PROJECT DEVELOPMENT FACILITY
REQUEST FOR PIPELINE ENTRY
AND PDF BLOCK B APPROVAL
AGENCY'S PROJECT ID: 3243
GEFSEC PROJECT ID: 2701
FINANCING PLAN (US$)
COUNTRY: Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, and South Africa
GEF ALLOCATION
PROJECT TITLE: Development and Implementation of the
Project (estimated)
US$ 6,000,000
Strategic Action Programme for the Orange-Senqu River Basin
Project Co-financing
US$ 33,000,000
(estimated)
PROJECT EXECUTING AGENCY (IES):
PDF A
UN Agency: UNOPS
PDF B
US $700,000
DURATION:
PDF C
Sub-Total GEF PDF
Phase 1: TDA Preparation/ PDF B 18 months
PDF Co-financing (details provided in Part II,
Phase 2: SAP Preparation 4 Years
Section E- Budget)
Phase 3: SAP Implementation 5 Years
GEF Agency
GEF FOCAL AREA: International Waters
National Contribution
US $ 475,000 (in-
kind)
GEF OPERATIONAL PROGRAM:
Others (ORASECOM,
US $ 2,400,000
OP 9: Integrated Land and Water Management
FGEF, GTZ, EU)
(cash/in-kind)
GEF STRATEGIC PRIORITY:
Sub-Total PDF Co-
US$2,875,000
IW Strategic Priority 2
financing
ESTIMATED STARTING DATE: June 2005
Total PDF Project
Financing
US$ 3,575,000
ESTIMATED WP ENTRY DATE: January 2007
PIPELINE ENTRY DATE: February 2005
RECORD OF ENDORSEMENT ON BEHALF OF THE GOVERNMENT:
ORASECOM: (on behalf of Member Countries): Mr Balisi Khupe, Standing Chairperson
Date: 18/01/2005
Botswana: M. Nchunga, Executive Secretary, National Conservation Strategy Agency Date: 01/02/2005
Lesotho: Stanley M. Damane, Ministry of Tourism, Environment and Culture Date: 27/01/2005
Namibia: Teofilus Nghitila, Director: Environmental Affairs, Ministry of Environment and Tourism Date:
18/01/2005
South Africa: Dr. C. Olver, Director General, Department of Environmental Affairs and TourismDate:
31/01/2005
This proposal has been prepared in accordance with GEF policies and procedures and meets the standards
of the GEF Project Review Criteria for approval
.
Name & Signature
Project Contact Person:
Mr. Nik Sekhran, GEF Regional Coordinator,
UNDP
Tel: 27 12 3548131
Frank Pinto
MAIL: nik.sekhran@undp.org
Executive Coordinator, UNDP/GEF
Date: 10 March 2005
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ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS
ARB- Botswana
Agricultural Resources Board
BCLME
Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem Programme
CMA
Catchment Management Authority
CEPF
Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund
DCPF-Botswana
Department of Crop Production and Forestry
DDC-Botswana
District Development Committee
DDP- Botswana
District Development Plan
DEAT-SA
Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism
DWA- Botswana
Department of Water Affairs
DWAF-SA
Department of Water Affairs and Forestry
EIA
Environmental Impact Assessment
EIA
Environmental Impact Assessment
EWT
Endangered Wildlife Trust
GEF
Global Environment Facility
GIS
Geographic Information System
GoB
Government of Botswana
GoSA
Government of South Africa
LHWP
Lesotho Highlands Water Project
LORMS
Lower Orange River Management Study
MAWRD- Namibia
Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Rural Development
MDG
Millennium Development Goal
MET-Namibia
Ministry of Environment and Tourism
MEWT-Botswana
Ministry of Environment, Wildlife and Tourism
MLRR-Namibia
Ministry of Lands, Rehabilitation and Resettlement
MoA- Botswana
Ministry of Agriculture
NACOMA
Namib Coast Biodiversity Conservation and Management Project
NCSA- Botswana
National Conservation Strategy (Coordinating) Agency
NEMA-SA
National Environmental Management Act
NPC
National Planning Commission
NWSP
National Wetland Strategy And Policy
NWRMR
Namibian Water Resources Management Review
ORASECOM
Orange-Senqu River Basin Commission
PDF B
Project Development Facility Block B
PMU
Project Management Unit
PSC
Project Steering Committee
SADC
Southern African Development Community
SAP
GEF Strategic Action Program
TDA
GEF Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis
UNDP
United Nations Development Program
UNEP
United Nations Environment Programme
WMA
Water Management Area
WB
World Bank
WSSD
World Summit on Sustainable Development
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LETTER OF ENDORSEMENT FROM ORASECOM
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART I PROJECT CONCEPT........................................................................................................................................................ 6
A.
SUMMARY ..............................................................................................................................................................................6
B.
COUNTRY OWNERSHIP..................................................................................................................................................7
B1.
Country eligibility .......................................................................................................................................................... 7
B2.
Country drivenness......................................................................................................................................................... 7
C.
PROGRAM AND POLICY CONFORMITY..............................................................................................................14
C1.
Program Designation and Conformity...................................................................................................................... 14
C2.
Project Design............................................................................................................................................................... 15
Main Project Components:......................................................................................................................................................... 25
C3.
Sustainability................................................................................................................................................................. 29
C4.
Replicability .................................................................................................................................................................. 29
C5.
Stakeholder involvement/intended beneficiaries .................................................................................................... 30
D.
FINANCING.........................................................................................................................................................................33
D1.
Financing Plan............................................................................................................................................................... 33
D2.
Co-financing.................................................................................................................................................................. 33
E.
INSTITUTIONAL COORDINATION AND SUPPORT .........................................................................................33
E1.
Core commitments and Linkages (Linkages to IAs).............................................................................................. 33
E2.
Consultations, Coordination and Collaboration between and among Implementing Agencies, Executing
Agencies, and the GEF Secretariat ............................................................................................................................................ 34
E3.
Implementation/Execution Arrangements................................................................................................................ 36
PART II PROJECT DEVELOPMENT FACILITY.................................................................................................................... 36
A.
DESCRIPTION OF PROPOSED PDF B ACTIVITIES ..........................................................................................36
B.
PDF BLOCK B OUTPUTS ...............................................................................................................................................38
C.
JUSTIFICATION................................................................................................................................................................38
D.
TIMETABLE........................................................................................................................................................................39
E.
BUDGET ................................................................................................................................................................................39
ANNEX 1 - MAP OF THE ORANGE SENQUI RIVER BASIN .......................................................................................40
ANNEX 2 - MATRIX OF THREATS, ROOT CAUSES AND SOLUTIONS.............................................................................. 41
ANNEX 3 SELECTED REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................43
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PART I PROJECT CONCEPT
A.
SUMMARY
1.
The Orange River, (called the Senqu River in Lesotho), originates in the Lesotho Highlands
some 3,300 m above sea level where the average annual precipitation can exceed 1,800 mm, with a
corresponding average annual potential evaporation of 1,100 mm. The river stretches 2,300 km
from the source to its mouth (Alexander Bay/Oranjemund) on the South Africa/ Namibia border,
where the average annual precipitation drops to below 50 mm, while the average annual potential
evaporation rises to over 3,000 mm. The Orange River basin is the largest river basin in southern
Africa, with a total catchment area in the order of 1,000,000 km2, of which almost 600,000 km2 lies
within the Republic of South Africa with the remainder in Lesotho, Botswana and Namibia. The
effective catchment area is difficult to determine, since it includes many pan areas and also several
large ephemeral tributaries, such as the Molopo and Nossob in Botswana, that rarely contribute to
flows in the main river. The principal anthropogenic threats1 to the integrity of the basin include:
· Over-extraction of water leading to water scarcity;
· Land degradation, diminishing the water retention capacity of soils;
· Pollution; and
· Climate change, expected to lead to greater environmental variability in future (e.g dislocations
in spatial and temporal rainfall patterns).
2.
The overall goal of the Project is to improve the management of the Orange Basin's trans-
boundary water resources through Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) approaches
that remediate threats and root causes. An IWRM approach considers the interrelationships
between natural resource systems, biophysical processes and socio-economic systems and
objectives. IWRM seeks to integrate this approach into management of the overall water resource,
taking into account factors outside of the water sector such as, for example, agriculture and energy
and such issues as land degradation and climate change. This expanded approach makes possible a
transition to adaptive management strategies for water resources. The Project will develop
mechanisms to ensure the cooperative and sustainable use of the land and water resources of the
Orange River Basin; develop regionally based and agreed upon short, medium, and long term
management objectives and strategies for the river basin; build capacity for adaptive management
approaches to river basin management; develop and implement measures to sustain and enhance
overall environmental health within the basin; create a comprehensive stakeholder involvement
program; and strengthen regionally based institutions, particularly ORASECOM, to ensure the
long term sustainability of interventions. The Project will create synergies with and build upon a
range of initiatives being undertaken in the Basin by the four countries and those of donor bodies.
3.
The focus of GEF involvement will be on addressing transboundary water management
issues, as identified in priority sequence through a transboundary diagnostic analysis (TDA)
process, and addressed in a Strategic Action Program (SAP). GEF funding will be drawn upon for
preparation of the comprehensive TDA and SAP, and the implementation of select interventions
identified in the SAP as regional priorities. The Project meets eligibility requirements under
Operational Program #9 of the GEF International Waters Focal Area: Integrated Land and Water.
1 The extent of a possible fifth threat to the system, the introduction of invasive species, will be explored during
Preparation and formulation of the TDA and SAP.
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B.
COUNTRY OWNERSHIP
B1.
Country eligibility
4.
As recipients of UNDP technical assistance, all riparian countries in the Orange River Basin
are eligible for GEF funding under para. 9 (b) of the GEF Instrument.
B2.
Country drivenness
Country Commitment at Regional Level
5.
The countries singly and jointly are strongly committed to a regional approach to
addressing threats to the shared water resources of the basin. Each of the countries has in place, is
developing, and continues to improve upon domestic legislation that provides a framework for
regional cooperation in the arena of Integrated Water Resource Management. This is given further
substance in bilateral and regional agreements between the riparian countries. In addition, the
countries have formed regionally based institutions that provide a basis for management
cooperation.
6.
Management of the transboundary water resources of the Orange Senqu River Basin will
be a complex undertaking, requiring attention to a host of interrelated issues: water supply and
quality, water demand from different sectors, potential conflict between and among users at a
national level, water allocation decisions, water pollution, environmental protection, climate change,
land degradation, invasive alien species, and potential conflicts between users. As the countries that
share the basin Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and South Africa - will soon be faced with greater
demand for the Basin's water resources than supplies can provide2, it is in their direct best interests
to continue and to build upon their commitment to take cooperative approaches to management of
Basin resources. The countries have signaled their intention to work together in the following areas,
amongst others: developing joint adaptive management strategies codified in regional action plans;
ensuring policy concordance to promote water conservation and maximize current, available
supplies of surface fresh water flows; strengthening institutional capacity for cooperative water
resource management; developing a basin wide information system to establish a common
understanding of management issues; operationalizing specific, prioritized technical projects and
studies to expand know-how; and developing a multi-sector stakeholder participation framework.
7.
Each of the participating countries is an active and committed member of the Orange-Senqu
River Basin Commission (ORASECOM), a legal entity charged with overall management of the
Basin. The countries are also members of other Commissions charged with management
responsibilities in various parts of Basin. These include the Joint Permanent Technical Committee
involving South Africa and Botswana (JPTC), the Lesotho Highlands Water Commission (South
Africa and Lesotho -LHWC), the Permanent Water Commission involving Namibia and South
Africa, and the Joint Permanent Water Commission established by Botswana and Namibia (JPWC).
8.
The participating countries are members of the SADC and the SADC Environment and Land
Management Sector Coordinating Committee Unit (ELMS), and are signatories to the Protocol on
2 Indeed, a recent study undertaken by the Lower Orange Management Study (LORMS) has estimated that surface
water supplies of the Orange Senqu River Basin system may only be capable of meeting requirements for present and
future predictable uses until sometime between 2010 and 2015.
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Shared Watercourse Systems in the Southern African Development Community Region (Protocol).
Of importance to GEF Projects in the SADC region is the Protocol's emphasis on the requirement of
Member States to "....maintain a proper balance between resource development for a higher
standard of living for their peoples and conservation and enhancement of the environment to
promote sustainable development.3" The Protocol also provides, a framework for the establishment
of river basin management institutions (Article 3, a reason for the creation of ORASECOM)),
objectives for basin management institutions (Article 4), functions of basin management institutions
(Article 5), and a financial and regulatory framework for basin management institutions (Article 6).
9.
The participating countries are also supportive of the Southern Africa Vision for Water, Life
& the Environment in the 21st Century (Vision). The Vision states, inter alia, that there is:
§ An increasing demand on water resources;
§ An increasing strain on both water resources and the infrastructure necessary to sustain an
urban environment;
§ Increasing poverty;
§ Widespread food insecurity;
§ Inadequate coverage of water and sanitation services;
§ Disease and premature death from water related illness;
§ A need for integrated water resources and management (IWRM);
§ Poor waste management and lack of accountability;
§ Low levels of energy supply;
§ Degraded watersheds; and
§ Constraints within water management institutions.
At Country Level
Botswana
10.
