PROJECT BRIEF
1.
Identifiers
Project Number:
Project Name:
Environmental Protection and Sustainable
Management of the Okavango River Basin.
Project Duration: 3
years
Implementing Agency: UNDP
Executing Agency:
Angola: Ministry of Energy and Water
Botswana: Ministry of Mines, Energy & Water Affairs
Namibia: Ministry of Water and Rural Development
Co-ordinating Agency:
OKACOM (Okavango Basin Commission)
Co-operating Agency:
UN Department of Environmental & Social Affairs
Requesting Countries:
Angola, Botswana, Namibia
Eligibility:
Eligible under para. 9(b) of the GEF Instrument
GEF Focal Area(s):
International Waters
GEF Programming Framework: Operational Programme #9: Integrated Land and
Water Multiple Focal Area
2. Summary: The Okavango River Basin (ORB) remains one of the least human
impacted basins on the African continent. Mounting socio-economic pressures on the
basin in the riparian countries, Angola, Botswana and Namibia, threaten to change its
present character. It is anticipated that in the long term this may result in irretrievable
environmental breakdown and consequent loss of domestic and global benefits.
Maintaining these benefits requires agreement over the sharing of both the benefits and
associated liabilities (to include those of an environmental and ecological nature)
through joint management of the basin's water resources. The 1994 OKACOM
Agreement, 1995 SADC Protocol on Shared Watercourse Systems and the 1997 UN
Convention on the law of the non-navigational uses of international watercourses
provide a framework for such an agreement. Under the OKACOM Agreement, the
riparian countries are working toward the implementation of an Integrated
Management Plan (IMP) for the basin. However, the current focus for analysis,
communication, policy and institutional development is limited. GEF support will help
mitigate transboundary externalities and secure global benefits and also provide
national economic and environmental benefits. This preliminary project will enable the
formulation of a Strategic Action Programme (SAP) to structure inputs and resources
prior to implementation of a larger joint programme of action. The SAP formulation will
involve completion of the draft Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) begun
during Block B implementation and launch policy initiatives to enable all three countries
to agree a programme of joint management. The SAP will include necessary baseline
and additional actions to address the priority transboundary issues and provide an
essential monitoring and evaluation tool for implementation. The project provides for a
process of formal endorsement of the SAP by the participating governments, support to
the translation of SAP provisions into national policy and legislation, and the
mobilisation of institutional and investment resources for its implementation.
ii
3.
Costs and Financing (Millions $US)
GEF Project Direct Costs
$ 4,745,500
Project Support Services
$ 380,000
PDF (Block A and B)
$ 374,000
Sub-total GEF
$ 5,499,500
Co-financing:
Implementing Agencies:
World Bank
$ 300,000
UNDP
$ 200,000
Bilateral
$ 200,000
Governments
$ 1,625,000
NGO
$ 100,000
Sub-total
$ 2,425,000
Total Project Cost:
$ 7,924,500
4.
Associated Financing:
Estimates of capital and recurrent water sector investment in the three countries a
significant percentage of which will be reallocated through project leverage.
Angola
$ 8,000,000
Botswana
$ 9,000,000
Namibia
$
12,500,000
Sub-total Associated Finance: $ 29,500,000
5.
Operational Focal Point Endorsement:
Name:
Mr. A Gomez da Silva
Title: Director General
Organisation: Ministry of Energy and Water, Angola
Date:
11 December 1998
Name:
Mr. Mushanana Nchunga
Title: Executive Secretary
Organisation: National Conservation Strategy Agency, Botswana
Date:
11 December 1998
Name:
Mr. S. Simenda
Title: Deputy Permanent Secretary
Organisation: Ministry of Environment & Tourism, Namibia
Date:
11 December 1998
6. IA Contact: John Hough,
GEF Regional Co-ordinator, Regional Bureau for Africa
DC1-2386, 1 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 10017,
Tel. 212 906 5560, Fax 212 906 6362, e-mail: john.hough@undp.org
Conventions/UN Resolutions/Regional Protocols Angola
Botswana Namibia
Bio-diversity Ratified
Ratified
Ratified
Climate Change
Pending Ratified
Ratified
Desertification Ratified
Ratified
Ratified
Ozone Depletion
Pending Ratified
Ratified
RAMSAR
Ratified
Ratified
UN General Assembly Resolution 51/229: Signed Signed Signed
Convention on the law of the non-navigational
uses of international watercourses
SADC Protocol on Shared Watercourse Systems
Signed
Ratified
Ratified
iii
ACRONYMS
APR
Annual
Programme
Review
PMU
Project
Management
Unit
DWA
Department of Water Affairs
DNA
Direcçäo Naçional de Águas
EA
Environmental
Assessment
FAO
Food and Agricultural Organisation
GEF
Global
Environment
Facility
GTZ
Deutsche Gesllschaft fur Technishce Zusammenarbeit
GHABIC
Angolan Authority of the Cunene River Basin
IA
Implementing
Agency
IMP
Integrated
Management
Plan
IUCN
International Union for the Conservation of Nature
IW
International
Waters
JIMP
Joint Integrated Management Programme
LEARN
Learning Exchange and Resource Network.
NCU
National
Co-ordination
Unit
NGO
Non
Governmental
Organisation
NWRMR
Namibian Water Resources Management Review
OBSC
Okavango Basin Steering Committee
OKACOM
Permanent Okavango River Basin Commission
ORB
Okavango
River
Basin
OP
Operational
Programme
OS
Operational
Strategy
PIR
Project Implementation Review
PMC
Project
Management
Committee
PPER
Project Performance and Evaluation Review
PSC
Project
Steering
Committee
SADC
Southern Africa Development Community
SAP
Strategic
Action
Programme
TDA
Transboundary
Diagnostic
Analysis
TPR
Tri-partite Review
UN DESA
United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs
UNDP
United Nations Development Programme
1
I. PROJECT CONTEXT AND BASELINE COURSE OF ACTION
1. General
Context. The Okavango River Basin (ORB) is shared by three nations,
Angola, Botswana, and Namibia. A map of the basin is presented in Annex IV. The basin
straddles sub-humid climatic zones in Angola through semi-arid to arid climatic zones in
northern Namibia and Botswana where freshwater sources are scarce. The basin's source in
the Angolan Province of Cuando Cubango is relatively undeveloped with few wholesale
water demands made upon the watercourses of the source sub-basins, the Cubango and
Cuito. As the main tributaries converge on and run along the border with northern Namibia,
human development alongside the trunk water course intensifies. In Botswana, the ORB
drains into the Kalahari desert as an alluvial fan, commonly known as the Okavango Delta
which forms part of a large national wetland reserve. Periodic outflows from the apex of the
fan to the Chobe channel linked to the Zambezi basin occur but the bulk of the flow drains to
the distal margin of fan which is bounded by geological faults across which flood flows
intermittently drain and flow into the Boteti river to evaporate in the Makgadikagadi basin.
2.
The Hydrological Context. The ORB has a topographic catchment of approximately
704,000 km2 and a length from basin divide in Angola to the distal margin of its terminal fan
of approximately 1,100 km. The economic and ecological vitality of the ORB and its
associated wetlands depends upon the detailed character (timing, volumes, duration) and
quality of the annual flow regime generated in the source catchments of Angola. Over the
Angolan portion of the basin, from the mean annual rainfall of approximately 800 mm, only
58 mm appears as flow at Rundu (Cubango sub-basin) and 74mm at Dirico (Cuito sub-
basin). At the head of the Delta, at Mohembo, the combined annual yield of both these sub-
basins is reduced to 44 mm. By the time flow has traversed the Delta, despite the addition of
a further 4-500 mm in direct rainfall over the area of the fan itself, outflows from the fan are
negligible in most years. The bulk of the loss over the area of the Delta is through
evaporation and evapotranspiration from surface and shallow groundwater. Potential rates
of evaporation over the fan are in the order of 2,000 mmyr-1. All transmission and
evaporative losses along the course of the ORB are essentially non-negotiable if the basin is
to retain its present hydrological and ecological character. In addition, the evaporation
component of the hydrological cycle is a key element of the basin's micro-climate which
supports specific aquatic habitats. As a low gradient hydrological "sink" in an arid quarter of
southern Africa, the fan is highly sensitive to variations in tectonic and climatic regime, but is
equally sensitive to man-induced threats and there is now preliminary evidence that the
hydro-environmental integrity of both the source and the sink of the ORB is under threat
from such activities.
3.
Environmental Context. Freshwater is the prime environmental and socio-economic
resource and agent in the ORB directly supporting all human activity, vegetation and
wildlife habitats and their associated productivity. Freshwater sources are also the natural
resource component most at risk since there is no economic substitute for the basin's
watercourses and associated aquifers while they are also the final repository of
anthropogenic waste. The status of the sources and the characteristics of the freshwater
balance in the basin as a whole is therefore key not only as a critical resource for
development, but also as an irreplaceable global environmental asset. The Okavango Delta
has been designated a RAMSAR site on the basis of its wetland values and also contains the
globally important Moremi Protected Area. The flood and baseflow to the fan sustain a
unique wetland environment which supports significant regionally and globally significant
biodiversity with a large number of endangered and threatened species.
4. System
boundary. The functional system boundary for water, land, forest and
wildlife comprise much smaller sub-sets of the basin's geographic limit. This is because the
hydrologically active area of the basin is much smaller than the topographic limits of the
basin in Botswana and Namibia. Equally, only a part of the basin's population and
communities bounded by the topographic divide in Namibia and Botswana are directly
engaged with the water resources of the basin However, there are significant external
linkages beyond the hydrological and topographic system envelopes, notably; demands for
water abstraction in Namibia originating beyond the topographic limits of the basin; political
2
instability in Angola as a whole is causing waves of de-population and re-settlement in the
basin; and the wetland environment of the fan in Botswana provides staging area for birds
migrating to southern Africa during the boreal winter and is a storehouse of globally
significant biodiversity. Thus the impact of water body degradation would have
ramifications far beyond the physical boundary of the basin.
