that applying a gender lens is now understood not as “extra work,” but as a necessary foundation for achieving real, community-wide social impact.

Ultimately, this initiative illustrates that a just transition in Ethiopia’s waste circularity is entirely achievable when inclusion is prioritized and actively managed. By fostering an environment where institutional commitments to gender equality are translated into concrete, everyday practices, the initiative has laid a strong foundation for long-term systemic change. Crucially, several organizations have already expressed concrete intentions to scale these inclusive efforts beyond the project’s duration through ongoing training and policy revisions. Continued collaboration among civil society, the private sector, and public institutions will remain vital to ensure that the emerging circular economy benefits everyone, particularly those who have historically been left behind.

To gain quicker insights into the interactive sessions and the transformative discussions that took place, we invite you to watch the YouTube video (here). The NatuReS programme extends a sincere appreciation to Eco-Justice Ethiopia for their dedicated partnership in championing an inclusive, just transition with in Ethiopia’s circular economy.