Water availability in Botswana is mostly a function of erratic rainfall patterns4. Due to
prevailing, extremely arid conditions, it is estimated that up to 80% of precipitation is lost to
evaporation. Only 2% constitutes surface runoff, and a meager 1% reaches the groundwater table.
The balance, 17%, is utilized for biomass generation and is productively lost through evapo-
transpiration. Thus the internal water resources of Botswana are ephemeral in nature, and comprise
the impoundment of summer rainfall surface rainfall runoff in the normally dry rivers, groundwater
and the utilization of unconventional water resources. Although the limited surface water resources
may seem attractive for reservoir development, the efficiency of dams would be very low because
the largely ephemeral river flows are too variable, the topography too flat for good dam sites, and
evaporation is so high. Groundwater is the source of freshwater for approximately 80% of the
population and for livestock. The long-term sustainable yield for groundwater resources is estimated
to be 200 cubic Mm/a, of which 130 cubic Mm/a have been developed. Wastewater re-use is a
potential source of supplies as demand increases, as is a focus on demand side regulation.
11.
The domestic livestock, mining and power, and agricultural sectors constitute the main users
of water in Botswana. With continued population growth and related development activities, the
3 SADC Protocol, Article 2, Section 3.
4 SADC Water Sector/GTZ, Regional Strategic Action Plan 9 and 10, Botswana Water Policy Review, 30 June, 2003.
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demand for water will continue to rise. Indeed, the Water Utilities Corporation has recorded an
annual average increase of 6% in urban water demand. It is expected that water demand will more
than double over the next 15-20 years, and that this increase in demand will eventually outstrip
currently available water resources. In summary, Botswana's water resources are under a high level
of stress, and water scarcity will be an increasing, limiting factor in its ability to meet future
demand. Given this increased stress on Botswana's already limited supplies of water, issues related
to the area of Botswana that is within the Orange River Basin are of great national concern.
12.
Botswana has addressed, in part, its growing water scarcity concerns through adoption of the
Botswana National Water Master Plan Study (Plan). Although the Plan is now over a decade old, it
has been revised and adjusted over time. The Plan places an emphasis on the following activities:
· close monitoring of groundwater wellfields to avoid excessive depletion. In cases where the rate
of extraction is greater than the rate of replenishment, alternative water resources must be found;
· ensuring greater use of alternative technologies, such as desalination, to develop and conserve
water resources;
· management and the development of water supplies by local communities;
· ensuring greater coordination between Government institutions in the planning and
development of water resources;
· requiring environmental impact statements (EIS) as an integral part of all project feasibility and
subsequent studies for water development projects; and
· building interconnecting water supply schemes as a measure to respond to drought.
13.
Botswana realizes that augmentation of its internal water resources through the utilization
of internationally shared supplies (border-rivers and perhaps transboundary aquifers) will become
extremely important over the next decade. An International Water Unit has been established within
the Ministry of Natural Resources to provide technical support for the management of shared river
basins. The Unit represents Botswana at meetings pertinent to the Orange River Basin
ORASECOM, the JPTC, and the JPWC - as participants in water related fora created by SADC.
Namibia
14.
As is the case with Botswana, an extremely arid hydroclimate results in an immediate loss of
approximately 83% of precipitation to evaporation. Only two percent of rainfall supplies end up as
surface run-off and a mere 1 % becomes available in the groundwater table. The balance, 14%, is
utilized for biomass generation and is productively lost through evapo-transpiration. According to a
Study undertaken by SADC and the GTZ5, the water resources of Namibia can be divided into two
categories internationally shared resources and internal water resources. The international water
resources are situated along the northern and southern perennial border rivers. In the north are the
perennial Curene, Okavango, and Zambesi Rivers, as well as the ephemeral Cuvelai System that
drains from the south of Angola into the Etosha Basin. In the south is the Orange River. The internal
water resources of Namibia are also ephemeral in nature and comprise the impoundment of summer
rainfall surface runoff in normally dry rivers, in groundwater, and the utilization of unconventional
water resources. It is estimated that 95% of the assured safe yield of the dams that can be developed
on these ephemeral systems is about 200 cubic Mm/a, and of this approximately 90 cubic Mm/a
5 SADC/GTZ, Namibia Water Policy, Pieter Heyns, 30 June, 2003
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have been developed. It is also estimated that the long-term sustainable yield of groundwater
resources is 300 cubic Mm/a, and of this yield about 150 cubic Mm/a have so far been developed.
15.
In order to increase available water resources, Namibia maximizes the extent to which
wastewater is recycled, or reclaimed, and has developed desalinization technology for brackish and
seawater. These processes yield approximately 10 cubic Mm/a, and, while this is a relatively small
amount of water, it yields a significant impact at the household level. For example, in Windhoek,
where a sewage reclamation plant that has been in operation since 1969, the present capacity is 7.5
cubic Mm/a. Nonetheless, Namibia has a high level of water stress and absolute water scarcity, and
in future it is likely that Namibia will look to international water resources to meet water demands.
16.
The main body of law directly concerned with water resources in Namibia comprises four
acts, some of which have been subsequently modified by short amending acts. These include the:
· Water Act, 1968;
· Borehole Act, 1956;
· Waterworks Act, 1962;
· Waterworks Amendment Act, 1983;
· Water Utilities Corporation (WUC) Act, 1970; and the
· WUC Amendment Act, 1978
17.
Aside from the acts listed above, there are other measures that have a bearing on water. The
Public Health Act, for instance, gives environmental health officers power to ensure the purity of
public water supplies. The Local Government District Councils Act enables District Councils to
provide water supplies outside any areas for which a water authority has been appointed under the
Waterworks Act. The Aquatic Weeds Control Act of 1971 prohibits the importation or
transportation of undesirable aquatic weeds into the country or from one body of water to another
without permit. The provisions of the principal acts are summarized below.
· The Water Act, 1968 is the base statute and contains what might be termed the "common law"
aspects of water: the status of public water; the inherent rights of individuals to the use of
water; the recording, granting, variation, and termination of formal rights to use or impound
water or to discharge effluents into it; the obligations of those taking water to use it properly;
conditions controlling pollution of public water, and so on. This act established the Water
Apportionment Board (WAB) as the licensing authority and prescribed its constitution, powers,
and duties. The Secretariat for the WAB is provided by the DWA.
· The Borehole Act, 1956 is a short statute which stipulates the records and samples which have
to be kept and furnished to the Director of the Department of Geological Survey (DGS) by
anyone sinking a borehole more than 15 m below the surface or deepening an existing
borehole. Contractors engaged in drilling operations on behalf of clients are required to comply
with the provisions of the act.
· The Waterworks Act (Act), 1962 and its short amendment provide for the constitution of water
authorities in townships and other areas designated by the "Minister" and confer powers and
duties upon them. Included among these is the right to acquire existing waterworks; construct
new works; and curtail supplies in time of drought and other emergencies. The Act and
amendment also deal with charges for water supplied, water supplied to non-statutory areas,
and the misuse or pollution of water. Further, they authorize the "Minister" to make regulations
on such matters as the prevention of waste, suspension of supplies, and the inspection and
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testing of meters and other appurtenances.
· The Water Utilities Corporation Act, 1970 established the Water Utilities Corporation for the
supply and distribution of water within the Shashe Development Area and elsewhere. The Act
also conferred necessary powers to the WUC to develop water resources. The Act specifically
addresses the constitution of the corporation, the appointment of members, procedures, powers,
the acquisition of capital works, and other matters. The financial principles and methods of
charging for water that must be observed are also specified. The Act further provides that the
Corporation shall be the "Water Authority" for the purpose of the Waterworks Act so that all
the provisions of the latter act apply to the WUC.
18.
The Namibian Water Resources Management Review (NWRMR) was an institutional
reform process initiated in 1997, within the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Rural Development
(MAWRD), and supported by the World Bank, BMZ/GTZ and UNDP. An objective of NWRMR
was to create a more effective and appropriate institutional structure for the Water Sector. It
reflects the decentralization policy of the Government. Many issues such as strategic water
resources assessment, human resources development, regulation, and conflict regulation were
considered.
19.
Broad sectoral objectives, as stipulated in the Water and Sanitation Policy of 1993, include:
· that essential water supply and sanitation services should become available to all Namibians,
and should be accessible at a cost that is affordable to the country as a whole;
· that equitable improvement of services should be achieved by the combined efforts of the
government and the beneficiaries, based on community involvement, community participation
and the acceptance of mutual responsibility; and
· that communities should have the right, with due regard for environmental needs and the
resources available, to determine which solutions and service levels are acceptable to them.
Beneficiaries should contribute toward the cost of services at increasing rates for standards of
living exceeding the levels required for providing basic needs.
20.
A new water policy was approved in August of 2000, and a Draft Water Bill is presently
being considered at Cabinet level and is in the final stages of legal review.
Lesotho
21.
Lesotho has an average rainfall of about 760 mm per year6, below the world average of 860
mm per year. Rainfall varies from less than 300 mm per year in the western lowlands to more than
1600 mm per year in the northeastern highlands. About 85% of the rainfall is received in the
period October to April. Very intense storms occur especially in the lowlands and as much as 15%
of annual rainfall may occur in a 24-hour period in some areas. Lesotho's surface water resources
are estimated at between 4,730 Mm3 and 5,300 Mm3 per year. The major river systems are:
· The Senqu (Orange) River with a catchment area of 24,485 km2 (66% of Lesotho's land area).
· The Makhaleng River with a catchment area of 2,911 km2.
· The Mohokare River (Caledon) with a catchment area of 6,890 km2 (within Lesotho).
22.
Lesotho's groundwater resources are conservatively estimated at 500 Mm3 per year.
6 SADC/GTZ Water Sector, RSAP Projects 9 and 10, Lesotho Water Policy Review, 30 June, 2003.
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Aquifer yields are generally low. The rural population in the lowlands is dependent on wells
(typical depth 65m) fitted with hand pumps. Total water requirements in 2025 are predicted to be
in the order of 130 to 160 Mm3/a. Future water demand is sensitive to population movements and
growth (as impacted particularly by HIV/Aids), industrial/trade policies (particularly as related to
the American Growth and Opportunity Act), and estimated growth in irrigation demand. Water
demand forecasts for the Lowlands area (where population, industry and agriculture are
concentrated) are in the process of being revised. The current cultivated area is approximately
210,000 ha (7% of total land area). However, there is limited irrigation potential and the current
irrigated area is in the region of 2,500 to 3,500 ha. The major crops are maize, potatoes and other
vegetables.
23.
Water availability per capita (based on internally renewable fresh water resources) is
estimated at about 2,400 cubic meters per capita and hence Lesotho is not, by this definition, water
stressed. However, water resources are unevenly distributed both geographically and temporally.
The concentration of population and industry is not co-incident with the availability of large
quantities of water. Transfer schemes to provide water from water abundant areas to the lowlands
are expensive. Nevertheless, the feasibility of a transfer scheme linked to the Phase 1 Lesotho
Highlands Water Project is being investigated together with other options. In the short term, the
water supply to Maseru is vulnerable to drought, and the possibility of releases from the Lesotho
Highland Water Project (LHWP) at Muela as a contingency plan (for emergencies and on a time-
limited basis) to augment flow in the Mohokare River has been raised by the World Bank, which
recommended that this be discussed with South Africa. (At present, South Africa does not need its
full allocation of water from the LHWP due to lower than forecasted demand in Gauteng.)
24.
Lesotho has recently developed an Environment Act (Act)7. The Act makes provision for
the establishment of the Lesotho Environment Authority, and provision is made for the
systematization of EIA procedures, development of Standards (in particular Water Quality), and
new procedures for Effluent Discharge Licensing and Polluting Licensing. The Act is also an
"umbrella" for many issues related to water and is pertinent to the Outcomes and Activities of this
proposal.
25.
A new water resources policy (Policy) was approved by Cabinet in 1999. The objectives of
the Policy are to ensure sustainable development of water resources, adequate supplies of potable
water, even in drought conditions, and the proper assessment and protection of water resources. The
Policy is comprised of six key provisions:
· Government will ensure rational exploitation and management of Lesotho's water
resources.
· Government will ensure access to potable water by all people of Lesotho.
· Every citizen is entitled to potable water for basic human needs and any requirement beyond
this will be paid for by the user.
· All environmental aspects of water will be protected.
· Water will be managed in a way that ensures maximum benefits to Lesotho while taking
cognizance of her obligations to her neighbors and downstream users.
· Stakeholders will be involved in every stage of design and implementation of water
7 Environment Act n°103 of 2001
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resources development projects. The expansion of water supply systems will also be demand
driven.
26.
The Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) is a key element of Lesotho's transboundary
water resource management programme. The LWHP is a four-phase water transfer project which
involves diverting about half the water flowing down the Senqu River in Lesotho into the Vaal
River system to meet increasing needs in this heavily industrialized corridor which contains
approximately 40 % of South Africa's population. Phase 1B of the project became operational in
1998, with the transfer of water from a network of reservoirs in the Lesotho Highlands. The project
has been extended to include the construction of another tunnel from the Katse reservoir. Following
completion of Phase 1B, the supply of water to the Vaal dam from the project was boosted by 180
million cubic meters to 780 million cubic meters. The Vaal dam currently supplies 1200 million
cubic meters of water to Guateng Province (Johannesburg and Pretoria). In return, Lesotho receives
R200 million per annum from South Africa in royalties. Water is Lesotho's greatest source of
foreign exchange. By the end of the fourth phase of the LHWP in 2015, six dams will have been
constructed, including a 200 km network of transfer tunnels, delivering 82 cubic meters of water per
second.