5. Socio-economic
Context. The pressures on the water resource base and associated
environments of the ORB are driven by population growth and shifts in consumption
patterns. While the population within the ORB is currently estimated at approximately
580,000 (250,000 in Angola, 140,000 in Botswana, and 190,000 in Namibia), the pent-up
demands for raw water from population centres outside the basin in Namibia and Botswana
are now significant. The intra-basin population comprises predominantly mixed agro-
pastoral low income communities who are highly dependent upon the freshwater resources
of the basin for their basic subsistence and income generation. By contrast, the extra-basin
population creating pressure for inter-basin transfer is largely urban with associated
industrial demands. The productivity associated with freshwater use and its related aquatic
ecosystems is estimated at approximately 25% of GDP in the basin as a whole although there
is considerable inter-country variability. In Angola, civil war has resulted in a decline of
population, commerce, and trade, so that current use of the basin's water resources are
limited to water supplies to small regional centres and some small scale floodplain irrigation.
In contrast, Botswana's mineral led growth is putting pressure on its vital freshwater
resource base as urban centres on the fringe of the Delta expand. There is also significant
demand for amenity use of the Delta largely from international tourists. Namibia is
attempting to manage demand for water but is also facing unprecedented levels of demand
for municipal and industrial water, particularly in its central area which lies outside the
topographic and hydrologically active system boundaries of the ORB. The ORB is the only
perennial river system that lies within Namibia and is therefore the first candidate in
Namibia's search for new water. These disparate levels of dependence upon the basin's
natural resource base in each country create barriers to harmonised development of the basin
as a whole. In addition there is concern in both Botswana and Namibia that current national
patterns of development are not sustainable. State of the Environment (SoE) reports dealing
specifically with water have recently been commissioned by the Ministries responsible for
environment in both countries.
6.
Policy Context. Recognising the significant regional and global values of the
Okavango River Basin, the Governments of Angola, Botswana and Namibia convened the
first meeting of the riparian States in Windhoek in 1993. The Permanent Okavango River
Basin Commission (OKACOM) was subsequently established in September 1994. The
countries are committed to the negotiation of all transboundary water issues through
OKACOM where they place high level inter-ministerial representation to advise on all
technical and policy issues to do with the water resources of the basin. The countries have
made it clear that they intend to continue this reliance on OKACOM to address technical and
policy issues regarding water resources in the basin. This is seen as strengthening the
rationale for a GEF intervention . For example, a key issue for this project will be prior
notification between the riparian countries. Under the Helsinki Rules (Article XXIX) invoked
in the 1994 OKACOM Agreement, riparian countries are required to give prior notification of
planned and unplanned measures affecting the ORB. Thus, at regional level, the 1994
OKACOM Agreement, the 1995 SADC Protocol on Shared Watercourse Systems and the
1997 UN Convention on the law of the non-navigational uses of international watercourses
provide a framework for national policy initiatives to converge on an agreed programme of
joint management.
7.
Commissioners of OKACOM are appointed by the respective cabinet offices and the
Commission reports at cabinet level in all three countries through the respective Ministers. In
Angola this is the Ministério da Energia e Águas , in Botswana the Minister of Mineral
Resources and Water Affairs and in Namibia, the Minister of Agriculture, Water and Rural
Development. Meetings are held in rotation at national capitals and the Departments of
Water Affairs in Botswana and Namibia and GABHIC (The Cunene River Basin Authority)
in Angola service the secretariat function within OKACOM. Prior to the establishment of
OKACOM, Botswana had been supporting research in ORB system in collaboration with
3
donors and had cancelled a major water development project for the southern margin of the
Delta on the basis of an independent IUCN review in 1992. Namibia had included the option
of abstraction from the Okavango in its Central Area Water Master Plan published in 1995.
8.
The national development policies of all three countries are centred on maintaining or
increasing rates of growth while also addressing poverty alleviation and sustainable
livelihoods. Freshwater resources are critical to pursue these national interests. The relevant
national policies in Angola are associated primarily with the development priorities in
Cuando Cubango Province as peace becomes re-established and with the commitment to co-
ordinate basin level activities through GABHIC, under the Deputy Minister for Water. The
relevant national policies in Botswana are linked very much to wildlife and nature
conservation in the Delta where the Government is promoting eco-tourism and wildlife
management. Botswana is also in the process of developing a Wetlands Policy and Strategy
which will facilitate proper utilisation and management of resources in the Okavango Delta
and other wetlands in the country. At the same time, Botswana is developing groundwater
on the margins of the fan to serve urban expansion and mining activities. Caught between
these two riparians, Namibia's policies are conditioned by an imperative to increase water
supply for the central area of the country and an active policy of devolution of natural
resource planning and management to the regions. These policy directions need to be co-
ordinated if the ORB resources are to be managed in a sustainable fashion.
9.
Institutional Context. The countries recognise that various ministries and other
government entities at national level have an interest in the work of the project and its
effective implementation. The countries are committed, through their presence in OKACOM,
to involve the appropriate ministries and government and non-governmental organisations
(NGOs) necessary for the completion of a TDA and the formulation and implementation of a
SAP. There are several dozen NGOs in the basin that are active in monitoring & research,
policy, habitat conservation, institutional strengthening, public awareness and education
programmes dealing with critical environmental problems in the ORB. This commitment to
stakeholder participation will also strengthen the engagement of key ministries with the
process and thus help ensure country commitment to implementation. Despite the urgent
need to co-ordinate at regional level, national co-ordination between lead agencies involved
in water and environment needs to be strengthened and for a clearer separation of policy
and operational (user) functions to emerge. In Angola, the Direcçäo Naçional de Águas
(DNA) of the Ministry of Energy and Water and Ministries of Environment and Planning
play strong roles at the national and international levels for all Angola's shared river basins
through the Authority of the Cunene River Basin (GABHIC). In Botswana, the Department of
Water Affairs under the Ministry of Minerals, Energy and Water Affairs is the lead agency in
water resources and provides support to the National Conservation Strategy (Coordinating)
Agency in the implementation of the National Conservation Strategy. In Namibia, the key
institutions are the Department of Water Affairs under the Ministry of Agriculture, Water
and Rural Development and the Environmental Directorate in the Ministry of Environment
and Tourism. This institutional setting at national level is reflected in OKACOM where
cross-sectoral co-ordination and cross-disciplinary collaboration is not yet effective. While
OKACOM has the mandate to convene all relevant agencies and institutions, in practice this
has been difficult to effect since governments' professional resources are severely stretched.
Effective consultation and co-ordination at national and regional level is therefore an
essential pre-condition for the successful formulation and implementation of an integrated
management plan. This presents prime opportunity for GEF support to help clarify policy
and institutional linkages to achieve co-ordinated management of the ORB.
10.
OKACOM is thus the key inter-governmental institution in co-ordinating integrated
approaches to the development and protection of the basin. Accordingly, the mandates,
functions, commitments and resources invested within OKACOM need to be reviewed
during formulation of any programme of joint management to assure countries that it will be
able to discharge its role effectively during subsequent implementation.
4
THE BASELINE COURSE OF ACTION
11.
In 1995 OKACOM declared its commitment to the implementation of an
Environmental Assessment (EA) and an Integrated Management Plan (IMP) for the basin
The proposal for the EA and IMP recognised the threats to the basin and the need for joint
management to protect national interests. No explicit consideration of global objectives in
terms of the GEF Operational Strategy or International Waters Operational Programmes
were given at this stage. OKACOM formally requested the assistance of the GEF in August
1995, requesting UNDP to assist in the development of a GEF supported programme for the
Okavango River Basin. Consequently, GEF PDF Block A and then Block B resources were
used in 1996 and 1997 to begin removing critical barriers in regional co-operation and
analysis and working toward the development of a joint management programme.
12.
A draft Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) has been compiled as part of the
PDF B activities. The draft TDA has initiated a consultative process with basin stakeholders,
established the current status of the basin as a whole, identified causes of degradation, and
imminent threats, and indicated critical gaps in information, policy and institutional
arrangements This is the first attempt of its kind to analyse the hydro-environmental and
socio-economic information available in all three riparian countries. The Table of Contents
for the current iteration of the draft TDA is presented in Annex VI to indicate the scope and
depth of this work. The draft TDA will be expanded as gaps in the analysis are filled and the
TDA will include a thorough review of the competencies and comparative advantages of
OKACOM as a basin organisation in preparation for SAP implementation. This analysis of
the effectiveness of existing mechanisms and clear recommendations for improvement of
both OKACOM and all the related policy, legal and institutional arrangements at national
and regional level is an important test of the GEF intervention.
13.
Environmental Threats. The chief threats to the ORB arise from patterns of
development that cannot be effectively co-ordinated. It is apparent from the draft TDA
findings that the natural resources of the basin are already subject to demands for water and
land from agriculture, urban and industrial development both within and outside the basin.
The externalities generated by these demands are already resulting in modified quantity,
quality and sediment flows. There are also minimum requirements for the basin to be met if
it is to continue to furnish its flow of environmental benefits and maintain a critical stock of
freshwater assets. However, the national institutional and policy responses to date has been
one of supply management. In financial, economic and environmental terms this approach is
not sustainable. Regional demands for raw water have to be managed in a co-ordinated
fashion and an integrated joint management plan with a comprehensive approach to
demand management is therefore essential. If these threats are not addressed through such
management, irreversible changes in the basin's water balance, and hydrochemical and
hydrogeomorphological responses are anticipated. Such changes will impact the
productivity and environmental integrity of the basin as a whole.
14.