27.
Lesotho is actively involved in regional level efforts in the Orange River Basin by virtue of
its membership in the Lesotho Highlands Water Commission, supported by a joint permanent
technical committee, and the Lesotho Highlands Development Authority. It is a member of
ORASECOM and, with South Africa, has established a working committee for the Lesotho
lowlands.
South Africa
28.
South Africa's rivers are small by comparison to those of many other countries8. South
Africa's portion of the Orange River carries only about 10% of the volume of water that is carried
by the Zambesi River, and a mere 1% of the volume carried by the Congo. Further, many of South
Africa's larger rivers, such as the greater Orange-Senqu and Limpopo Rivers, are international
resources. Eleven of the nineteen water management areas in South Africa are facing a water
deficit, a "deficit" being defined as water requirements being in excess of water availability. South
Africa is dependent on surface water resources for most of its urban, industrial and irrigation
needs. Groundwater resources, while also extensively used, particularly in rural areas, are limited
by South Africa's geology (aquifers occur in a limited number of areas). In the northern parts of
the country, both surface and groundwater resources are nearly fully developed and utilized. In
order to meet future water requirements, water resources must be utilized to maximum effect.
Growing industrialization and urbanization will place further demands on water resources unless
corrective measures are taken. The Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF) is
consequently developing an extensive water conservation and water demand management program
to ensure the most beneficial uses of water in the country, both from a social and economic
perspective, including the re-allocation of water from low benefit to higher benefit uses over time.
29.
The total surface water available in South Africa averages 49,200 million cubic meters per
year, including about 4,800 million cubic meters of water originating from Lesotho, and
8 SADC/GTZ South Africa Water Sector Review, 30 June, 2003.
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approximately 700 million cubic meters originating from Swaziland. The total currently available
yield is 13,911 million cubic meters, which could be increased by 5,600 million cubic meters
through development of additional surface water schemes. Substantial increases could also be
realized through increased re-use of return flows, and potential also exists for additional
development of groundwater resources, although at smaller scale. Over the next twenty-five years
water use is expected to rise 9%. HIV/AIDS is expected to have a significant affect on population
growth and future water demand, which is also the case for the other countries sharing the basin.
30.
South Africa completely reformed its water law after the democratic elections held in 1994.
This resulted in the enactment of the Water Services Act (Act 108 - of 1997) and the National
Water Act (Act 36 of 1998). The legislation is "framework legislation" with most of the detail
being incorporated in subsequent regulations. Since legislative enactment, DWAF has focused its
efforts on implementation. In particular, Catchment Management Agencies (CMAs) are being
established for each of the 19 Water Management Areas (WMAs) defined in the country (Chapter
7 of the Water Act). Given the size of the river basins in RSA, WMAs are identified at sub-basin
level. In the Orange-Senqu River Basin alone, 5 CMAs should be created: Upper Vaal, Middle
Vaal, Lower Vaal, Upper Orange, and Lower Orange. Full implementation of the CMAs will
likely take many years as the National Water Resources Strategy will determine a framework for
the delegation of water resources management responsibility to the CMAs, and CMAs will then, as
is suggested above, have to develop water resource management approaches as deemed necessary.
Thus activities related to the institution of CMAs are likely to occur in parallel with this project.
31.
The National Water Resource Strategy has been developed consistent with Chapter 2 of the
Water Act. Chapter 2 states that the Strategy: "will provide the national framework within which
South Africa's water resources will be protected, used, developed, conserved, managed and
controlled. It will indicate, for instance, where water is available for development and for
additional irrigation. It will identify where new investment will be needed to meet domestic and
municipal needs as well as where difficult choices have to be made between power stations and
new mines for example. It will provide the basis for achieving fair arrangements with neighbours
who share our rivers."9 Consistent with the legislatively mandated requirement "for achieving fair
arrangements with neighbours who share our rivers", South Africa has created an International
Liaison Directorate within the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry. As is the case with the
other countries participating in this Project, South Africa is a full partner in ORASECOM.
C.
PROGRAM AND POLICY CONFORMITY
C1.
Program Designation and Conformity
32.
The proposed Project is consistent with both OP # 9 (Integrated Land and Water Multiple
Focal Area Operational Program), and the International Waters Strategy of the GEF. Specifically,
the Project meets each of the Short-term objectives of the Program:
· Addressees the cross-cutting issue of land degradation in Africa;
· Assesses the usefulness of the Strategic Action Program for IW Projects with multiple focal
9 Source : Weekly newsletter of the DWAF 15/02/02
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area benefits; and
· Derives lessons learned in testing workable mechanisms to improve community, NGO,
stakeholder, and inter-ministerial participation in planning, implementing, and evaluating
Projects in OP#9.
Further, the proposed project meets the stated objectives of IW Strategic Priority II: Expand global
coverage of foundational capacity building addressing the two key program gaps and support for
targeted learning. It will help expand global coverage of foundational capacity building
interventions by addressing two key IW program gaps: those of providing a focus on cross-cutting
aspects of African transboundary waters, and support for targeted learning. The project addresses the
Programme focus on addressing water scarcity/ competing water uses through cross-sectoral
intervention.
33.
Last, the proposed Project is consistent with the GEF strategy for Adaptation to Climate
Change, adopted by the GEF Council in May, 2004. This requires that operational approaches to
adaptation should be:
· Designed to maximize the opportunity for learning and capacity building and will be
representative of particularly vulnerable regions, sectors, geographic areas, ecosystems, and
communities. This meets those objectives by inclusion of clearly stated learning and
capacity building activities, and the fact that the target region is vulnerable as demonstrated
by initial studies already undertaken within the participating countries and referred to in the
proposal.
· Applicable in a wide context, and applied in the larger context through experience and
lessons learned. The GEF will use experience from the SPA to develop good practices and
estimates of the costs of adaptation to better mainstream adaptation into the full range of
GEF activities. The proposed project will commit considerable resources to the
dissemination of lessons learned from its focus on climate change and adaptability.
· Inclusive of: (i) activities within a natural resources management context that generate
global environmental benefits, and (ii) adaptation measures that provide other major
development benefits (e.g. WEHAB, i.e. water, energy, health, agriculture, biodiversity).
· Consistent with existing eligibility criteria for GEF funding, such as country drivenness,
ecological and financial sustainability, replicability, stakeholder involvement, M&E, etc.
will be applied to the projects submitted under SPA. The proposed Project, as it is being
submitted consistent with the requirements of OP# 9, meets these eligibility criteria.
C2.
Project Design
34.
The Project has been designed with the understanding that the Orange River Basin is an
internationally important watershed seriously threatened at many levels, many of them at a
transboundary level, the management of which cannot be effectively addressed by a single country.
The catchment area is huge, approximately 3% of the African land-mass, and its high value across
a range of uses and values makes it a crucially important resource to the participating countries.
Governments in the region are committed to improved cooperation as evidenced by the creation of
the several international entities previously described in this proposal. However, existing
mechanisms to operationalize this commitment are still in the formative stages. The provision of
GEF support, linking with the FGEF, which has already approved a US$ 1.9M. Project for the
Orange River Basin, the GTZ, which has supported initial discussions to strengthen the capacity of
the ORASECOM, the EU, UNESCO, the countries themselves, and other donors that will be
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recruited as part of the GEF project, can close the gap between the stated objectives of the
countries, as articulated in the Agreement creating ORASECOM and reality on-the-ground.
Project Context:
Physical Context
35.
The Orange River basin is the largest river basin in southern Africa with a total catchment
area in the order of 1,000,000 km2, of which almost 600,000 km2 is within the Republic of South
Africa with the remainder in Lesotho, Botswana and Namibia. The effective catchment area is
difficult to determine since it includes many pan areas and also several large ephemeral tributaries,
such as the Molopo and Nossob in Botswana, that rarely contribute to flows in the main river
channel. The average natural runoff from the basin is estimated at 12,000 million m3/a. This
represents the average river flow that would occur if the river were free flowing, that is had it not
been significantly and heavily developed with the result that the current average annual runoff
reaching the river mouth at Alexander Bay is less than half of its natural, historic runoff. As water
supplies to the system occur almost exclusively in the summer months, measures to store water for
year-round use are required in order to maximize use of the available supplies.
36.
The Vanderkloof Dam is the most significant storage structure on the downstream portion
of the Orange River and effectively controls the flow of water along the 1,400 km stretch of river
between the dam and Alexander Bay on the Atlantic Ocean. The banks of the Orange River
downstream of Vanderkloof Dam are heavily developed in many areas, with irrigation being the
principal use. Both the Gariep and Vanderkloof dams are used to regulate river flows for irrigation
as well as to produce hydro-electricity during peak demand periods. Very little Orange River water
is used for domestic or industrial purposes with the exception of that used in the Vaal River basin.
37.
The principal tributary of the Orange River is the Vaal and its associated basin, which is
not only the largest and most important tributary of the Orange, but `fuels" South Africa's industrial
heartland in the greater Johannesberg-Pretoria region. Approximately fifty percent of South
Africa's GDP is generated in this area, and more than 80% of South Africa's electricity
requirements - approximately 50% of all the electricity generated in Africa - is met through the
resources of the Vaal. Water is also supplied from the Vaal to some of the largest gold and platinum
mines in the world, as well as to production activities in some of the World's largest coal reserves.
As a result of these and other various catchment developments, flows from the Vaal River rarely
make a significant contribution to the flow in the Orange River except during flood events.
Environmental Context:
38.
Information on the current state of the environment of the Orange River Basin is incomplete.
The substantial, anthropogenic modifications that have so significantly altered the natural flow
regimes of the Orange, and its principal tributaries, took place in large measure at a time when
environmental values were not significantly factored into development decisions. Further, there was
little opportunity given to many stakeholders to comment upon development decisions undertaken
centrally, and the potential consequences of these decisions. Thus there is little baseline data and
information available upon which to accurately assess the environmental and associated impacts that
have taken place throughout the system as a result of human intervention. Notwithstanding this lack
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of baseline data and information, at least one comprehensive study of the Basin, undertaken by the
World Commission on Dams10, concludes that three main habitats have been affected as a result of
human interventions in the system. These include: dryland habitats lost as a result of land
colonization and development along the river, the riverine ecosystem, and the estuary.
39.
With regard to dryland habitats, development of the river has at least indirectly affected the
surrounding lands through what might be called a "knock-on" effect of irrigation schemes, which
have led to the loss or degradation of large tracts of indigenous veld. There have also been losses in
biodiversity of riparian vegetation along the Orange River11. Such losses appear to be mainly
secondary consequences of current river regulation schemes, which led to land clearing for
cultivation and set the stage for the introduction of invasive alien species. Several invasive species
are of growing concern along the Orange River, these include mesquite (Prosopis spp), Sesbania
punicea, Port Jackson (Acacia saligna), castor oil bush (Ricinus communis). wild tobacco (Nicotiana
glauco), cocklebur ( Xanthium spp), syringe (Melia azedarach), and thornapple (Datura innoxia).
40.
The major changes in flow regime12 are comprised of:
· The quantity of annual runoff through the channel;
· The inter-annual variation of runoff; and
· The marked seasonality of the pre-regulation regime.
41.
The Gariep and Van der Kloof dams largely contain floods from the catchment area above
Gariep, thus reducing the frequency of small to medium sized floods and cutting the size of
maximum floods. Benefits from these dams include:
· Stabilization of the flows within and between years (reduced variability);
· Higher winter flows and lower summer flows;
· Fewer major flood events with influence on geomorphology;
· Loss of smaller flood events that stimulate fish breeding;
· Stabilization of temperature extending 130-180 km below the Van der Kloof dam; and
· Loss of nutrient rich silt to the river mouth and estuary.
42.
Another flow regime based effect has to do with the use of the Gariep and Van der Kloof
dams for peak power generating capacity, which increases during the winter months. As winter
months are also low flow months, hydropower releases create rapid pulses in flow and reverse the
natural hydrological regime.
Biodiversity
43.
The Orange River Basin is a center of globally significant terrestrial biodiversity, including
components of four biomes;
· Temperate grasslands (subdivided into dry and montane grasslands);
· Succulent karoo;
· Nama karoo; and
10Orange River Development Project, South Africa, Final Report: November 2000.
11 Ibid
12 Ibid
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· Arid savannah.
Two of these biomes, the grasslands and succulent karoo, are noted for their high floristic richness
and endmism. The grasslands biome is further noted for its hydrological service provisioning
capacity, straddling important catchment areas in the headwaters of the Orange River. Land
degradation in these areas is a threat to biodiversity and undermines hydrological service
functions. With the exception of the montane grasslands these biomes are all considered deserts or
semi deserts with unpredictable rainfall patterns (Lovegrove, 1993). The succulent and Nama
karoo biomes are highly vulnerable to desertification and are expected to suffer from increased
rainfall variability and changes expected as a result of climate change. The succulent karoo, which
lies within a winter rainfall area, presently has more predictable rainfall than the other areas. The
biodiversity of this area is expected to be severely affected under worst case climate change
modeling predictions. However, the exact impacts of climate change on biodiversity and
ecological services in the river basin remains poorly understood, and a determination of climate
related effects is seen as a priority for this project.
44.
The project is expected to benefit biodiversity conservation programs in two ways: 1) by
developing capacity to restore degraded ecosystems and strengthen hydrological service capacities,
and 2) increase understanding of vulnerabilities to climate change across the river basin, including
expected impacts on biodiversity. This information will in turn be important to plan adaptation
programs to address threats, including the siting of protected areas in expected refugia for native
species.
45.
An important area in terms of aquatic biodiversity is the Ramsar site located at the mouth of
the Orange River. While changes in flow regimes over time have contributed to degradation of the
site13, the influence of the regulated river on the avifauna is poorly understood. One effect of
regulation upstream of the mouth has been a reduction and increase in reedbeds and reduced
flooding of small salt marsh areas. Of greater consequence for the mouth of the river is the effect of
regulation on the build-up of sand bars. The sand-bars disrupt the interchange of river water with
ocean water, and if closure as a result of sand-bar formation is complete, it can cause the river to
back-up, with likely, although largely undefined consequences on the avifauna.
Current Supplies and Usage
46.
The joint South African and Namibian Lower Orange River Management Study (LORMS)
commenced in 2002 and will soon be completed. The objective has been to investigate ways to
improve the management, development and operation of the Orange River to benefit both
countries. The study gives a good description of the extent to which current and predictable uses of
the waters of the Basin must be the subject of continuing review, and that measures must be taken
at the regional level to identify any and all means to ensure more efficient use of the Basin's
waters.
47.
The water resources and water uses of the whole Orange River Basin have also been
assessed through the LORMS study. While the Vaal River System was not studied in any detail,
the results of detailed studies recently completed on the Vaal River Basin by South Africa were
13 Ibid
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used in the LORMS study.
48.
The historic firm yield analysis of the current Orange River System, with the
environmental water requirements currently being released from Vanderkloof Dam, indicate that
the total historic firm yield from the system is in the order of 3,250 million m3/a, and that by 2005
water requirements will be in balance with supplies determined to be available within reasonable
assurance levels. Updated preliminary assessments have been made of the environmental water
requirements for the Orange River and Estuary, as the current releases from Vanderkloof Dam
were determined before current methodologies were available.
49.
The Estuary is currently assessed to be an environmental Category D (largely modified),
but with a deteriorating trajectory. Various river reaches were assessed to be currently Category D
and Category C (moderately modified), also with deteriorating trajectories. To maintain the current
environmental categories and prevent further deterioration, additional release would be required
for both the river and estuary, and the Estuary requires more water than the river.
50.
The water available for allocation to consumptive use is significantly reduced when the
updated preliminary environmental flow is provided to the Estuary:
To maintain the Estuary at a Category D:
Surplus yield = 14 million m3/a
To improve the Estuary to a Category C:
a deficit of 500 million m3/a will be
experienced
51.
It should be noted that the assessment of environmental water requirements is based on
limited data, and that significant monitoring and a more detailed study will be recommended as a
result of the LORMS study.
Current and Projected Future Supplies
52.
A number of anthropogenic impacts on the estuary would also have to be reversed if the
negative trajectory of the estuarine category is to be halted. As previously mentioned, the current
and projected future water use in both countries was assessed during the LORMS Study. Particular
emphasis was placed on the potential development of irrigation in the common border area in
Namibia and South Africa. These opportunities focus on the production of high value crops. Other
consumer categories assessed were the urban/industrial and mining sectors.
53.
If current and estimated growth in water uses is to be met, further water allocations will be
required and new management and development options must be implemented to make the
required water available. The options for management and development of the Orange River, with
particular emphasis on the Lower Orange, below the Vanderkloof Dam, were considered in three
categories and recommendations made. It was recommended that significant improvements be
made to the flow-monitoring network and that real time modeling of the Orange River be used so
that operational losses could be reduced and inflows from the Vaal be utilized. It is estimated that
these improvements would increase yields by approximately 80 million m3/a.
54.
At present there is a surplus yield of 105 million m³/a in 2005 available in the Vaal River
System, but this would be reduced to 30 million m³/a by 2010. The LORMS study concluded that
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this surplus yield should be considered as a strategic reserve to be used to increase the assurance of
supply to users in the Orange River until 2010 if required. The yield of the system can be increased
by a further 143 million m3 per annum if the water stored in Vanderkloof Dam, below the canal
inlets to the irrigation system, is accessed via pumping. A parallel study is being undertaken by the
South African Department of Water Affairs and Eskom to determine the amount of energy that
Eskom would forfeit as a result of such a change.
55.
The LORMS study also concluded that the ongoing initiatives in the urban, industrial,
mining, and agricultural sectors should continue and be encouraged. The opportunities are greatest
for more efficient water use in the agricultural sector, and this sector also has the largest water use.
The most important measures that have been identified include:
· The establishment of a water efficiency unit;
· Proper scheduling of irrigation on farms;
· Metering and application of tariffs to promote conservation; and
· The upgrading of irrigation systems.
56.
The current (2002) agricultural water use from the Lower Orange, downstream of
Vanderkloof Dam, (excluding the Vaal), is 1 375 million m³/a and it is estimated that up to 20%,
i.e., 277 million m³/a could be saved and used for irrigating new areas. It has been recommended
that a pilot project be implemented to establish the costs and benefits, which could be achieved by
initiatives to improve water use efficiency.
57.
The success of water conservation and demand management measures is largely dependent
on adequate incentives to farmers, the legislative and administrative regime in South Africa, as
well as on significant attention to education and training activities for, and acceptance among
numerous private sector irrigators. The estimated time to realize WDM savings, including the time
required for the pilot study is approximately 15 years. It has been recommended that no reliance be
placed on this water for making new allocations available for development, although some
transfers of water rights between different areas may take place within the Orange River System.
58.
The provision of a dam on or near the Namibia/South Africa border to re-regulate the
releases from Vanderkloof Dam, and the currently uncontrolled run-off from the incremental
catchment, can yield about 170 million m3/a. The proposed dam would be near Vioolsdrift, and
would be a minimum height of 35 meters with a gross storage capacity of 260 million m³.
Considering the projected increase in water requirements and the fact that the currently estimated
surpluses are within the accuracies of hydrological assessments, it is has been recommended that a
detailed Feasibility Study be undertaken as soon as possible. If additional allocatable yield is
required after these measures have been implemented, a large storage dam would be required on
the Orange River System. Current estimates are that this additional yield will be required after
2025.
59.
In the study area of this project, the Vioolsdrift site was evaluated as being clearly more
advantageous for a large dam than the alternative site at Boegeberg. The possibility of raising the
proposed Vioolsdrift re-regulating dam to provide a large storage dam, or the construction of a
dam in the Upper Orange River, such as at Bosberg or Mashai, is still to be evaluated. More
detailed analysis of the allocatable yield, outlining different assurances of supply to various water
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use sectors, is in progress. Indications are that the existing system may be able to meet projected
water requirements until about 2010 or 2015, and the detailed analysis will confirm this date.
However, the projections of surplus allocatable water, which vary between 60 and 350 million
m³/a, represent less than 10% of the total allocatable yield of the system, and there are a number of
uncertainties when making these yield assessments.
Socio-economic Landscape:
60.
The livelihoods across the basin are remarkably diverse14. The varied cultural and socio-
economic characteristics of the population have emerged against a backdrop of contrasting
biophysical properties. In some cases, rainfall, soil type and vegetation characteristics have
influenced the nature of the social and economic systems that were able to evolve in different
areas. In other cases the reverse has been true, i.e. where social or economic systems were already
strongly intertwined or where opportunities existed to make social or economic gains, inhabitants
changed the biophysical environment to suit their needs.
61.
The total population of the River Basin is estimated at 9 million. Lesotho's two million
inhabitants are composed almost entirely of Basotho people. By contrast the rest of the Gariep
Basin's inhabitants represent a range of peoples more likely to be black African or white
individuals, less likely to be coloured or Indian, and more likely to speak Isikulu, Sesotho,
Setswana, or Afrikaans. Agriculture employs more than half of the basin's population, many of
whom reside in rural areas, while a good portion of the remainder is employed in the industrial
sector. This rural-urban dichotomy is a prominent feature in the divergent livelihoods of the
inhabitants of the basin as well as their use of ecosystem services. Overall the basin's major
sectoral areas include those of agriculture, manufacturing, mining, and trade.
Baseline Scenario
62.
The natural flow of the Orange River has been reduced by half due to major withdrawals
and high evaporation in the 29 existing reservoirs along the river. There are three large storage
reservoirs on the Orange River, the Gariep and Vanderkloof Dams on the Orange River inside
South Africa, and the Katse Dam in Lesotho on the Senqu River. The Gariep Dam forms the largest
reservoir in South Africa with a capacity in excess of 5,000 million m3 while Vanderkloof Dam
forms the second largest reservoir with storage capacity of over 3,200 million m3. Although the
storage capacity of the Katse reservoir is lower, a comparatively modest 1,950 million m3, it is the
highest dam in the Southern Hemisphere with a height of approximately 185 m. above foundation.
63.
The accelerating uses of the waters of the Orange River basin are rapidly outstripping the
region's institutional ability to cope. While there are several Commissions that currently have
responsibility for management of the system, and the principal Commission, ORASECOM, is an
entity with international legal status, none of the Commissions has a permanent Secretariat and thus
there is quite limited capacity to jointly identify and undertake the many anticipatory actions that
will be necessary for the countries to effectively and jointly manage this key international resource.
14 Ecosystem Services in the Gariep Basin. A contribution to the Millenium Assessment, prepared by the Gariep bain team of SAfMA, the South
African Millenium Ecosystem Assessment, Stellenbosch University.
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64.
There is at present no integrated data and information system necessary to inform future
uses of the Basin's water. The French GEF, the European Union and the German GTZ have been
active in this area but their collective interventions, important though they may be, will not provide
an integrated perspective on the combined resources of the Basin (particularly surface and
groundwater resources, and their interactions) necessary for effective, future joint basin management
efforts.
65.
The development and implementation of the Orange River Development Plan (ORDP),
undertaken by South Africa and driving many of the current uses of the waters of the system, took
place at a time when public participation and involvement were not seen as the imperatives that
they are today. As supplies in relation to current and projected uses continue to narrow, and as the
need to adjust to predictable and non-predictable use questions arise and need to be addressed at all
levels, the provision of effective and ongoing public information systems, and comprehensive
public involvement vehicles for all affected stakeholders will become management imperatives.
Threats
66.
The main threats to the Orange River basin include the following:
· Over Extraction/Water Scarcity: Over extraction and water scarcity are threats to the future
sustainability of basin resources. In the Lesotho Lowlands for example, it is not possible to
provide sufficient water to meet current demand, and the situation is worsening rapidly in
many other areas. In South Africa, 14 million people in rural areas had no access to clean
water in 1994. Much needs to be done even if DWAF manages to halve this un-served
population within the next 7 years. Meeting the needs of the rapidly growing cities and
towns is also a challenge for local authorities. In Botswana the situation is difficult along the
Molopo River, where access to clean water is not possible due to serious groundwater
quantity and quality problems. Desalination plants have been put in place in some areas at
high cost. As currently projected supplies will soon be overtaken by projected increased
uses, demand side management will likely have to be increasingly considered by countries.
· Climate Change: There is some evidence of gradual changes in climate throughout southern
Africa15. Declining aggregate rainfall could have a significant impact on agricultural
practices, trade, and, in general, on the quality of life in the Orange River Basin16. In a basin
where water supplies are decreasing and where uses will likely soon outstrip supplies, the
effects of global warming could have profound and potentially devastating effects across a
range of uses, particularly in the agricultural sector. In summary, observed changes in
temperature and precipitation are very likely to change land cover and affect land use
patterns in the basin, resulting in shifts in supply and quality of ecosystem services due to
altered flow regimes and crop production, biodiversity loss, and increased alien species
introductions.
15 Namibian Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Rural Development.
16 Recent data shows that the hot season in Namibia has become longer (and the cold season shorter). However, hot
months have not necessarily been getting any warmer. If such trends were to continue, risk of frost damage to crops
and grass would be diminished and the growing season increased. However, unless rainfall totals increased
proportionately, it would mean that increased evapo-transpiration would result in greater stress to plants and increased
likelihood of drought. Soil salinization and alkalization could also become an additional challenge. These changes
would need to be closely monitored and analyzed.
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· Pollution: Pollution is a major threat to the overall health of the ecosystem. The waters of the
basin are polluted by many activities and uses - human, agricultural, industrial and mining.
Water treatment facilities are often limited or non-existent. In Lesotho, the sanitation system
in Maseru is completely insufficient, and effluent from mushrooming industrial activities is
currently not treated. Agricultural pollution is also a serious threat. For example, returns
flows from irrigation, highly developed in the Lower Orange River, may threaten the fragile
ecosystems at the river mouth, and quite possibly the receiving waters of the Benguela
Current LME. Industrial and mining activities are particularly developed in the Vaal sub-
basin, and the water quality of the river has greatly deteriorated in the Vaal tributaries.
· Land Degradation: Land degradation poses a threat to many areas within the drainage basin
of the Orange River. The problem is manifest in soil erosion and associated landscape
degradation, caused by over grazing and poorly suited cultivation practices. Although recent
rates of soil erosion are well documented, a longer term study is needed to in order to
understand whether this is caused by natural climatic change or direct human impacts.