Causes. The proximate cause of environmental degradation is three fold;
continuation of unplanned abstraction from watercourses and aquifers; growth of effluent
disposal and non-point pollution sources; and the accelerated erosion of land hydro-
geomorphologically linked to the basin. But the root causes lie with patterns of socio-
economic development population growth, urbanisation and industrialisation. Key factors
in these trends are; over-grazing which is already resulting in accelerated land and soil
degradation in Namibia and Botswana; unplanned development in Angola along de-mined
transport corridors in the Cubango and Cuito sub-basins as post civil-war re-settlement
occurs; and pressure for new and increased abstraction of raw water to service urban
expansion and irrigated agriculture. It is anticipated that these factors will continue to
accelerate new demand for raw surface and groundwater in the basin, and its immediate
region, and accelerate the process of land use conversion for subsistence agriculture. But it is
equally apparent that the trends are outpacing policy and institutional response in the
riparian countries and it is to address these intermediate causes where co-ordination is
necessary and where improved understanding can drive the required policy shifts.
5
15.
Baseline. The expected baseline course of action in the ORB is directed at national
interests, primarily socio-economic development (whether planned or informal) through the
promotion of water services for rural and urban water supply and sanitation, small scale
irrigation and stock watering. Only a small portion of the national baselines are directed
specifically to water resource management in the ORB. Further details of the baseline are
given in the Incremental Cost Analysis presented in Annex I.
16.
Angola: Since independence in 1975, there has been no appreciable inward
investment to the basin. A proposed regional re-habilitation programme for Cuando
Cubango Province formulated in 1995 will supply a considerable amount of infrastructure
related to water supply, sanitation, agriculture and transport. However, under present
circumstances these activities cannot be verified. In 1997 World Bank has proposed an
Agricultural Sector Investment Programme part of which may be expected to assist
smallholder and commercial farmers in the Province. The World Bank is also preparing a
national Water Sector Development Project which is be expected to channel resources for
water supply and sanitation to major provincial capitals, Cabinda, Lubango, Lobito-
Benguela, Luanda and Namibe. None of them is in Cuando-Cubango province. A separate
World Bank technical assistance project is under preparation which will encompass national
programme of water policy institutional development and transboundary water resources. A
pilot river basin management component on the Cunene basin, adjacent to the ORB is also
being considered. This work will complement Norwegian Government assistance to
national hydrometric services and water resource assessment for other priority basins, but
not including the Cubango or Cuito sub-basins.
17.
Botswana: The Government of Botswana is committed to the implementation of their
8th National Development Plan for the period 1997/8-2002/03. In this period, the Plan
anticipates various capital development projects and studies, elements of which are related
to water management in the vicinity of the Okavango Delta. These national plans include;
Major Village Water/Sanitation Development; Groundwater Studies and Protection;
Hydrological Support including updating of the Okavango Forecasting Model; and
International Water Planning and Development.
18.
Namibia: Under its First National Development Plan (NDP1) for the period 1995/6-
1999/2000, the Government of Namibia's support to the Okavango region and Caprivi Strip
focuses on health and education sectors with a programme of rural water supply and
sanitation supported by GTZ. Additional community development activities are carried out
by Namibian and international NGOs. A World Bank/GTZ/UNDP Water Resource
Management Review (NWRMR) was launched in early 1998 with total resources of US$
1,100,000. Elements of this exercise will be directly related to transboundary water issues,
including the Okavango. Despite this, the Government of Namibia has made provision for
feasibility studies for the construction of an emergency pipeline from Grootfontein to the
Okavango at Rundu. The preliminary feasibility work carried out in 1997 amounted to
approximately US$ 1,500,000.
19. Hydrological
analysis:
Current detailed hydrological, hydrogeological and
hydrochemical information for the ORB is fragmented and, in the case of Angola, entirely
absent. The basin has no regulatory or control structures at which flows can be determined
accurately. Validation and verification of resource development options (both in terms of
quantity and quality) is therefore dependant upon high quality continuous stage/discharge
information at key natural channel reaches in the basin, particularly in relation to the relative
contribution of the Cubango and Cuito sub-basins and their associated catchments in
Angola. At present, the water resource records from Angola are limited to variable sets of
level readings and gaugings for the period 1963/4 to 1969/70 in the Cubango and Cuito
sub-basins, principally in the upper catchments. There is no systematic measure of the
relative yields of the sub-basins before they cross the Namibian border. The former gauging
locations in Angola are known to have been selected on the basis of ease of access, not reach
stability so that their stage/discharge relationships are suspect. The only permanent cable-
way from which an accurate stage/discharge relationships has been determined is at Mukwe
in Namibia. The gauged flows at Mukwe are routinely compared with the level readings at
an unsuitable section at Mohembo in Botswana to establish an agreed inflow to the
6
`panhandle' in Botswana. The hydrometric network described above is not sufficient to
determine and monitor the amount of water, its quality, timing and availability throughout
the system that is needed to sustain the various consumptive and non-consumptive uses for
water , and for the Okavango Delta in particular, nor does it provide a system to verify
compliance with a basin-wide joint management plan. The riparian countries have no
specific national plans for the improvement of hydrometric monitoring on the ORB.
20.
Information availability. Government departmental libraries, national research
institutes, and universities all maintain indexed hardcopies of relevant reports and maps
and some digital data, but in a variety of formats. Access to these sources in the ORB region
is therefore limited. Hydrological and hydrogeological information for the Angolan portion
of the basin was taken out of the country at Independence in 1975 and is believed to reside in
Lisbon, Portugal. Since 1975 there has been no additional hydrometric data gathered for the
Cuito and Cubango sub-basins. Equally, much original research on the Okavango Delta
resides with research groups at universities in South Africa and Europe. Much of the
collected data and subsequent analysis is either sector based, academic or focused on the
Delta.
21.
Consequences. The national policy focus and institutional arrangements are not
sufficiently co-ordinated at national or regional level to address threats to the basin's
freshwater resources. The consequences are two-fold. First, the primacy of national interests
is resulting in the imposition of transboundary externalities; these include: quality and
quantity losses of water supplies for urban centres in the basin (Rundu, Maun); reduced
supplies for irrigated agriculture (Caprivi and fringes of the Delta); degraded stock watering
(Caprivi, Ngamiland); reduced supplies for mining (Orapa); loss of biodiversity; and
compromised nature tourism (Caprivi, Panhandle, Delta,). Second, the costs of co-operation
are high where barriers to communication and understanding persist.
22. Required
actions. Barriers to transboundary management and the achievement of
global benefits are manifest under the baseline. To overcome these barriers, understanding of
environmental issues, consultation and commitment to alternative course for sustainable
development needs to be addressed. The principal barriers and constraints include:
· Policy, Institutions and Co-ordination - there is no basin-wide policy perspective. The
current policy focus on national issues will not result in the sustainable development of
basin and OKACOM lacks expertise and the capacity to co-ordinate effectively.
OKACOM therefore needs to be in a position to establish this perspective and drive a
programme of joint management with the appropriate political and financial support.
· Awareness, Consultation and Communication there is a lack of cross sectoral and
stakeholder consultation and communication which is inhibiting participation,
commitment, and investor buy-in. To address this issue, national and regional
consultative fora need to be scaled up, particularly during the intensive planning stages.
· Information and Analysis there is a fundamental lack of understanding of the threats
and opportunities of the hydro-environmental and socio-economic systems of the basin
as a whole. This is particularly the case for the Angolan portion of the basin. Alternatives
cannot be evaluated and transboundary economic assessments made. Knowledge based
planning frameworks (with distributed modelling and scenario development
capabilities) need to be assembled and multi-objective decisions made.
· Criteria, Guidelines There exist no basin-wide technical criteria or guidelines for
resource assessment and valuation to inform allocation decisions. This gap needs to be
filled through basin wide hydro-environmental and socio-economic analyses.
· Indicators, Monitoring and Evaluation there is no basin-wide system of hydro-
environmental and socio-economic monitoring procedures that can be used to evaluate
the impact of the a joint management plan. Key indicators and benchmark monitoring
arrangements need to be agreed.
· Political agreement on and commitment to SAP implementation the role of OKACOM
in brokering political agreement and commitment needs to be strengthened through the
inter-ministerial and cross-sectoral advisory mandate that it possesses. Here the role
OKACOM can play in convening the technical dialogue between ministries, sectors and
disciplines in all three countries will be pivotal.
· Sustainable Financing The generation of financial resource flows for implementation of
7
the management plan has not been addressed. Specialist training in investment analysis
and resource mobilisation is required to service stakeholder participation and donor
consultations.
II. PROJECT PURPOSE AND THE RATIONALE FOR GEF FINANCING - THE
ALTERNATIVE COURSE OF ACTION
Project Objective
23.
The project objective is to alleviate imminent and long term threats to the linked land
and water systems of the OR through the joint management of the ORB water resources and
the protection of its linked aquatic ecosystems (comprising all wetlands, fluvial and lacustrine
systems) and their biological diversity.
Project Purpose
24. The
purpose of the project is threefold. First. to overcome current policy, institutional,
human resource and information barriers and constraints to co-ordination and joint
management of the basin. Second, to complete a transboundary analysis to underpin a
programme of joint management. Third, to facilitate the formulation of an implementable
programme of joint management to address threats to the basin's linked land and water
systems. A Strategic Action Programme (SAP) approach will be used as the programming
instrument for the project. A two stage approach will be adopted, namely formulation of a
Strategic Action Programme (SAP) to bring together all planning and management initiatives
followed by SAP implementation. This project marks the first stage in this process. The SAP
provides the vehicle in which to package the plan, overcome the barriers to regional co-
operation and ensure that the sustainable development baseline can be met and global
objectives achieved. The SAP will be designed to achieve the equivalent national
development goals articulated in the baseline but will take national and regional activities
into a new area - the alternative - where global benefits will accrue. The project will establish
three fundamental outputs;
· strengthened mechanisms for the joint management of the ORB
· a completed transboundary analysis; and
· a formulated SAP.