Root Causes
67.
The above threats will be evaluated during development of the TDA, when causal chain
analyses will be undertaken to better understand root causes. Key determinants of these threats
include:
At Regional level:
· The various regional commissions established in the basin have heretofore generally been
sufficient to address threats. However, these Commissions lack permanent Secretariats and
also lack the consistent availability of personnel and financial resources to function
effectively. The capacity to address the conjunction of emerging and accelerating threats is
limited. There is little if any regional capacity to undertake anticipatory actions related to the
Basin to adapt to environmental variability.
· There has been little attention given to Stakeholder views, knowledge and concerns over the
history of Basin management. Without such involvement the kinds of interventions that are
likely to become necessary in the future are likely to fail. There has been little attention given
to a likely important educational function within the Basin. It is clear that there is within
Governments a growing awareness of, and need to act on the serious issues that confront the
Basin, but there is little evidence that these pressing issues are well understood by Basin
Stakeholders.
· Data and information on water quality/quantity and on transboundary groundwater resources
is limited.
· Cooperative endeavors have heretofore focused on the water sector specifically, rather than
the production sectors that use water; an integrated cross sectoral focus will be needed to
balance water demand and supplies, and address land degradation and other key threats.
At the National level:
· Agencies responsible for water management have many of the legal tools with which to
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address issues confronting the Basin, but lack the human and financial capabilities to do so.
· While each country has legislation that can at least in part address some of the threats to the
Basin, improvements and/or modifications in existing legislation, regulations and standards
will have to be undertaken and, to the extent necessary, harmonized to enable common
approaches to management of the shared Basin.
· Countries need to improve measurement of uses and thus exert greater control of water
abstraction.
· Cooperation and the sharing of information between and among Ministries are not targeted to
the needs of the larger Basin, which cut across Ministerial lines of responsibility.
· Environmental legislation is often new and difficult to enforce. An example of this is the new
Water Act (1998) of the Republic of South Africa, which has just recently defined the
importance of the "ecological reserve". This refers to the water required to protect the
aquatic ecosystems of the water resource. However, implementation of the legislation
remains problematic. The same holds true for the Environment Act (2001) of Lesotho.
Enforcement of Effluent Discharge Licensing, for example, is likely to be difficult to
achieve.
· While some countries have given consideration to revamping water pricing strategies,
initiating water trading through use of normal market forces, having users of water bear
responsibility for water losses, and water conservation strategies (reducing water demand),
there is still much work needing to be done at national levels in these areas.
GEF Alternative
68.
The Goal of the Project is to ensure sustainable development of the Basin. The immediate
objective of the Project is to identify the principal threats and root causes of the transboundary
water resources of the ORB and to develop and implement, through a TDA and SAP process, a
programme of policy, legal and institutional reforms and investments to address these threats. The
Project will create synergies with and build upon a range of initiatives being undertaken by the
countries themselves and those of bi-lateral and multi-lateral donors that have given priority to the
Basin. Competing water uses in the context of dwindling and uncertain future supplies is seen as
the critical issue in the basin and will be a principal focus of project attention from the very outset
of project related activities.
69.
One objective of the GEF intervention will be to work with other donors and the countries
themselves to build capacity within the planned, permanent secretariat for the ORASECOM.
Without such a capacity building program for the Secretariat, work at the regional level will
continue to have an ad-hoc tendency and progress toward effecting an integrated approach to the
management of the basin, and creation of adaptive management capacity will likely not be achieved.
70.
There is no TDA for the Basin or a SAP, although a considerable amount of data and
information exists and this accumulated data and information will serve as a "springboard" for
TDA and SAP development. A TDA will be a principal Output of preparation activities, and
preparation and implementation of the SAP a key focus of the GEF Full Project. The Project will
also result in a level of public information, involvement and participation that has been largely
absent in the past. The ORASECOM and the countries are committed to the initiation of such a
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process, and an overall program to realize this objective will be a key component of the GEF
funded Preparation and Full Project.
71.
The project will be designed in phases. Phase one, the Preparatory Phase, will include
development of the TDA. Phase two will be the SAP Development Phase, during which high level
multi sectoral stakeholder commitment for SAP implementation will be secured. This phase will
include a mix of activities aimed at building foundational capacities to prepare the SAP, develop
the SAP, using the accepted GEF SAP process, build public participation mechanisms and
capacities, to prepare and provide the foundations for implementing the SAP, and demonstrations,
where needed to facilitate early learning and address management gaps already identified in the
TDA. Phase 2 has an expected time budget of 4 years; this will be further defined during the
course of preparing the TDA. Given the focus on adaptation, and the implied need for tradeoffs
between different sectoral uses of water and land resources, an ample time budget will be needed
in order to secure the necessary commitments from sector interests, Governments civil society and
other actors for SAP implementation. Phase 3 will be the SAP Implementation Phase, and will be
largely funded from non-GEF sources. Intervention areas will be defined in the SAP and will
include a blend of capacity building support and demonstration activities in the arena of integrated
water resource management. Additional interventions may be defined in the areas of biodiversity
conservation and sustainable land management, allowing cross focal area benefits to be realized.
Main Project Components:
72.
The following provides an overview of likely activities to be pursued in Phase 2: SAP
Preparation. Activities for Phase 3, SAP Implementation will be defined in the SAP and are not
described here. However, the TDA is expected to give some definition of the scope of SAP
implementation.
Outcome/Component 1: Increased institutional capacity for ORASECOM.
Rationale:
73. The countries have chosen to work through the ORASECOM for purposes of project
implementation. While the Agreement establishing ORASECOM has legal status, and leaves open
an increasing and central role for the ORASECOM in relation to management of basin resources, it
does not yet have the operational capacity needed to perform its mandate effectively, particularly
beyond the water sector, and also for the complex work of formulating a TDA and SAP. There is a
need for the countries to strengthen and give consistency to the communications flow among
countries and the various bi-lateral and multi-lateral entities that will be necessary to the task of
successful TDA and SAP formulation. This Outcome/Component will establish the expertise
necessary to enable ORASECOM to prepare the SAP, as well as provide for project management.
Likely Activities:
· Recruit and hire Project personnel, giving priority to regionally based human resources.
· Create a Project Steering Committee.
· Designate a Lead Agency and in each participating country;
· Define and, as necessary, strengthen the relationship between the ORASECOM and other
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institutions and organizations with responsibility for addressing issues pertinent to the Basin;
· Define additional capacity needed for the effective, long-term functioning of the
ORASECOM and other institutions necessary to the success of the overall objective of this
project;
· Provide training for key personnel of the ORASECOM and other key government personnel
necessary to prepare the SAP; and
· Provide support for the establishment and interim operations of a dedicated Project website
(this activity likely to have commenced as a result of GTZ assistance).
Outcome/Component 2: Preparation of a Strategic Action Program.
Rationale:
74.
Consistent with direction provided under GEF OP#9, the countries will use the results of
the TDA, undertaken during preparation, to jointly define and approve (formally endorse) a SAP.
This will allow for the development of new, and reform of existing policies and legislation and
institutional reform at national and regional levels to effectively address priority transboundary
issues identified in the TDA. The Project will employ the process and apply good practices for
SAP preparation developed and identified by the UN TrainSeaCoast Programme.
Likely Activities:
· Establish and convene work groups to collaboratively develop the SAP;
· Create country level Interministerial Committees;
· Provide international and regional expertise as needed to assist countries in preparation of
the SAP;
· Conduct a review and identification of necessary legal and policy reforms consistent with the
results of the TDA and for incorporation into the SAP;
· Develop approaches to mobilize resources for the conservation of basin catchments (This
activity is already included in an approved Project of the FGEF);
· Based upon a SAP related identification of inconsistencies in, and the development of
recommendations for the harmonization of national and related sub-national legislation,
standards, and regulations, develop principles for the harmonization of environmentally
based water strategies, and update future predictable water demand assumptions at basin
scale.
Outcome/Component 3: Successful Undertaking of Pre-SAP Demonstration Projects and Pre-
SAP Studies of a Transboundary Nature
Rationale:
75.
There is a felt need on the part of the countries to undertake "on the ground actions" of an
urgent nature as soon as is possible through early stage implementation of actions to address key
agreed transboundary priorities identified in the TDA. These demonstration projects and studies,
which advance the management agendas articulated by the countries through ORASECOM, and
would build foundational capacity at country and regional levels, would be undertaken in parallel
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with SAP development. The indicative array of likely activities below is thus responsive to, and has
been suggested by, the participating countries themselves. The suitability of these activities for GEF
funding will be evaluated during preparation, together with an assessment of their incremental costs.
Of specific importance is the need to create strong working linkages with the GEF supported
Namibia Strategic Land Management initiative which seeks to address barriers in implementation,
and progressively leverage investment finance from the Government of Namibia, donor community
and communities, to take promising management models to scale. At the request of the Government
of Namibia, UNDP is taking the lead in managing preparatory activities on behalf of the GEF body
corporate. The creation of linkages between this proposed project and the Namibia SLM project is
specifically included as an Activity in the Activity list below.
Possible Activities (including co-financed activities):
· The adoption of water conservation and environmental strategies and policies to
maximize currently available surface water supplies within the Basin, with particular
emphasis on creation of water demand management initiatives, urban sewage treatment
re-use strategies, and development of strategies and approaches for the re-use of other
"marginal waters."
· Undertake a gap analysis of existing data to define a basin-wide monitoring network;
· Assist ORASECOM to develop adaptive management strategies for the Basin through,
among other things, creation of an interactive and predictive model for the basin
incorporating surface and groundwater resources;
· Develop an Orange River basin climate model to detail potential climate change
scenarios to assess national and regional vulnerability to, among other things, changes in
overall basin water supplies, forced changes in current basin land use patterns, and
increased land degradation and consequent pollution from run-off17; and
· Develop a common, shared Basin observation system housed in ORASECOM.
· Undertake measures to protect the Orange Senqu River "sponges", necessary to
improve water quality in transboundary areas, an activity to be undertaken in Lesotho,
the site of the sponges. (This activity will be receiving early funding by the FGEF);
· Assist in creation of a pollution monitoring system and the development of pollution
reduction mechanisms and approaches for pollution from Lesotho lowlands sources;
· Review and update as necessary existing rule curves for the array of control structures
throughout the Basin;
· Work with the Namibia Country Partnership on SLM to identify an appropriate land
degradation related pilot demonstration activity;
· Improve irrigation scheduling and drainage practices in the Lower Orange River
(Another activity that is receiving funding from the FGEF); and
· Support a water quantity and quality study of the return flows from the myriad irrigation
projects throughout the system.
Outcome/Component 4: A Basin wide, effective program of Stakeholder Involvement for the
full range of Outcomes and Activities envisaged in this Project
17 This would likely involve PRECIS, Providing Regional Climates for Impact Studies, a regional climate modeling
system developed at the University of Cape Town's Hadley Centre and funded by the UK Department for
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DFRA), the UK Department for International Development (DFID).
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Rationale:
76.
Historically, there has been little attention paid to the need to secure stakeholder
involvement in, and thus secure broad-based public support for, uses associated with the Orange
Senqu River Basin. There is no question but that some of the measures necessary to effect many of
the activities contemplated in this Project Proposal will require cultivation of broad-based public
support. And again, with the significant and complex level of adaptation that will be necessary to
secure long-term sustainability for the resources of the basin, early and comprehensive public
participation is seen as an imperative. This activity will be coordinated with a proposed, EU
funded project which seeks to promote the equitable and sustainable management of the
Orange/Senqu River basin through the strengthening of community governance structures and
institutions in the basin in accordance with the goals of ORASECOM; develop a comprehensive
profile of the Orange/Senqu basin; including physical, hydrologic, economic, socio-cultural,
climatic and political components, through conducting a series of socio-ecological surveys,
involving a range of basin communities with emphasis on promoting the participation of
marginalised people; exchange knowledge, ideas, challenges and experiences between
communities from various other river basins in southern Africa, including the Okavango, Incomati,
Zambezi and the Limpopo; and produce a set of training materials as a "best practise guide" for
community participation in the governance of transboundary river-basins.
Likely Activities (including co-financed activities):
· Provide for creation of, among other things, a project web site (modeled on the
framework web site established by IW LEARN), creation and distribution of project
related newsletters, stakeholder identification activities, assessment of stakeholder needs
and inputs, the use of print and other media, public hearings and meetings, and
development of NGO forums and small grants facilities, as appropriate.
· Create strong linkages with DLIST Benguela (GEF supported MSP) and with other
related DLIST activities in southern Africa with special emphasis on the creation of
distance learning/ICT tools to effectively involve local communities and increase
communication between and among stakeholder groups.
Outcome/Component 5: Facilitate long-term program and ecosystem monitoring, evaluation
and reporting based upon, among other things, initial GEF International Waters indicators.
Rationale:
77.
In order to track project success through implementation and beyond, to inform adaptive
management, and to determine lessons learned, it will be necessary to institute a rigorous
monitoring and evaluation system.
Likely Activities (including co-financed activities):
· Identify, establish and operate an institutional and participatory (inclusive) mechanism
responsible for development and implementation of a project Monitoring and Evaluation
Plan, including indicators to measure Project progress and overall success. This would result
in an ORASECOM adopted suite of International Waters Process, Stress Reduction, and
Environmental Status indicators using the improved knowledge base and enhanced regional
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institutional arrangements developed over the life of the Project.
Links to BCLME Programme
78.
There is increasing evidence that the exchange between the Indian and Atlantic oceans
south of Africa is playing and has played a role in present and past global ocean circulation and
hence in climate. The Benguela Current LME extends from the Agulhas Current Retroflection area
south of Africa northwards along the coasts of South Africa, Namibia and Angola as far as the
Angola/Cabinda Front situated at 5 degrees S. As such it encompasses one of four major coastal
upwelling systems globally - one that is bounded both in the north and in the south by warm water
systems - and is impacted on by rivers such as the Congo and Orange. The focus of the BCLME
program is the integrated management, sustainable development and protection of the ecosystem
with emphasis on prioritized transboundary issues, including the effects of natural environmental
variability on resources. The geopolitical country boundary between Namibia and South Africa lies
close to a major natural boundary within the BCLME - the Luderitz-Orange River Cone area
where there the distributions and abundances of a number of key living marine resources change.
As meteorological processes in the ORB area are, in part at least, closely associated with ocean-
atmosphere interactions in the South Atlantic (of which the Benguela as an important component),
and as the Orange River discharge in turn impacts on living and non-living resources over a broad
ocean "boundary" zone off the coasts of Namibia and South Africa, there are close ties to the
adaptation/vulnerability work planned under the ORB IW project. Simply put, ongoing work in the
BCLME programme will benefit the ORB IW project, and in turn will benefit from better
understanding of processes in the ORB and improvements in management in the ORB. Given the
importance of climate change for the Orange River basin, and that the Orange River delta abuts the
Benguela, close synergies will be developed between the GEF LME project and this initiative.
C3.
Sustainability
79.
The long-term sustainability of the results of this Project rests on the assumption that there is
strong and high-level government commitment to the Outputs and Activities that are the subject of
this Proposal. Further, sustainability also rests on the parallel commitment on the part of
Governments to ensure financial sustainability beyond the life of the Project. The Member States of
the ORASECOM have demonstrated their political commitment to the long- term management of
the Basin by the establishment of an array of bi-lateral and multi-lateral institutions with direct
mandates for addressing the present and future threats to the Basin, including the establishment of a
permanent ORASECOM Secretariat to be located in South Africa. The GEF funded Preparation
PMU and the PMU for the Full Project will be located in the offices of the permanent ORASECOM
Secretariat. Further, the Governments are well aware that in the very near future current and
predictable uses of the basin's surface waters will outstrip supplies and that a full-range of measures
will have to be jointly identified and undertaken to meet this reality. The joint development of a
TDA and SAP are important steps in this overall process.
80.
In addition to the country level commitment, there is an already impressive and growing list
of bi-lateral and multi-lateral donors who have either already committed resources to the project
approach described in this Proposal or are preparing to do so (see Section 14. Financing of the Full
Project).
C4.
Replicability
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81.
The overall objectives of this Project have high potential for replicability internationally.
A replication Plan will be developed during preparation. Specifically, the project emphasis on
climate change modeling, cross-sectoral and regionally driven planning and actions, the
incorporation of an IWRM approach to enhance adaptability in a basin where uses are well on the
way to outstripping supplies, is likely to be a most instructive experience for many other river
basins globally. Further, the strong focus on public involvement in all project activities can also
serve as a model exercise for current and planned regionally driven IWRM projects globally.
82.
The largest riparian in the Basin, South Africa, has an innovative water policy and
accompanying legislation (National Water Policy and National Water Act), which provides
amongst other things for the establishment of Catchment Management Agencies at a watershed
level. These apply the principle of subsidiarity, devolving responsibilities for integrated water
resource management such that water management decisions are taken as close as possible to and
with the involvement of the end user. Provision is made for the establishment of water user
associations, co-operative associations of water users who wish to collaborate on water
management. The project will assist in connecting the CMAs and water user associations with
ORASECOM, and thus connect national and transboundary IWRM strategies and programmes. A
second point of innovation stemming from the legislation is the requirement to establish down
stream ecological reserve requirements for water, as a basis for upstream water allocation within
the River basin. The project will contribute to the understanding on ecological reserve parameters
for the Orange River. This information, and the approaches employed for information collection
and application to management will be useful for other river systems, including, in Southern
Africa, the Okavango River Basin. A third innovative aspect concerns the focus on adaptation, in
particular the connections to be established with environmental variability assessments and
forecasting capacities developed under GEF LME projects in Southern Africa, namely the
Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem and Agulhas and Somali Current LME programmes.
This collaboration will provide a stage for strengthening links between IWRM programmes and
LME programmes in the arena of vulnerability assessments for climate change, and adaptation.
83.
The political and resource-related circumstances faced in the Orange basin will present the
diverse stakeholders in the region with many situations in which "win-win" solutions will not be
possible. As such, it will be particularly important to create strong procedural mechanisms for
meaningful stakeholder involvement into the project and build the capacity of the relevant
institutions to implement and participate in those mechanisms. Doing so will strengthen the
democratic character of Orasecom's decision-making processes and help build broad-based
consensus by providing a forum for developing solutions that are acceptable across political,
cultural and ecological boundaries. The implementation of these participatory practices under such
challenging circumstances and over the life of the project will also provide an exceptional
opportunity to incorporate adaptive principles into the decision- making approaches that will
facilitate the transfer of lessons learned to other basins in the region and across Africa.
84.
To enhance public participation and outreach capacity within the Orange River basin, the
project will work closely with the GEF IW:LEARN project and its public participation training
team, led by the Environmental Law Institute (ELI), in developing and implementing its GEF-
mandated stakeholder involvement plans. ELI is undertaking a broader initiative under
IW:LEARN's full-sized project to identify and examine the factors that lead to success or failure in
participatory water resources management around the world. Of particular importance to Orange
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initiative will be the Every River Has It's People project that was implemented in the Okavango
River basin, which represents best practice in the SADC region. These lessons will be distilled in
the form of a written resource manual that will form the basis of three regional training workshops
for GEF international waters projects in Africa, Latin America and Asia. The Orange River basin
initiative will thus constitute one of several public participation pilot sites developed, in part,
through IW:LEARN's structured learning activities and IW:LEARN-mediated peer-to-peer transfer
of best practices between GEF IW projects in Africa and around the world.
C5.
Stakeholder involvement/intended beneficiaries
85.
All affected stakeholders will be involved in Project activities, both during preparation and
Full Project implementation. During Preparation a full stakeholder analysis and involvement plan
will be developed. Stakeholders include, among others to be identified during Preparation:
· National government departments (Ministries) responsible for agriculture, mining,
environment, finance, foreign affairs, and justice;
· Regional organizations such as ORASECOM, the Lesotho Highlands Development Authority,
the Trans Caledon Tunnel Authority between Lesotho and South Africa, the Permanent Water
Commission established between Namibia and South Africa, the Joint Irrigation Authority for
the Noordoewer and Vioolsdrift irrigation project, and the SADC;
· NGOs at the local, national, regional and international levels;
· Representatives at all levels within the agricultural sector, mining, industry, tourism and
recreation, conservation, and others who depend on, or are affected by, the water uses of the
resources of the Orange River Basin;
· Donor agencies that are active within the region generally and specifically those involved in
activities in the Orange River Basin
An indicative, initial list of Stakeholders appears below.
Stakeholder
Function
Regional
SADC
Necessary involvement to assure and strengthen a regional approach
Private sector
Necessary to help obtain private sector buy-in for Project activities and subsequent
actions that will be part of the SAP
Farmers and landowners
Sustainable farming practices
Local communities
Represented through local government, local civil society structures, traditional
leadership; Involved in subsistence farming practices,
Regional NGOs
Assist by contributing community and regionally based input into project activities
Botswana
National Conservation Strategy
Implement NCS; NWSAP implementation
Coordinating Agency
DLUPU
Draft DDP's, assess and direct development initiatives
VDC
Village Development Planning - input to DDPs. Day-to-day representation to local
authorities
Land Board
Implement Tribal Land Act
Conflict resolution, CHA lease administration
Agricultural Resources Board
Oversee use of plant resources
Range Ecology
Develop and regulate use of grazing resources
DTRP
Ratify regional planning initiatives
Locally based NGOs
Assist by input of community based knowledge
Lesotho
Ministry of Natural Resources
Responsible for matters pertaining to the water sector
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Stakeholder
Function
Department of Rural Water Supply
Responsible for community based water services
Department of Water Affairs
Primarily assumes a regulatory role, issues abstraction licenses, monitors
abstractions and pollution
Lesotho Highlands Development
Responsible for Lesotho's input into implementation and operation of LWWP
Authority (Lesotho representation)
Lesotho Lowlands Water Supply
Responsible for increased supplies of water to Lesotho lowlands communities
Scheme
Water and Sewage Authority
Responsible for water charges (pricing) and urban sewage
Locally based NGOs
Assist by input of community based knowledge
Namibia
MET
Overall responsibility for environment management, planning, development,
maintenance, law enforcement, environmental protection, policies and legislation
MRLGH (and Regional Councils,
Coordination of development at regional level
municipalities, local councils)
MAWRD
Overall responsibility for agricultural development and water resource management,
coordination of Land Boards at regional level; regulation of animal and plant health
through veterinary and phytosanitary control measures; extraction and impoundment
of water
MRLGH
Overall responsibility for regional and local governance and the decentralization
process, and traditional authorities
MLRR
Overall responsibility for land management, planning, land reform and resettlement
NPC
Overall responsibility for national development planning and coordination
MoF
Overall responsibility for financial and budgetary issues, including MET's budget
NAMPOWER
Responsible for the maintenance of the national electricity supply system, including
hydroelectric facilities
NAMWATER
Bulk water supplier for Namibia
Locally based NGOs
Assist by input of community based knowledge
South Africa
Department of Environmental Affairs
Responsible for environmental policy, legislation and developing and implementing
and Tourism (DEAT)
the National Environment Management Act (NEMA)
Department of Water Affairs and
Water Directorate: Water Use and Conservation including identification of
Forestry (DWAF)
catchment management areas for biodiversity conservation (some lie in the
grasslands); Working for Water Programme
Department of Agriculture
National Department of Agriculture: National LandCare Programme encouraging a
community-based approach to sustainable management and use of agricultural natural
resources; involved in rehabilitation of degraded land, removal of alien vegetation, veld and
resource management
Department of Land Affairs
Land Reform Programmes including restitution, redistribution and tenure
Provincial government agencies:
Management of provincial protected areas; promotes sustainable utilisation and
Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng,
conservation of biological diversity; includes programmes on protection of
North West, Mpumalanga, KZN.
indigenous flora and fauna, sustainable utilization of natural resources,
Council for Scientific and Industrial
Water, Environment and Forestry Technology: research areas include ecosystem
Research (CSIR)
management (alien plant management, fire management, biodiversity management,
land use and conservation planning) and catchment management; data on areas
suitable for afforestation
Local Government
Integrated Development Planning (IDP) is a strategic plan for municipalities that
combines social, economic and ecological factors.
Strategic Environmental Assessments (SEA) to ensure incorporation of conservation
and sustainable use into development plans
Local Economic Development (LED) aims to alleviate poverty
Academic sector (University of Cape
Potential assistance in Regional climate modelling
Town)
Locally based NGOs
Assist by input of community based knowledge
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D.
FINANCING
D1. Financing Plan
86.
Phase 1: TDA Preparation and Project Development is costed at US$ 3.57 million. A PDF-
B funding request of US$ 700,000 is sought from the GEF as cost sharing for this phase. The total
cost of Phase 2: SAP Preparation is estimated to be US$ 39 million: GEF funding will be in the
amount of US$ 6 million18, while co-finance is expected to be in the range of US$ 33 million.
D2. Co-financing
87.
A summary of GEF and expected co-financing for Phase 2 appears below (US $):
Components
Total
GEF
Co-financing
Build ORASECOM Capacity
4,500,000
1,000,000
3,500,000
Shared Information System
11,000,000
1,000,000
10,000,000
Specific Demonstration Projects and 16,000,000
2,000,000
14,000,000
Studies
Stakeholder Involvement
2,500,000
500,000
2,000,000
Long-term ecosystem monitoring
2,500,000
500,000
2,000,000
Strategic Action Program
2,500,000
1,000,000
1,500,000
Total
39,000,000
6,000,000
33,000,000
E.
INSTITUTIONAL COORDINATION AND SUPPORT
E1.
Core commitments and Linkages (Linkages to IAs)
88.
The project is clearly in line with UNDP's regional priorities in Southern Africa.