This initiative will be driven by OKACOM in which the countries transboundary technical
and policy analysis functions are invested and who will be responsible for co-ordinating
formulation of the SAP and its subsequent implementation. OKACOM will also be
strengthened through the review of its mandates, functions, competencies and resources,
and its commitment to inter-ministerial and cross-sectoral co-ordination and collaboration.
Rationale for GEF Financing
25.
Eligibility for GEF Financing: As recipients of UNDP technical assistance, Angola,
Botswana, and Namibia all meet the eligibility criteria set out under paragraph 9 (b) of the
GEF Instrument. The project is eligible for GEF assistance under Operational Programme
number 9: Integrated Land and Water/Multiple Focal Area , meeting the eligibility criteria
by: [1] focussing on preventive measures to address threats rather than remedial, highly
capital-intensive measures. [2] being nested firmly within the regional and international
agreements on transboundary waters, [3], developing sound land and water resource
management strategies through new policy initiatives and institutional arrangements [4]
testing the use of the SAP concept to facilitate collaboration and leveraging of funding [5]
financing the agreed incremental costs of measures to secure global benefits, providing for
institutional and financial sustainability, [6] following guidance regarding public
participation, [7] including a strong monitoring and evaluation component, that will
document and widely disseminate lessons learned during the course of activity
implementation, and 8] have clear links with GEF OP # 1 and 2. In addition, the GEF support
will produce outcomes that address the short-term Operational Programme objectives of
land degradation, a focus on Africa, SAP development, and participatory planning,
26.
The objectives mark a significant response by the riparian countries to the 1995
8
Protocol on Shared Watercourse Systems in the SADC region and the Convention on the law
of the non-navigational uses of international watercourses passed as a UN resolution in July
1997. They also echo the concerns of Chapters 18, 10 and 12 of Agenda 21 dealing with
freshwater, land resources and fragile ecosystems respectively. An agreed SAP will provide
a substantive background for additional GEF support to government actions in Botswana to
safeguard the globally significant biodiversity of the wetlands of the Okavango Delta in
accordance with the agreed broader programme of UNDP support to Botswana.
The project design and process
27.
The formulation of joint programme will be driven by a consultative process and
enabled by policy, legal, institutional and financial commitments. When finalised through a
series of consultative workshops, the TDA will provide an analysis of priority transboundary
environmental problems, identify the scale and causes of degradation (proximate,
intermediate and root), information gaps, policy distortions and institutional deficiencies.
The SAP approach will be instrumental in defining and driving the necessary policy and
financial commitments in the short to medium term. It is anticipated that the SAP will be
formulated over a three year period after which substantial leveraged co-financing will be
used to launch a longer period of SAP implementation followed by a continuous programme
of joint management. The SAP will establish clear priorities that are endorsed at the highest
levels of government and widely disseminated. Priority transboundary concerns will be
identified, as well as sectoral interventions (including, policy changes, program
development, regulatory reform, capacity-building investments) needed to resolve the
transboundary problems as well as regional and national institutional mechanisms for
implementing elements of the SAP . Co-ordination of priorities with those identified under
the climate change and biodiversity focal areas will be undertaken during the SAP
formulation. The countries and the GEF will agree on the baseline environmental
commitments (which should be funded domestically or through donors or loans) and
activities that are additional for solving the transboundary priority problems. A major donor
conference will be held when the SAP is in the draft stage to facilitate international
commitments to action.
III. PROJECT COMPONENTS, OUTPUTS AND ACTIVITIES AND EXPECTED
RESULTS
GEF PROJECT COMPONENTS AND OUTPUTS
28.
This proposal identifies specific groups of outputs and activities under each of the
three major project components. Indicative budgets are based on proforma costs and the
experience gained during the PDF work. The project outputs have been determined from
consideration of the gaps identified in the draft TDA and guided by the principles for
successful initiatives in river basin and wetland management. The specific activities under
each output are detailed in the Logical Framework Matrix, Annex II. All activities under each
output are time bound and sequenced. Many of the project activities are iterative while
others are strictly phased. A Gantt chart is appended to the Logical framework in Annex II to
clarify the timing of outputs within the 3 year project duration.
COMPONENT A: STRENGTHENED MECHANISMS FOR JOINT MANAGEMENT OF THE ORB
Output A1. Expertise in the riparian countries strengthened to drive both inter-governmental and
intra-governmental technical and policy initiatives in water resource planning and
management for the ORB
29.
To initiate all outputs OKACOM will establish a small project executive office, a
Project Management Unit (PMU), together with national counterparts in National Co-
ordination Units (NCUs). These units will form the core of an Okavango Initiative to pull
together a network of national and regional experts to produce the analytical work and then
launch policy initiatives through consultative fora. The project will be aided by the high-level
riparian country commitment invested in OKACOM and its mandate to advise on technical
9
and policy issues, and involve country resources that cut across ministerial mandates,
sectoral interests, and technical and scientific disciplines. The PMU/NCU arrangement will
exist for the life of the project only and will have transferred key expertise to national and
regional institutions through training and education activities so that programme co-
ordination can continue through the period of SAP implementation and beyond. A critical
activity of the PMU at project inception will be to obtain an independent review of the
mandate and capacity of OKACOM to make recommendations on appropriate changes in
the OKACOM agreement and national enabling environments to better effect the
implementation of joint management of the ORB. Activities of the PMU and NCUs will
include: undertaking policy analysis; publishing and discussing results of analysis;
formulating policy initiatives; identifying and servicing key training needs at all levels
(institutions and communities); and designing investment vehicles for SAP
implementation(ii & vi). Sub activities for the PMU will include: identifying regional and
national capacity building needs and targets; and developing professional training at the
regional level. Sub-activities for NCUs will include; developing and advocating national
policy perspectives; and developing professional and community training at the national
level.
Output A2. Basin-wide mechanisms for stakeholder participation in basin management
established and tested to ensure consensus, replicability and taking to scale
30. The consultative process developed during PDF activities will be extended through
consultative public meetings, reviews and seminars. SAP formulation will require broad-
based collaboration with and participation of these basin stakeholders in association with
related interest groups, donors, NGOs and research organisations to design realistic
approaches to the management of land and water resources in the ORB. The PMU will
establish and maintain a series of fora in each county to serve as principle sounding board
for SAP formulation. Special emphasis will be given to activities in Angola where previous
attempts during the PDF process were inhibited by political instability but where special
consideration of displaced communities is required. In addition to the basin communities,
the key institutional partners within government ministries and departments will be brought
in to play a much more active role, a role facilitated by the presence of carefully selected
NCU members. Clear participatory mechanisms for SAP formulation and later
implementation will be established including an NGO sub-forum for NGO's to network,
identify priorities and responsibilities, and share data and information. In addition broad
public awareness in understanding the work to be undertaken in the SAP will be promoted
through: a high intensity campaign in public awareness which will occur in the first months
of the project; improving and extending World Wide Web access to the OKACOM website;
and publishing and disseminating of TDA and SAP formulation information. Pilots and
demonstrations for community participation (including mobilisation of funding) will be
initiated in selected key communities within each country to test the replicability of basin
management at local levels the scope for taking the initiatives to scale in the basin.
Output A3
Policy, legal, institutional and human resource initiatives launched and linked to
national policy reviews to co-ordinate water resource management approaches across
the
basin
31.
Well structured institutional mechanisms are required to permit integration across
natural resource issues at the national and regional levels. An important element here is
ensuring that OKACOM becomes much more inclusive of environmental, agricultural,
financial and planning agencies. Therefore the project's executive office, the Project
Management Unit (PMU), together with national counterparts in the National Co-ordination
Units (NCUs) will: establish natural resource planning linkages across national, inter-
ministerial and socio-economic sectors and actors; specify natural resource linkages within
national administrations/jurisdictions and NGOs associated with the basin boundaries; and
link the basin initiative to regional planning and socio-economic development and initiatives
and the activities of regional NGOs. This will allow OKACOM to: lock on to national and
regional organisations responsible for natural resource management in the ORB; facilitate
government buy-in and eventual commitment to implement; determine feedback in SAP
formulation; and establish channels and participatory mechanisms for SAP implementation.
10
The results of the local level basin management pilots under A2 will be used to test the
effectiveness of existing and alternative institutional links and structure appropriate SAP
interventions. In particular, the international waters elements of the World Bank led Angola
Water Sector Development project and the Namibian Water Resources Management Review
(NWRMR) will be instrumental in defining Angolan and Namibian policy toward shared
basins and will establish the enabling environment for subsequent investment under the
SAP.
Output A4
Monitoring and Evaluation Procedures for SAP implementation
32.
The analytic work carried out in in both component A and B will result in a set of key
hydro-environmental, socio-economic and institutional criteria. These criteria will be used to
develop a set of agreed indicators by which to verify compliance of a joint management plan
and monitor and evaluate the impact of the SAP. Therefore institutional
adaptation/sustainability indicators will be used to assess the extent to which the alternative
has resulted in changes to national and regional institutions, particularly within the
stakeholder institutions in the basin. In addition, the monitoring of key hydro-
environmental indicators will have commenced as part of the project to measure the
environmental impact of the SAP.
COMPONENT B: COMPLETED TRANSBOUNDARY DIAGNOSTIC ANALYSIS
Output B1
Water resource assessment and analysis completed to determine hydro-environmental
processes, characteristics and limits
33.