Specifically, the project's emphasis upon strengthening regionally based institutions, with a view
to assuring their long term sustainability links closely with the Second regional cooperation
framework for Africa (2002-2006) where under strategic area of support1: Strengthening
democratic and participatory governance result (e) specifically mentions "sustainable development
frameworks in place in most countries and cross boundary water resources and energy resources
managed more effectively". UNDP support to regional inter governmental mechanisms, including
SADC and NEPAD will bolster the institutional foundations needed to ensure the adoption and
replication of good management practices emerging from this initiative, in other river basins in
Africa. In addition the project's emphasis upon the sustainable management of the overall resource
associated with the Orange/Senqu River basin and included elements relating to agriculture,
energy, land degradation and climate change clearly links into global, regional, and country
priorities of the UNDP, particularly as these relate to the UNDP focus on the achievement of
Millennium Development Goals 1, eradicating extreme poverty and hunger and 7, ensure
environmental sustainability notably reducing the proportion of people without access to potable
water. All of the riparian countries have identified poverty reduction as a priority issue for
cooperation with the UNDP. UNDP is working to ensure that all environmental initiatives are fully
integrated with existing poverty alleviation programmes, and will play an active role in policy
advocacy, to ensure that environment is effectively mainstreamed in poverty alleviation strategies.
18 It is noted that should there be an enhanced replenishment scenario for GEF a higher GEF co-finance figure will be
considered. The TDA will address CC vulnerability and adaptation issues; based on the findings of the TDA, the
possibility of including a foundational capacity building component dealing with adaptation issues in Phase 2 will be
considered, to be financed with adaptation funds. A close dialogue will be maintained in this respect with the GEF
Secretariat Land and water and Climate Change Teams.
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89.
UNDP interventions in Southern Africa also place a heavy focus on improving governance,
particularly with regard to ensuring broad based multi-stakeholder participation in decision
making. The strong focus of this project on participatory management is fully aligned with the
UNDP strategy. Close links will be maintained with UNDP governance programs to maximize
synergies. Further, the countries participating in this Project have all identified food security as an
essential issue, an issue that is also a priority for the UNDP. The determination of vulnerability to
climate change and adaptation focused interventions planned under this project will contribute to
crisis prevention in a drought prone region, and especially in Lesotho, where food security is a key
issue. UNDP's Southern African Capacity Initiative (SACI) is geared at assisting countries to
improve disaster management capacities, especially for droughts and floods. This work is closely
aligned with the vulnerability assessment and adaptation interventions planned under the project.
E2.
Consultations, Coordination and Collaboration between and among Implementing
Agencies, Executing Agencies, and the GEF Secretariat
90.
The proposed project strongly complements a number of GEF supported initiatives within
the Orange River Basin, including within the International Waters, Biodiversity Management and
Sustainable Land Management Focal Areas. These initiatives are described below, together with a
summary of the linkages expected with each project. As is clearly indicated below, establishment
of close linkages and coordination with related GEF projects in the region is an imperative, and
thus linkages between the proposed project and these other GEF initiatives are described in the
"linkages" column. Finally, the project will ensure close linkages with IW:LEARN activities such
as IW conferences, and the use of IW:LEARN experience in the creation of designated project
website.
Table 1: Current/ Planned GEF Projects within the Orange River Basin
Project Title
Description
Linkages
International Waters: Management of International Seas
Benguela Current LME
The Benguela Current runs parallel to the
A key focus of the LME project is on
(UNDP-GEF)
coastline of South West Africa, from the
understanding the determinants and effects
Cape of Good Hope in the South to
of environmental variability in the LME. As
Namibia, South Africa,
Northern Angola, and comprises one of
meteorological processes in the ORB are
Angola
four major coastal upwelling systems
influenced by Oceanographic influences in
globally. GEF is providing funding for
the Benguela current and cool Southwestern
the implementation of the LME SAP.
Atlantic airmass there are close ties to the
adaptation/ vulnerability work planned
under the ORB IW project. The BCLME
programme would further benefit from
efforts under the ORB IW project to contain
upstream releases of POPS. (as part of
pollution control activities) A BCLME
sponsored workshop on upwelling cells in
the Orange River mouth provided input to
the design of this concept.
GEF is funding the Distance Learning and
Information Sharing Tool for the Benguela
Coastal Areas (DLIST Benguela), in
support of the Benguela LME programme.
DLIST provides a mechanism for
knowledge distillation and sharing between
coastal communities reliant on the coastal
and marine resources of the Benguela
System. The project provides for the
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Project Title
Description
Linkages
development of an ICT platform, course
development, knowledge management and
community outreach. Close links will be
established with the Orange River Project,
to ensure that best practices for distance
learning and ICT are systematically applied.
Groundwater &
The project is providing support for the
Close links will be maintained with the
Drought Management
development of a groundwater drought
SADC regional waters programme.
in SADC (WB-GEF)
management plan for the Limpopo River
[ORASECOM is established under
Botswana,
Basin; and to strengthen technical
provisions of the SADC Water Protocol.]
Mozambique, South
capacities for regional groundwater
Site based work in the Limpopo basin may
Africa, Zimbabwe
drought management support (e.g through yield lessons for potential application in the
establishment of a regional Groundwater
ORB, while the enhanced capacity for
Management Institute).
regional groundwater drought management
may be tapped for survey work on aquifers
in the ORB. A bi-directional exchange of
information will be effected, inter alia to
inform development of the ORB-TDA.
IWRM Planning
These initiatives are supporting the
The ORB TDA will be linked to national
(UNDP-GEF): 2
development of national IWRM plans for
IWRM planning work in the riparian
Projects 1] IWRM
IWRM plans for water resources
countries. This will allow for the
component of Namibia
management, water sector reforms and
progressive exchange of information and
Country Partnership on
investments in Botswana and Namibia.
alignment of strategies to balance water
SLM; 2] MSP: IWRM
This complements work being undertaken demands and supply in respective trans-
Planning for Southern
through GWP to strengthen IWRM
boundary/ national water management
Africa
planning capacities within the SADC
efforts. More immediately, benefits are
region.
expected to accrue in the dual arenas of
Botswana,
stock taking, and knowledge management.
Namibia, Tanzania
Protected Areas
GEF is funding efforts to strengthen
The PA programmes in Richtersveld and
Projects (WB/ UNDP-
management effectiveness in three
Ais Ais PAs will coordinate anti poaching
GEF)
terrestrial PAs in the ORB, including the
efforts against illegal fishing in the portion
Richertersveld PA in SA (WB-GEF), and
of the Orange River within and buffering
Namibia
Ais Ais and Spergebiet PAs in Namibia
these sites. The projects will protect
South Africa
(UNDP- GEF).
storehouses of biodiversity representative of
the Succulent Karoo biome: so contributing
to larger management goals in the ORB.
Namib Coast
The project is strengthening capacities for The ORB IW project will address indirect
Biodiversity
Integrated Coastal Zone Management
threats to the Orange River Mouth
Conservation and
within Namibia. This will include
RAMSAR site, arising from upstream water
Management Project
interventions to address direct threats to
abstraction and sedimentation. It will also
(WB-GEF)
the Orange River Mouth, including from
facilitate the adaptation of management
localised over fishing, unregulated
processes to address climate-forcing events,
Namibia
tourism and other pressures.
impacting the system. Collectively, the two
projects will address the direct and indirect
pressures affecting the ecosystems of the
RAMSAR site, thus preserving globally
significant biodiversity in the river mouth.
Namibia Country
The CPP aims at building capacity and
The CPP will install core capacities and
Partnership on SLM
know how to mainstream Integrated
know how to address land degradation in
(UNDP-GEF led)
Sustainable Land Management activities
Namibia, including within the ORB. The
in development, in support of Namibia's
ORB IW project provides an avenue for
Namibia
Vision 2030 and the National
taking promising approaches to scale,
Development Plan. Activities are being
within the Namibia portion of the ORB, but
designed to address barriers to effecting
also in neighboring countries. Furthermore,
Sustainable Land management and
information on land degradation generated
mobilizing investments.
under CPP activities will be drawn upon to
populate the TDA.
Botswana Sustainable
The objectives of the project are to
The project will provide information on
Land Management
develop a national land care policy that
land degradation processes for the TDA.
Project - Land Care
will inform and guide sustainable land
Policy (UNDP-GEF)
management activities, including a
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Project Title
Description
Linkages
monitoring system to assess policy
Botswana
performance; build capacity for
sustainable land management; integration
of SLM priorities into national
development and environmental
frameworks.
Kalahari-Namib
The projects aims at containing land
The ephemeral Nossob/ Molopo rivers,
Project: enhancing
degradation and desertification marginal
though part of the larger ORB are endoreic
decision-making
dryland areas in the Molopo Nossob
downstream of the confluence on the South
through Interactive
River Basin. An interactive learning and
Africa, Botswana border with no outflow
Environmental
action process is being piloted, to
into the Orange River. The SLM project
Learning and Action in
promote integrated natural resource
will combat land degradation in this area of
Molopo-Nossob River
management.
the ORB, complementing the limited land
Basin (UNEP-GEF)
restoration activities planned in the
headwaters of the Orange River, during the
Botswana, Namibia and
SAP implementation phase.
South Africa
91.
UNDP has consulted with the Task Team Leader for the World Bank responsible for the
Bank funded Lesotho Highlands Water Supply Programme. The recommendations/observations
provided by the World Bank have been fully accommodated in project design. Likewise,
consultations have taken place with the national project proponents of the afore-described GEF
projects. These links will be further concretised during preparation of the TDA, allowing for the
cross fertilisation of information and good management practices.
E3.
Implementation/Execution Arrangements
92.
The UNDP will be the Implementing Agency for this Project, and UNOPS will be the
Executing Agency. The ORASECOM is expected to play an increasingly important role in Project
execution as it moves to create a permanent secretariat function, an action it expects to take in the
near term. The Project Management Unit, during preparation and Full Project implementation, will
be co-located with the ORASECOM Secretariat, which is being initially funded by the GTZ and
the member countries. The ORASECOM Secretariat and the project will be located in South
Africa.
PART II PROJECT DEVELOPMENT FACILITY
A.
DESCRIPTION OF PROPOSED PDF B ACTIVITIES
93.
A PDF B is being requested for the further development of the project. The PDF B will be
implemented over an 18-month period, starting in mid-2005. It is anticipated that the Full Project
Brief will be submitted to GEF Council for review in late 2006. One of the main Outputs of the
PDF B will be a Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis. The TDA will begin with the identification
of country priority issues for the Basin, and from those country exercises, the countries will jointly,
through the ORASECOM, determine and prioritize issues of a transboundary nature. It is expected
that these country level efforts will be inter-ministerial in nature, consistent with individual
country approaches. The TDA will constitute an updated and comprehensive background scientific
document to be used as a basis for planning, priority setting, and decision-making, and will be
instrumental in establishing linkages with other donors and related projects in the Basin.
94.
The SAP will be developed during full Project implementation under the auspices of the
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ORASECOM, and the ORASECOM, through its members, will be responsible for achieving
country buy-in for the SAP at the necessary inter-ministerial level. The TDA and SAP will utilize
the TDA/SAP methodology and curriculum developed over the last two years under the UNDP-
GEF Train-Sea-Coast programme. The need for, and provision of assistance to secure broad
stakeholder involvement will begin in the Preparatory Phase, and one Output of Preparation will be
development of a comprehensive Stakeholder Involvement Plan to be executed during Full Project
implementation.
95.
The PDF-B will also generate the detailed information needed to prepare a fully-costed
GEF Executive Summary and UNDP-GEF Project Document. Preparation activity by component
and a sequence of detailed activities with associated costs appears below:
Component 1. (GEF PDF-B: US$ 250,000; Countries and ORASECOM US$ 200,000)
96.
Consolidated Mechanisms for consultation and co-ordination among the participating
countries through creation of a Project Management Unit (PMU), a Project Steering Committee
(PSC) and Country Inter-ministerial Committees (IMCs).
Activities/Outputs:
§ Establishment of the PMU co-located in the offices of the ORASECOM;
§ Establishment of the PSC and the IMCs; and
§ Establishment of a Project Web Site.
Component 2. (GEF PDF B: US$ 250,000; Country and ORASECOM Co-finance: US$
250,000)
97.
A Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis containing sufficient details to form the basis for the
completion of a Strategic Action Program which would start implementation during Full Project
Phase, and retention of the necessary regional and international expertise for completion of the
TDA. The processes established by the TrainSeaCoast Programme for TDA preparation, will be
applied. In light of the fact that climate change is identified as a significant threat to the
environmental integrity of the Basin, the TDA will include an analysis of vulnerability and
adaptation related issues.
Activities/Outputs:
§ A TDA for the basin; and
§ Separate reports of activities undertaken during the TDA process and consultations held.
Component 3. (GEF PDF B: US$ 100,000; EU Co-finance19: US$ 1,200,000; Country and
ORASECOM Co-finance: US$ 175,000)
98.
Initial Stakeholder Consultations and a detailed Stakeholder Involvement Plan to be
19 Indicative co-finance based on a project proposal to the EU Water Facility, and while this proposed project may
extend into project implementation phase, its indicative value has been incorporated into Preparation..
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implemented during Full Project Phase20.
Activities/Outputs:
§ Undertake a full range of stakeholder consultations;
§ Develop a Stakeholder Analysis; and
§ Prepare a Stakeholder Involvement Plan to be undertaken during Full Project
implementation.
Component 4. (GEF PDF B: US$ US$ 100,000; Country and ORASECOM Co-finance US$
50,000)
99.
A fully-costed GEF Executive Summary and UNDP Project Document and donor
consultations.
Activities/Outputs:
· A fully integrated Project Brief with a logical framework, detailed workplan, schedule, ToR
for all consulting work, costings, logistical requirements and targets;
· A report describing project based donor consultations; and
· Letters endorsing the co-financing commitments.
B.