A joint management programme will involve decisions about the allocation of water
quantity and quality amongst the riparian countries and the basin's environment. The
programme will also require basin-wide environmental indicators to be monitored to check
compliance with and evaluate the impact of the SAP and the ensuing programme. While, the
overall system boundaries and preliminary understanding of the ORB has been identified by
the draft TDA work, the TDA can only be completed if hydrological and hydrogeological
information can be analysed to the minimum degree of precision necessary to permit
assessment of credible alternatives and joint management regimes. The current information
on the dynamics of the basin water balance (quantity and quality) and consumptive and non-
consumptive uses across the basin and projections for future water demands will be refined .
Given the urgent need to establish this data for consultation and decision making, these
water resource assessments will be given the highest priority in SAP formulation. The
compilation of existing data and new data sets that are needed will be fast-tracked to bring to
identify the minimum data sets to initiate the preparation of basin management models and
subsequent negotiation and joint management. This compilation of water resource data will
be done on the basis of priority and need concentrating on the glaring data gaps in Angola.
Thereafter data will be selectively compiled on the basis of the most sensitive uses and the
most credible water use scenarios so that a realistic range of water management scenarios
can be modelled and options prepared by the end of the second year of the SAP formulation.
Output B2
Socio-economic analysis completed to establish current and future patterns of water
resource use and levels of demand
34.
A socio-economic framework will be established in parallel with the physical
analysis/framework developed in Output B1. This framework will be based on published
reports and census data and targeted socio-economic assessments, particularly in Angola
where particular attention will be given to the status of displaced communities and their
specific engagement with the natural resources base of the ORB. Levels of consumptive
and non-consumptive water use and levels of demand for the basin resources will be
established and targeted social and economic assessments will be undertaken where no
information exists. To enable appropriate economic analysis of all use and non-use values for
the water resource base, the economic and social productivity of alternative uses of water
across the basin and anticipated changes with time in productivity will be analysed.
Output B3
Water resource and socio-economic analysis super-imposed to define environmental
11
system limits and parameters
35.
The descriptions and analyses of the basin's linked environmental and socio-
economic systems will be super-imposed using GIS techniques. The layering of basin
frameworks will include; hydrological systems; hydrogeological sub-systems; ecological sub-
systems; basin demographics and socio-economic status; and basin demands in water
quantity and quality. This super-imposition and meshing of the resource base and the
current demands will allow the identification of critical system limits and parameters for
inclusion in subsequent modelling.
Output B4
Environmental assets of the ORB described and valued to structure models
36.
The existing environmental assets of the basin will be described in detail based
largely on published material and the State of Environment Reports for Botswana and
Namibia due for publication in early 1999. In the case of Angola, specialist environmental
surveys and reports will need to be commissioned to complement the published material in
Botswana and Namibia. These will include rapid surveys of the fluvial and wetland
environments in the Cuito and Cubango sub-basins using remote sensing techniques and
structured ground sampling. The use and non-use values of the environmental assets of the
basin will be calculated on the basis of appropriate valuation methods.
Output B5
Comprehensive set water of resource alternatives for the ORB assessed to structure
model scenarios and tested for replicability and taking to scale
37.
All the sources of freshwater and resource management opportunities for the region
will need to be assessed to the extent that they offer alternatives to direct abstraction from
the Okavango. These include existing groundwater sources in all three countries,
optimisation of existing infrastructure, and non-structural solutions such as conjunctive use,
national demand management programmes and tradeable abstraction and pollution permits.
Each source and potential management solution will be detailed with sufficient precision to
form a model component which can be considered as a potential alternative source or
substitute for raw water abstraction or water quality tradeoffs. To assess the viability and
replicability of alternatives, feasibility studies of enhanced recharge, small scale irrigation
from groundwater, conjunctive use and small scale programmes in demand management
will be carried out. In association with the World Bank, the PDF B has already initiated such
studies in Namibia.
Output B6
Water resource development and management models used to produce water
resource
management
options.
38.
As soon as sufficient data is assembled, by the end of the second year of the project,
interactive modelling techniques will be used to explore regional water supply and water
management alternatives and sensitivities and to demonstrate these to basin stakeholders. A
detailed proposal for this work has already been submitted to OKACOM by the Natural
Heritage Institute of Berkeley, California. A range of alternative development scenarios will
be elaborated to assess the impact of future patterns of socio-economic demand and the
ecological water requirements to maintain the functioning and productivity of wetlands in
the basin and prevent wetland degradation. Opportunities for conjunctive use and
alternative water resource options both within the basin and for centres of existing and
potential demand outside the basin will be assessed in the models.
Output B7
Economic and environmental criteria produced to guide water resource allocation
and
development
decisions
39.
Environmental and socio-economic criteria and guidelines will be produced by the
end of the second year of the project to ensure that management actions and designs are
consistent with the achievement of global environmental objectives. The guidelines and
criteria will be pivotal in driving policy and institutional changes at the regional, national
and local levels. These will include clear recommendations on natural resource valuation,
rights in water use and associated natural resource use, allocation, levels of irrigation
12
efficiency, demand management for urban water and tariff structures for water services. In
addition, a comparative analysis of existing legal and regulatory provisions will be made
and evaluated as a basis for joint management under the SAP and appropriate
recommendations made for national review.
COMPONENT C: SAP FORMULATION
Output C1
Technical and policy implications of joint management options evaluated
40.
The implications of adopting the various options will be evaluated by the riparian
countries in a series of OBSC and OKACOM meetings in which the PMU will present the
results of the TDA. The degree to which the various options meet the economic and
environmental criteria will be assessed and the options ranked accordingly. This evaluation
will occur within the context of the SAP as it is developed over the duration of the project.
Output C2
Joint integrated management programme negotiated and designed
41.
As soon as the management options have been evaluated, a joint integrated
management programme (JIMP) for the basin will be drafted and negotiated. Compared
with the originally "integrated management plan" proposed by OKACOM, this will be a
considerably enhanced programme for integrated management. It will have direct links with
ongoing water sector management activities carried out by the World Bank and UNDP in
Angola and Namibia. It will therefore substitute the baseline activity and extend the scope
and vision of the originally proposed integrated management plan by taking into account a
much deeper economic analysis of the transboundary benefits linked to the ORB. It will be
achieved through the inclusion of stakeholder consultation, the integration of hydrological
process, natural resource management and socio-economic activities.
Output C3
Commitments to SAP Implementation defined including, policy, legal, institutional,
human
resource
arrangements
42.
Authority has been invested in OKACOM by the cabinets of the riparian
governments to advise on all policy, technical and investment matters related to the ORB.
The precise policy, enabling environment and resource commitments from each country will
be defined in inter-ministerial and multi-disciplinary consultations hosted by OKACOM
from project inception. This will allow government commitment to the SAP to be
incorporated into national development plans and give a clear signal to basin stakeholders
and SAP partners. These policy and resource commitments will form the basis of the support
to SAP implementation and will have been built over the whole period of SAP formulation.
Output C4
SAP document produced and endorsed by riparian governments through
integration of outputs C1- C3 in collaborative process with basin stakeholders and
SAP
partners
43.
A draft SAP will be produced in the first year of the project on the basis of
preliminary findings from ongoing project activities. The technical and policy commitments
given by the riparian countries will form the basis of a rolling SAP document into which
basin stakeholders and SAP partners will be invited to contribute on the basis of their
respective comparative advantage. The SAP will include expected and additional priority
actions to address the priority transboundary issues and will comprise policy, legal,
institutional and investment decisions at national and regional level. The final draft of the
SAP will be presented to governments for their endorsement in the third year of the project
prior to presentation at donor conferences.
Output C5
SAP finance mobilised in preparation for implementation
13
44.
SAP investments will be integrated into national development plans. Significant
project resources will be use to assure the preparation of all necessary documentation,
meetings and conferences to mobilise financial support for the SAP. The World Bank is
expected to play a lead role in co-ordinating and organising donor support for the SAP since
it is currently assisting Angola and Namibia in setting the policy frameworks for water
related investments and will be preparing national investment programmes during the
project period. In addition, current World Bank activities in Angola and Namibia have direct
links with the project outputs and have been leveraged by the GEF PDF activities. It is
anticipated that the bulk of financing for SAP implementation will come from non-GEF
sources. It is therefore important to develop an adaptable and flexible arrangement with
development partners governments, donors, NGO's and basin stakeholders who will
provide financial, technical, and human resources for implementation. The design of
investment vehicles and the production of prospectus material to match investment
opportunities with investors will be essential, as will the training of Government personnel
in this field material and training will be developed and provided to ensure the Okavango
initiative can leverage sufficient funding to realise both an enhanced domestic baseline and
global benefits. Donor consultation will occur at an early stage in the project so that buy-in
to the SAP is assured by the end of the second year of the project in readiness for formal
donor conferences in the final year of the project.
INDICATORS TO MEASURE IMPLEMENTATION OF PROJECT COMPONENTS
45.
Specific indicators to measure the implementation of project components are derived
from project reporting requirements, completion of scheduled meetings and consultations
and are detailed in the Logical Framework Matrix (Annex II). These are distinct from the
implementation indicators for the programme of joint management.
END OF PROJECT SITUATION
46.
End of Project Situation. Key institutional barriers to integrated joint management
will have been overcome. Broad awareness about the state of the basin will have been raised
at the national, regional and international levels. This will draw attention of decision makers
to the critical planning needs and guarantee political and financial support for SAP
implementation. OKACOM will have been strengthened as both a political forum for
involving key high level government officials to negotiate the sharing of transboundary
water and as an initiator of policy shifts at national and regional level. Specifically there will
be in place; mechanisms for consultation, communication, and participation in all three
riparian countries; an updateable knowledge base; policy initiatives launched and cross
sectoral integration mechanisms established; a joint programme for management of the
basin; natural resource management capacity built at regional and national level; and finance
mobilised for SAP implementation and beyond. The project will have demonstrated new
collaborative approaches to transboundary water management that are based on open
understanding and consensus while also fulfilling the countries' stated desires to
understand and protect the basin in order to meet a potentially divergent range of national
interests including disparate levels of socio-economic development, nature conservation, and
eco-tourism. Explicit links between this International Waters project and the GEF's bio-
diversity focal area are anticipated and will be articulated in the SAP. This is particularly the
case in Botswana where natural resource conservation activities will be promoted on the
basis of the water resource management analysis carried out in the project.
47.
Project Beneficiaries. The protection of a key freshwater body with extremely high
instrumental value will yield a range of benefits at both the global and national levels--
according direct, indirect use, option, and existence values. The global community will
benefit from the protection of a unique hydrological system and its related aquatic
ecosystems, that would otherwise be threatened, and for which no equivalents exist. At the
national and local levels, the project would maintain the option for basin communities to use
the freshwater base and associated biological diversity for consumptive and productive
purposes. Other beneficiaries include communities, government personnel and staff from
local NGOs working in the project sites who would benefit from additional training and
exposure to innovative basin management and conservation approaches.
14
IV. RISKS AND SUSTAINABILITY
RISKS.
48.
The long-term success of this initiative depends primarily on the political willingness
of the riparian countries to co-operate not only on regional transboundary issues, but also to
collaborate positively across the linked sectors within their national administrations and
socio-economic systems. The success of OKACOM as the co-ordinating agency is the key to
maintaining the initiative and any undermining of OKACOM's position as the prime
technical adviser to all three governments on the ORB will pose a serious risk to SAP
implementation. This political will is necessary to the creation of specific institutional
arrangements and strategies that are consistent with the SAP process. An ongoing concern is
the ability of OKACOM and related institutions in the riparian countries to implement
progressive natural resource policy. While OKACOM has a mandate as an inclusive body,
sectoral interests may crowd out key partners across environmental, agricultural, financial
and planning departments and agencies. To prevent this from occurring, the consultation
and communication components have been designed to address this risk from the inception
of the project.
49.
The current uncertainty over peace in Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo
poses risks to project implementation if unrest in the region spills over into the ORB. In
particular, if access to the catchments and the risks of land-mines inhibit direct data
collection more emphasis will be placed on remote sensing and detailed interpretation of
multi-temporal imagery. While a period of unrest may disrupt consultations, water will
remain a key issue for any government. In the case of major unrest which threatens project
implementation, UNDP will suspend operations in accordance with standard UNDP rules
and procedures. The risk of international water disputes through lack of communication and
understanding over water as the ORB is progressively re-settled and developed in Angola is
minimised by the effective dialogue that takes place within OKACOM. Generally there is
strong interest in co-operation and co-ordination among the three countries, particularly
since all countries belong to SADC and OKACOM and can be expected to respect the SADC
Protocol on Shared Water Resources.
50. Time is of the essence in this initiative. SAP formulation needs to proceed as quickly as
possible to establish a meaningful framework for riparian co-operation and avoid unilateral
action on the basis of drought conditions or other national imperatives such as dealing with
the emergency re-settlement of refugees in the ORB. Prevention on this basis will be much
cheaper than cure and needs to occur while close co-operation amongst the riparians can be
assured.
SUSTAINABILITY
51. Government
Commitment. The governments of the three countries of the Okavango
have already demonstrated strong commitment to strengthening international co-operation
in the regional basin management and this commitment has been confirmed among other
things by their readiness to appoint OBSC as the co-ordinator of the PDF work on the TDA.
The draft TDA further illustrates the governments' commitment to the development of
enhanced transboundary environmental co-operation under the GEF International Waters
Operational Strategy. This project brief has incorporated the comments and suggestions from
the governments, scientific institutions, NGO's, and other donors and UN system agencies,
gathered in several regional consultative meetings, and has received the official endorsement
of all participating countries and OKACOM (Annex IX).
52. Economic
Sustainability. The project is designed to identify all use and non-use
values of the ORB within the national and regional economic frameworks. This will
establish the economic rationale for investing in integrated management of the ORB,
conserving the stock of environmental assets, and optimising the flow of benefits from the
basin's natural resource base. Positive and negative externalities associated with a set of
15
water resource development options in the ORB will be evaluated and policy initiatives put
in place to minimise transaction costs and work toward internalisation of negative
externalities
53. Institutional
Sustainability. The project is designed specifically to mainstream hydro-
environmental and ecological concerns for the ORB within processes of decision making
occurring within communities, local government, interest groups and NGOs operating
within the basin - the stewards of the basin's landscapes. It will do this in two ways. First by
driving policy changes and institutional adaptation at national levels and second, by active
engagement of the basin stewards in research, analysis, and monitoring of programme
components. Schools, colleges, universities, and research institutions will be key partners in
building this capacity. In addition, the penetration of these sustainability concerns into
national policies, regulatory, and institutional frameworks will be driven by the engagement
of national professional interest groups in carrying out awareness raising, research, analysis,
and monitoring. OKACOM will promote this penetration by use of their communication and
networking capabilities, a feature of the PDF work that had positive resonance within the
basin communities.
54. Financial
Sustainability. The promotion of the SAP and solicitation of government,
investor, and donor resources by OKACOM and the IAs will provide supplementary
funding for SAP formulation and implementation. Overheads of the operational units at
regional and national level will be kept low - they will rely on networking of dedicated
professionals and interest groups rather than a permanent basin secretariat - and will
present attractive donor opportunities. Investment opportunities will be identified and
prepared during SAP formulation with the World Bank taking a lead role in co-ordinating
and organising key donor conferences and stimulating national investment. The SAP and
subsequent joint management initiatives will be designed to be self-financing. Specifically,
under output C3 the project will ensure that the financing mechanisms established for the
SAP will continue beyond the life of SAP implementation through the incorporation of SAP
components in national development plans and external assistance projects.
V. STAKEHOLDER PARTICIPATION AND IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGEMENTS
STAKEHOLDER COMMITMENT AND PARTICIPATION
55.
Environmental issues are a high societal priority in the region. Many public
organisations as well as individual scientific and research institutions and consultants have
invested their resources in understanding and analysing the Okavango basin. The project
will involve these various stakeholders in project monitoring, evaluation, and
implementation through numerous consultations and workshops and improved Internet
access among stakeholders. Many of these stakeholders will have an important role to play
in implementation.
56.
Recent project proposals for developments in both Namibia and Botswana have
highlighted the need for the most complete public/stakeholder consultation and
participation possible. The consultation process set up during the PDF work has provided a
clear message, that education, participation and consultation can go hand in hand. Both
community members and leaders expressed the opinion that they would not be able to
participate in the consultative process if they did not have a good grasp of all the issues.
Schools, colleges, research institutions, and ngos in the basin have expressed a high degree of
interest in an Okavango initiative and the project makes provision for a serious education,
training, and information effort to be included. A summary of the proposed public
involvement plan is presented in Annex VIII.
PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION AND INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK
16
57. Institutional
Framework. The institutional framework for the project is set out below.
OKACOM derives its authority from the respective cabinets of the riparian countries. The
Governments of Angola, Botswana, and Namibia have nominated national experts as
country delegates to OKACOM. These delegates are drawn from the respective
Departments/Directorates for Water Affairs, Ministries of Environment, Planning, and
Attorney General's Offices. OBSC is responsible for overseeing the day to day
implementation of studies related to the ORB.
Cabinet(Angola)
Cabinet(Botswana)
Cabinet(Namibia)
OKACOM
OBSC
PMU
NCU (Angola)
NCU (Botswana)
NCU (Namibia)
58. Project
Implementation. Figure 2 of Annexe V illustrates the project implementation
arrangements. The Project Steering Committee (PSC), comprising OKACOM and the
involved GEF IAs, has overall responsibility for the project and will provide policy,
management and financial guidance. The PSC will meet annually and is expected to
delegate tasks and resources to the respective implementing agencies where their
comparative advantage is greatest. UNDP is the lead implementing agency and will support
national and regional co-ordination of project activities. The World Bank will take the lead in
identifying and promoting investment opportunities related to the SAP. UNEP will provide
technical backstopping to the TDA work, particularly in in areas of environmental
assessment and analysis. The Project Management Committee (PMC) will comprise OBSC,
the PMU, the NCUs, ministerial representatives involved in the management of the ORB
together with involved NGOs, research institutions and civil groups. The PMC will provide
active project supervision and co-ordination and will be instrumental in feeding back policy
initiatives and identifying investment opportunities in the SAP. PMC meetings will occur
regularly and will rotate through all three countries. National components will be executed
through national execution modalities with the support of UNDP country offices in co-
operation with Water Management Branch of the United Nations Secretariat (UN DESA).
OKACOM will also continue in its role as the inter-governmental mechanism for co-
ordination, delegating specific tasks to OBSC and linking high-level policy and decision
makers from the three Okavango basin countries.
59.
The Project Management Unit, (PMU) will be appointed by OKACOM and will work
under the guidance of OBSC to oversee day to day implementation of project activities and
play the primary role in ensuring co-ordination of the project with other relevant activities in
the region. A core team comprising a programme manager and national programme co-
ordinators will form the project executive office and will be responsible for the detailed
formulation of the SAP bringing in key specialist services at the regional level as required.
The composition of this core team will draw the best possible expertise from the riparian
countries in water resources; natural resource management; environmental specialists (with
emphasis on wetlands); and social and community development. Specific line ministry co-
ordination and multi-disciplinary collaboration, including national NGOs will be undertaken
at country level by the National Co-ordination Units (NCUs) , the functional equivalents of
inter-ministerial committees. The national executing agencies under UNDP co-operation
agreements will be; the Ministry of Energy and Water in Angola; the Ministry of Mines,
17
Energy and Water Affairs in Botswana; and the Ministry of Water and Rural Development in
Namibia.