PDF BLOCK B OUTPUTS
100. The principal outputs of the PDF-B will be the TDA, the Stakeholder Participation Plan to
be undertaken during Full Project implementation, and a fully-costed Executive Summary and
UNDP Project Document. Other outputs will be reports on donor consultations and the
mechanisms through which key Project institutions such as the PSC, the PMU and the IMCs will
be continued under Full Project implementation.
C.
JUSTIFICATION
101. The Orange River Basin is an internationally important waterbody seriously threatened at
many levels, many of them at a transboundary level, and cannot be effectively addressed at the
single country level. The catchment area is important in terms of industrial production, agriculture,
and pastoral activity, contains significant and globally important biodiversity, and is in need of an
assessment (TDA), and development of a regionally based SAP to effectively address serious
environmental issues. The catchment area is huge, approximately 3% of the African land-mass, and
its high value across a range of uses and values makes it a crucially important resource to the
participating countries. Governments in the region are committed to improved cooperation as
evidenced by the creation of the several international entities previously described in this proposal.
However, existing mechanisms to operationalise this commitment are still in the formative stages,
and the provision of GEF support, in cooperation with the FGEF, which has already approved a US$
1.9M. Project for the Orange River Basin, the GTZ, which has supported initial discussions to
strengthen the capacity of the ORASECOM, the EU, UNESCO, the countries themselves, and other
donors that will be recruited as part of the GEF project can close the gap between the stated
20 Per recent deliberations among the GEF IW Task Force (including GEF Secretariat and UNDP-GEF
representatives), 1% of the PDF B budget (to be charged against this component) will be made available for Orange
River participation in IW:LEARN activities, such as the public participation enhancement initiative for the TDA.
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Page 38
objectives of the countries, as articulated in the Agreement creating the ORASECOM.
D.
TIMETABLE
102.
The PDF B activities will have a duration of 18 months. The matrix below presents the
workplan:
EXPECTED
TIMEFRAME
RESPONSIBLE
OUTPUTS
Key Activities
Q
Q Q Q
Q
Q
PARTNER
1 2 3 4
5
6
Coordination
Establishment of PMU
x
x x x
x
x
Participating
Mechanisms
Establishment of PSC
x
x x x
x
x
Countries;
Establishment of IMCs
x
x x x
x
x
ORASECOM
Development of TDA
TDA Preparation
x x x
x
Participating
(Including
Documentation of Activities leading to TDA
x
x
x
Countries;
Demonstration Activity Demonstration Activity Preparation
ORASECOM
Preparation)
Public Participation
Stakeholder Activities During Preparation
x x x
x
x
Participating
Stakeholder Participation Plan for Full Project
x
x
x
Countries;
ORASECOM
Fully-costed Project
Final draft PB and Document
x
x
x
Participating
Brief and Document
Donor Consultations/Final Report
x
x x x
x
x
Countries;
ORASECOM
E.
BUDGET
103. The total value of the PDF B is US$ 3,575,000, of which US$ 700,000 is requested from
GEF and US$ 2,875,000 represents co-financing from the EU, Participating Countries and
ORASECOM.
Outputs
GEF (US$) Countries
ORASECOM
FGEF/GTZ/
Total/activity
EU
(US $)
1
Coordination
250,000
150,000
50,000
300,000
700,000
2
TDA Preparation
325,000
150,000
50,000
900,000
1,350,000
3
Stakeholder Involvement
75,,000
150,000
75,000
1,300,000
1,600,000
4
Executive Summary/Project 50,000
25,000
25,000
0
150,000
Document Preparation/Donor
Consultations
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ANNEX 1 - MAP OF THE ORANGE SENQUI RIVER BASIN
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ANNEX 2 - MATRIX OF THREATS, ROOT CAUSES AND SOLUTIONS
Environmental
Root Causes
Management Issues/
Solutions: Interventions from project
Impact
Key Barriers
Barrier Removal Activities
Global Climate
Growing evidence of anthropogenic
Creates uncertainty for long-term
Make provision for increasing the region's climate change modeling
Change
induced changes in temperature regimes forecasting and creates a need for
capabilities; create within the ORASECOM and other regional
and rainfall conditions have been noted; adaptive management approaches to
organizations and within the countries themselves the capability for
as a very high percentage of the Basin is better prepare for uncertainty.
adaptive management approaches to basin problems, in the context of
arid, or semi-arid, and land degradation
Barriers include lack of capacity to
IWRM. Create synergies with the GEF Benguela Current LME project
is already a major concern, the region is predict (model) likely effects and
which will explore the relation of Benguela circulation patterns and the
likely to be severely impacted by
thus develop contingencies to
role of these patterns in climate change.
climate induced change.
mitigate such effects. The
information needs include those
related to food security, needs of the
energy sector, and basic human
sanitation needs.
Threat:
Regional organizations exist on
Develop an improved, comprehensive hydraulic model for the Vaal and
Over-extraction/water
Limited surface water supplies within paper, but no formal Secretariats yet orange Rivers; protect Orange-Senqu "sponges." Groundwater review of
scarcity
all of the participating countries
established. Regionally-based
the Molopo basin; support a feasibility study for the Molop-Nossob
except Lesotho. Water supplies in
groundwater mapping exercises to
watercourse in Botswana; undertake an EIA to assess effects of
some downstream areas suffer from
effectively map international
development in the Lower Orange River; undertake a review of the
pollution. Heavy pressure on some
groundwater resources not planned.
environmental benefits and needs at the mouth of the Orange River to
groundwater aquifers, others are
Water demand schemes need to be
determine effects of future upstream development activities; review and
salinated. Lack of regional
emphasized to greater degree than
update as necessary existing dam rule curves; improve irrigation
approaches to mitigate issue of water currently the case. An approach that scheduling and drainage practices in the Lower Orange River; undertake
scarcity
takes into account ecosystem services a water quality and quantity study of return flows form the various
needs to be taken. Trade-offs
irrigation areas in the basin; develop adaptive management strategies;
regarding current and planned water
review the quality of existing national databases for eventual use in a
resources need to be assessed at
regional database under the auspices of the ORASECOM; undertake a
various government levels, with
gap analysis of the current extent and effectiveness of a basin-wide
public participation being a salient
monitoring network.; assess the current and predictable future uses of
feature of such exercises.
transboundary groundwater aquifers in the Basin, including the
relationship between groundwater and surface water supplies; establish
key basin indicators to verify compliance with current and future water
management plans..
Threat:
There is insufficient information on
Solutions as envisaged by the project would include; undertaking a
Pollution
Pollution in the basin comes from
exact levels of pollution and the
review of efforts to harmonize guidelines and standards for water
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Page 41
Environmental
Root Causes
Management Issues/
Solutions: Interventions from project
Impact
Key Barriers
Barrier Removal Activities
pesticide run-off from the many
consequences of pollution loads on an
quality monitoring and progressive development of an integrated river
irrigation schemes in the middle
array of downstream users and on
basin water quality monitoring system, under the direction of
reaches of the river basin, from
ecological function and biodiversity.
ORASECOM; assist in the creation of a pollution monitoring system
mining activities, and from
There is little or no information on the
and the development of treatment mechanisms for pollution from
conventional pollutants.
potential effects of river pollution on the Lesotho lowlands sources; undertake a water quality study of the
receiving waters of the rich Benguela
return flows from the many irrigation schemes in the basin; provide
Current. As pollution is often a
support for the development of an urban sewage treatment water re-
consequence of upstream riparian
use strategy; and assure strong public participation in all activities
countries discharging pollution that has relating to pollution issues in the basin.
an effect on riparians and natural
systems in a downstream nation,
international organizations must play a
vital role in the identification of sources
and effects, but at present existing
regional organizations do not have the
resources to assume that role.
Threat:
The desert or near desert characteristics Issues related to overgrazing and
The far reaching and intensive public participation program
Land Degradation
of most of the basin makes it
agricultural practices are essential
envisioned in the project, together with initiatives aimed at creating a
susceptible to land degradation. Over-
rooted at national and community
better understanding of the effects climate change will have on the
grazing, harmful agricultural practices,
levels, while issues related to climate
basin's resources are the key elements of removing the barriers to
and the unjust distribution of land in the change are a regional and international
improved practices which would stem land degradation. Too often
former homelands of South Africa are
issue. At national and local levels strong scientific assessments exclude the people most closely connected to
major contributors to land degradation.
public participation and education
assessed ecosystems and services, and comprise their credibility and
The present and future predictable add-
programs will need to be implemented
effect. The project is committed to valuing the stakeholder knowledge
on effects of climate change are likely
to effectively address issues related to
and perceptions by incorporating these into the assessment process of
to increase dangers posed by land
land degradation, while management
not only issues related to land degradation, but all other issues related
degradation in the basin. The Molopo
measures to address climate change
to the project.
region in Botswana, part of thee larger
effects have been previously described.
Orange River Basin, and the basin areas
within Namibia are both areas that are
highly vulnerable. In South Africa more
than 90% of the country is characterized
as arid, semi-arid, or sub-humid, and
approximately 25% of the magisterial
districts are severely degraded. Land
degradation is also a major cause of
migration to the cities.
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Page 42
ANNEX 3 SELECTED REFERENCES
Agricultural Ge o-referenced Information System (AGIS). 2003. www.agis.agric.za
Analysis of the Present and Future Water Demand in Namibia. Namibia Water Resources Management Review.
March 2000, Windhoek, Namibia.
Arntzen, J.W, D.L. Molokomme, E.M. Terry, N. Moleele, O. Tshosa and D. Mazambani. 2003. Main Findings of
the Review of CBNRM in Botswana. CBNRM Support Programme Occasional Paper No. 14. IUCN/SNV,
Gaborone.
Burger, D. (ed.). 2002. South Africa Yearbook 2002/2003. www.gov.za/yearbook/2002/
Cowling, R.M., Pressey, R.L., Lombard, A.T., Desmet, P.G. & Ellis, A.G. 1999. From representation to persistence:
requirements for a sustainable system of conservation areas in the species-rich Mediterranean-climate desert of
southern Africa. Diversity & Distributions 5: 51-71.
Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism. 1998. RAMSAR sites of South Africa. www.environment.gov.za
DGS/BGR, 1995. Groundwater Pollution Vulnerability Map Republic of Botswana. Department of Geological
Survey, Lobatse.
Fairbanks, D. H. K., Thompson, M.W., Vink, D.E., Newby, T.S., Van den Berg, H.M. & Everhard, D.A. 2000. The
South African Land-cover characteristics database: a synopsis of the landscape. South African Journal of
Science 96: 69-82.
Government of Botswana. 1997. Vision 2016 Towards Prosperity for All. Presidential Task Force for a Long
Term Vision for Botswana, Gaborone.
Government of Botswana. 2001. Report on the Review of the Rural Development Policy. Botswana Institute for
Development Policy Analysis, Gaborone.
Government of Botswana. 2002. Draft National Wetland Policy Strategy. National Conservation Strategy
(Coordinating) Agency, Gaborone.
Government of Botswana. 2002. Revised National Policy for Rural Development. Ministry of Finance and
Development Planning, Gaborone.
Government of Botswana. 2003. National Development Plan 9: 2003/04-2008/09. Ministry of Finance and
Development Planning, Gaborone.
Government of South Africa. National Water Policy White Paper (1997).
Government of South Africa. Water Resources Strategy, August 2002.
Government of South Africa. National Water Conservation and Water Demand Management Strategy (2001).
Government of South Africa. National Water Act (1998).
Heyns, Pieter. Accomplishments of the Orange-Senqu River Basin Commission, General Assembly of the
International Network of Basin Organizations, 24-28 January, 2004, Martinique.
Heyns, P., et al, Namibia's Water. A Decision Maker's Guide. Desert Research Foundation of Namibia and the
Department of Water Affairs Namibia. May 1998, Windhoek, Namibia.
Kingdom of Lesotho. Water Resources Management Policy, May, 1999.
Kingdom of Lesotho. Lesotho Highlands Water Supply Scheme. Consultancy Services for a feasibility study of the
scheme. Terms of Reference, 2002
Midgley, D.C., Pitman, W.V. & Middleton, B.J. 1994. Surface Water Resources of South Africa 1990. Water
Research Commission Report No 298/5.1/94, Pretoria.
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. A pilot assessment of southern Africa ecosystems.
www.millenniumassessment.org.
SADC Water Sector/GTZ, Regional Strategic Action Plan 9 and 10, Botswana Water Policy Review, 30 June, 2003.
SADC Water Sector/GTZ, Namibia Water Policy, Pieter Heyns, 30 June, 2003.
SADC Water Sector/GTZ, Lesotho Water Policy, 30 June, 2003.
SADC Water Sector/GTZ, South Africa Water Policy, 30 June, 2003.
UNDP. 1998. Lesotho Country Situation Report. Water Resources Management. March, 1998.
National Water Act 1998. Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF). www.dwaf.gov.za
World Bank. Water Sector Improvement Project: Progress Note: June 26, 2002
WWF. 2001. The heat is on: impacts of climate change on plant diversity in South Africa. World Wide Fund for
Nature, Cape Town.
wb155260
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M:\ProjectDocs\International Waters\Regional - Development & Implementation Strategy Action for Orange-Sequ River Basin\03-10-05 Revised
Orange River Basin PDF B.doc
03/15/2005 5:24:00 PM
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