60. Funding will be established and administered jointly by the PMU and the NCUs. All
project funds, including those of GEF, will be listed together with their respective
conditionalities and financial reporting requirements. Each component of the funding will be
subject to individual reporting requirements but will be matched with SAP activities to
provide a transparent map of current programme expenditure flows.
VI. INCREMENTAL COSTS AND PROJECT FINANCING
61.
Incremental Costs. Total incremental costs are calculated at US$7,170,500 of which the
GEF contribution is US$4,745,500 and co-financing is US$2,425,000, based on government
contributions, anticipated Implementing Agency inputs and expressions of interest received
from NGOs and bilateral donors. The incremental costs attached to this GEF project are
linked principally to overcoming barriers to joint management of the basin, completion of a
TDA and the subsequent development and negotiation of the SAP. Overcoming these
barriers has specific capacity building implications and associated costs that lie beyond the
domestic baselines of the riparian countries. Annex 1 presents a summary of the domestic
and global benefits and costs together with a matrix of individual country baseline and
alternative costs associated with each project objective.
62. Project
Financing. The financing of the project within the context of the SAP will be
ensured by the commitment of all three governments and bi-lateral and multilateral donors
who have expressed an interest in supporting OKACOM and the SAP process. The summary
of costs presented in Table 1 are indicative and are based on 1998 proforma costs and the
experience gained in executing the TDA studies during the PDF phase. Access to the
Angolan portion of the basin is limited by landmines and made difficult by the remoteness of
the area. In addition, operating costs in Angola are much higher than in either Botswana or
Namibia. The detailed breakdown of sub-activities, their justification, terms of reference and
associated budgets will be presented in the project documents.
18
Table 1. Summary GEF Project Financing (US$)
Project Components/Outputs
TOTAL
Co-financing
GEF
Component A: Joint Management
Output A1: Expertise
1,234,900
525,000
709,900
Output A2: Stakeholder Participation
1,050,600
200,000
850,600
Output A3: Policy initiatives
147,000
100,000
47,000
Output A4: Monitoring and Evaluation
165,000
0
165,000
Total: A.
2,597,500
825,000
1,772,500
Component B: Completed TDA
Output B1: Water resource analysis
1,951,000
1,400,000
551,000
Output B2: Socio-economic analysis
730,000
200,000
530,000
Output B3: Super-imposed frameworks
96,000
0
96,000
Output B4: Environmental assets
120,000
0
120,000
Output B5: Alternatives 360,000
0
360,000
Output B6: Water management models
130,000
0
130,000
Output B7: Criteria
92,000 0
92,000
Total B.
3,479,000
1,600,000
1,879,000
Component C: SAP Formulation
Output C1: Technical & policy implications of options
114,000
0
114,000
Output C2: Joint IMP negotiated
425,000
0
425,000
Output C3: Commitments defined
140,000
0
140,000
Output C4: SAP document produced
250,000
0
250,000
Output C5: SAP finance mobilised
165,000
0
165,000
Total C.
1,094,000
0
1,094,000
TOTALS
7,170,500
2,425,000
4,745,500
Project Support Services
380,000
380,000
PDF (Block A and B)
374,000
374,000
Total Project Financing
7,924,500
2,425,000
5,499,500
VII. MONITORING, EVALUATION AND LESSONS LEARNED
63.
Monitoring and evaluation Project objectives, outputs and emerging issues will be
regularly reviewed and evaluated at annual meetings of the PSC and the PMC. The project
will be subject to the various evaluation and review mechanisms of UNDP, including Annual
Programme Review (APR), Tri-partite Review (TPR) and an external Evaluation and Final
Report prior to the termination of the project. The project will also participate in the annual
Project Implementation Review (PIR) exercise of the GEF.
64.
Working in concert with appropriate scientific and technical institutions and
government agencies in the region, in line with emerging GEF policies the project will
develop a set of 'indicators' to track the short and long-term impacts of this and other related
projects in the ORB. Key indicators will include process (e.g. policy, legal, institutional, etc.
reforms), stress reduction (e.g. reduced pollutant loads or per capita water demands, etc.),
and environmental status (e.g. cleaner waters, restored habitats, etc.).
65.
Lessons learned and technical reviews. The development of this project has benefited
substantially from a detailed review of previous environmental studies carried out in
Botswana and Namibia. This includes approaches to community and NGO involvement,
public awareness and consultation activities and the TDA process, and from the direct
involvement of local specialists active in basin research. The STAP technical review has
strengthened the economic rationale for the project by pointing to allocation issues and the
need to evaluate tradeoffs at an early stage in the development of the SAP. This
consideration will refine the types of data and resulting scenario analyses that are carried
out. In addition, the project will be involved from the start in the new GEF IW LEARN
(Learning Exchange and Resource Network) programme.
19
Annexes
Annex I:
Incremental Cost Matrix.
Annex II:
Logical Framework Matrix
Annex III:
STAP Roster Technical review
________________________________________________________________________
List of Optional Annexes
The annexes listed below are not required as part of the standardised GEF project brief.
However, they are available on file for reviewers seeking additional background
information.
Annexe IV: Contains the map of the Okavango River Basin, the topographic limit of the
basin and the principle towns and international boundaries.
Annex V: Contains Figures 1 (Strategic Approach to Project Design) and 2 (Project
Implementation Arrangements) referred to in the Brief text.
Annex VI: Provides a Table of Contents and a Summary of the draft Transboundary
Diagnostic Analysis together with the table of contents of the two part report.
Annex VII: Provides a listing of the national expert group and the titles of their respective
specialist reports.
Annex VIII: Provides a summary of the public involvement plan for the project.
Annex IX: Contains copies of GEF Operational Focal Point endorsement letters.
Annex X: OKACOM Agreement
1
Annex I: Incremental Cost Analysis
1. Regional Context and Broad Development Goals
1.1 The region has given a high priority to both water resource development and
environmental concerns. UNDP and the World Bank are already funding water resource
management reviews in Angola and Namibia. All three countries are participating in a
SADC water roundtable initiative. Both Namibia and Botswana have committed funds to
environmental assessments of the basin in so far as national priorities have been addressed.
1.2 The socio-economic pressures on the region's limited water resource base have
driven high levels of investment in water infrastructure, particularly in Botswana and
Namibia. Over the past ten years, these water development initiatives have been increasingly
subject to economic and environmental scrutiny both from domestic interest groups and
international institutions.
2. Global Environmental Objective:
2.1
The Okavango River Basin has unique qualities in terms of its geomorphology,
hydrology, and biodiversity, qualities which remain relatively pristine with little discernible
human impact on the hydrology and aquatic ecology of the basin. The significance of the
basin has been highlighted by the international interest in the hydro-ecological state of the
Delta and the bio-diversity it supports. In addition, by virtue of its remoteness and the
continuing political instability, the Angolan portion of the basin remains one of the least
developed regions in the savannah belt that traverses Angola, the Republic of Congo and
Zambia. The complex arrangement of linear tributaries, dambos and broad seepage zones in
the upper and middle Cuito and Cubango sub-basins make road access difficult and it is
probable that this relatively undisturbed environment exhibits largely unmodified
hydrological responses. The incipient degradation under the baseline conditions will
threaten aquatic flora and their associate fauna both in the source sub-basins in Angola and
the Delta in Botswana.
2.2
If left unchecked, the direct and indirect threats to this international water body will
result in the breakdown of the hydrological and ecological integrity causing the global
community to forfeit sizeable conservation benefits (including direct and indirect use values,
and existence and option values). The threats are real and imminent as evidenced by the
recent unilateral initiative by Namibia to abstract water from the system under emergency
drought conditions. This was avoided following a period of rainfall that re-established
reservoir levels in the central area of the country. It is expected that the opportunity to
protect this relatively pristine system will not appear again and that the costs of remedial
action will exceed current conservation costs by several orders of magnitude.
3. Baseline
3.1
The scope of the baseline is set spatially by the natural limits of the ORB and the locus
of external demands upon the basin's resources, thematically by the project objectives (joint
management, water resource analysis and planning/programming), and temporally by the
life of the project (3 years). The sectoral activities in the basin that involve direct water
abstraction and disposal from and to the Okavango watercourses are distinguished from
activities that relate to mechanisms for joint management, water resource analysis for the
ORB, and the programming and planning of water related investments in the ORB. A
proportion of these non-operational activities carried out by each country will be diverted
into the alternative.
i.
Operational Water Service Management: In this analysis, this is taken to comprise
all water supply, sanitation, irrigation and watershed management activities that occur in the
basin. These are established in published national development agenda and where
information is not available on the planned investments made in the basin, estimates have
been based on the basis of population distributions. Current levels of inward investment and
domestic productivity in the Angolan portion of the basin cannot be assessed with any
2
degree of accuracy at the moment since access to the Cuando Cubango Province is limited
and the legacy of the recent civil war inhibits provincial development. Since independence,
there has been no appreciable inward investment to the basin. Prior to independence in 1975,
small scale irrigation activity was largely privately managed and only two small scale hydro-
electric schemes in Menonge and Cuvango were put into operation. Following 22 years of
war and some 5 years of recent drought, the Province has been de-populated. Under a recent
provincial planning exercise for a re-habilitation programme, the overall budget for Cuando
Cubango Province is US$ 27,170,062 based on 1995 prices. A sectoral breakdown apportions
agriculture 31%, rural trade 17%, roads 15% and education 11%, which represents 74% of the
total programme. In 1997 World Bank has also proposed a US$40,000,000 Agricultural Sector
Investment Programme to assist smallholder and commercial farmers through
improvements in government services , an improved policy framework and the provision of
funds for rural infrastructure. The World Bank are currently preparing a national water
sector development project for the period 1999-2001. It is anticipated that this will focus on
priority areas in the north and west of the country. The development plans for Cuando
Cubango Province are being formulated, but given the small population of the basin, a small
level of investment in water services, water supply and sanitation and small scale irrigation
is anticipated. In Botswana, development priorities for the Okavango Delta region are aimed
at a disparate range of development programmes, nature conservation and eco-tourism. It is
important to note that tourism currently accounts for 3% of GDP in Botswana as a whole, but
the relative contribution from tourism related services for the Okavango Delta is much
higher. The Government of Botswana is committed to the implementation of the 8th National
Development Plan for the period 1997/8-2002/3 which anticipates a Major Village
Water/Sanitation Development project costed at $US 9,000,000. In Namibia a policy of
devolving planning and budgetary functions to regional authorities has been initiated. A
recent World Bank poverty alleviation study has recommended the Okavango freshwater
resources be utilised for small scale irrigation. The First National Development Plan specifies
ongoing work in rural water supply and sanitation for the period 1996-2000. Bulk water
transfer investments are costed at $10,000,0000. Provision for feasibility studies for the
construction of an emergency pipeline to the Okavango has been set at approximately
US$2,000,000. The preliminary feasibility work carried out in 1997 amounted to
approximately $US 1,500,00. Upgrading of Rundu town water scheme over the project
period approximately US$3,500,00.
ii.
Mechanisms for Joint Management: The national resources devoted to joint
management of the ORB are extremely limited, comprising government staff time dedicated
to servicing OKACOM meetings. In the absence of GEF support, the level of expenditure on
joint management is anticipated to remain at this level which would amount to no more than
$100,000 over the life of the project. The PDF A and B contributions have amounted to
$374,000 over the past three years. However, of significance is the fact that since 1997, all
three countries are participating in the SADC water roundtable process supported by UNDP.
Direct support from UNDP for all three countries is estimated at US$200,000. National
activities in policy development are variable. In Angola, the World Bank will be focussing on
water policy and institutional development (~US$1,400,000) and transboundary water
resources (~US$460,000). The support may also include a pilot study for the Cunene basin
(~US$2,400,000) which is also shared with Namibia. However, since the Cubango is not a
priority basin for the country, it is not anticipated that any of these resources will dedicated
to the ORB. In its 8th National Development Plan Botswana has budgeted for International
Water Planning and Development of which some 30% (~$US 130,000) is earmarked for the
Okavango basin). Namibia is undertaking a more substantive policy and institutional review
of its water sector in the light of its recent policy directive on decentralisation and a need to
address increasing demands for water services. A World Bank/GTZ/UNDP supported
Water Resources Management Review amounting to $US 1,100,000 was launched in early
1998. Approximately $250,000 of this will address transboundary river basins where
Namibia is forced to negotiate with neighbours. It is anticipated that some $75,000 of this
budget will be directly related to transboundary issues for the Okavango
iii.
Basin Analysis. Interventions in integrated natural resource analysis within the basin
and within the riparian countries are limited. Most interventions are of a sectoral nature
and relate to water supply and sanitation, agriculture, and tourism. In Angola the World
3
Bank and the Norwegian Government are co-operating on a set of national water resource
management proposals in areas where the respective comparative advantage is greatest.
Norwegian assistance is estimated at US$2,000,000 and is committed to the upgrading of key
hydrometric installations in northern and coastal provinces and undertaking a national
water resources assessment. It is anticipated that the thrust of this work will concentrate on
areas other than the Cubango and Cuito sub-basins. In Botswana the 8th National
Development Plan includes; Hydrological Support including updating of the Okavango
forecasting model (~$US 182,000); and Groundwater Studies and Protection (~ $US 200,000).
The University of Botswana has obtained private sector support for a research station in the
Okavango Delta estimated at $US 500,000 over the life of the project. Other relevant activities
include a Finnish Government assisted State of the Environment Report on Water in
Botswana ($95,000) and research on demand management assisted by IUCN ($25,000). In
Namibia, relevant activities include a Finnish Government assisted State of the Environment
Report on Water in Namibia ($95,000) and research on demand management assisted by
IUCN ($25,000). The Directorate of Environmental Affairs are also carrying out a review of
pollution control and waste management legislation and research into natural resource
accounting. Future work of the Department of Water Affairs will include the compilation of a
national hydrogeological map and the consolidation of a groundwater database. This work
may be expected to complement the ongoing work in the Department of Agriculture in the
use of satellite imagery to monitor national agricultural and rangeland conditions.
iv.
Programmatic formulation and finance. In the baseline, there is no provision for the
formulation and programming of resources to address joint management. These activities
will only occur in the alternative once the transboundary diagnostic is completed.
4. GEF Alternative
4.1 Without adoption of the GEF alternative, the riparian countries' ability to develop a joint
management plan for the ORB will be limited. The Alternative will promote radically new
approaches to natural resource management in the ORB. These will be based upon thorough
consultation, analysis and cross-sectoral policy and programmatic integration. The following
interventions are proposed;
i.
Operational Water Service Management: In the alternative, baseline activities in
water service operations will continue according to national development plans.
ii.
Strengthened Mechanisms for Implementation of Joint Management: Current
institutional arrangements at the national and regional levels cannot adequately address
transboundary management of the ORB. GEF funds will be used to identify and enhance
existing mechanisms and develop new mechanisms for integrating natural resource planning
across sectors and jurisdictions throughout the ORB. Strategic alliances with key partner
government agencies, communities, NGOs, and the private sector will be sought and
sustained during SAP development so that SAP implementation can proceed unimpeded by
bottlenecks that would otherwise occur, particularly with newly established institutional
arrangements at local levels. The Project Management Unit and the respective National Co-
ordination Units will be instrumental in driving the necessary policy and institutional
initiatives to implement the SAP. Awareness Raising, Consultation and Communication is
necessary to enlist broad support for an Okavango River Basin initiative and GEF funding
will be used to ensure that the PMU can produce and broadcast TDA and SAP information
extensively in the ORB region and internationally. In addition GEF funding will be used to
enhance the relatively under-resourced stakeholder fora in the ORB region. National and
district level fora will be established by the PMU through the NCU in each riparian country.
Training will be an important function of the PMU which needs to service specific training
needs in progressive natural resource management and basin planning at regional and
national levels. Without this pro-active approach to the training of artisans, technicians,
community animators and environmental and socio-economic professionals in the region,
the desired policy responses and institutional innovations will not be implementable.
Provision is also made for the development of skills and leveraging of finance to implement
the SAP.
4
iii.
Completed Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis. GEF funding will be used here to
specifically fill critical natural resource information gaps and bring the refined knowledge of
the hydro-environmental socio-economic systems onto a platform where transboundary
externalities can be examined and resolved. This is not possible under current baseline where
national interests determine research and analysis activities and where basin-wide
information does not exist or is not accessible. The knowledge embedded in the finalised
TDA will underpin the design of the SAP and substantively service the monitoring and
reporting needs during SAP implementation. Most importantly, the process of completing
the TDA will inform policies and initiatives to be launched in preparation for SAP
implementation.
iv.
Strategic Action Programme Formulation. The design of the SAP together with the
specification of the necessary institutional and financial arrangements will involve a long
period of careful negotiation between the riparian countries and development partners. This
process is not addressed in the baseline where national planning priorities are addressed.
5.
Scope of Analysis
5.1
The system boundary of the project is defined in two ways. First, by the
hydrologically active portions of the ORB in Angola, Botswana and Namibia where intra-
basin demands for water and associated natural resources are centred. Second, by specific
links to centres of demand for water outside the basin. The topographic boundary of the
basin is crucial in Angola, but is less relevant in terms of transboundary water resources in
Botswana and Namibia
5.2
The thematic limits for this analysis are set by the project objectives to prepare for the
implementation of a programme of joint management through strengthened institutional
mechanisms, transboundary analysis and SAP formulation. Requisite institutional
strengthening across the related sectors is of the essence. The design of the proposed project
has taken into full consideration its complementarity with other existing projects in the
region, particularly the World Bank and UNDP funded water reviews in Angola and
Namibia.
5.3
The temporal boundaries for this analysis are set by the anticipated period of
preparation for implementation and SAP formulation, a three year period. The project
benefits will clearly continue to accrue beyond this time boundary of both the first stage
defined by the project and the second stage of SAP implementation
5.4
Sunk costs, incurred prior to 1998 have been omitted from the analysis. The baseline
captures investments within the ORB and specific elements associated with extra-basin
demands for water. The Alternative captures the additional actions required to secure
project objectives within the system boundary. There will be substantial leveraging of
domestic baseline costs that address joint management and basin analysis towards the
globally preferred alternative.
6.
Costs and the Incremental Cost Matrix:
6.1 Baseline expenditures amount to US$31,050,000; the Alternative has been costed at
US$38,220,500. The GEF would provide US$ 4,745,500 in incremental cost financing,
approximately 13% of the total cost of implementing the Alternative1. This funding is
targeted specifically at over-coming barriers by defraying the transaction costs associated the
joint management of transboundary waters. Co-financing has been secured from the riparian
governments, UNDP and the World Bank for institutional strengthening aspects and firm
expressions of support to the SAP process have been given by national and international
NGOs and bilateral donors. Total co-financing amounts to US$2,425,000..
6.2 In the longer term, removal of barriers to sustainable use will widen the menu of
0
1
This sum is in addition to the US$ 374,000 allocated in PDF A and B funding.
5
development options available at a local level. But in the short term, the generation of the SAP
will result in mainly non-pecuniary benefits. For the riparian countries, tangible costs exceed
tangible benefits in the intermediate term, providing little incentive to undertake this initiative
without external assistance.
6
Incremental Cost Assessment: SAP Development for the Okavango River Basin
Costs/Benefit
Baseline (B)
Alternative (A)
Increment (A-B)
Domestic
1. Basin degradation accelerates as socio-
1. Basin degradation attenuated
1. Transboundary externalities removed
Benefits
economic demands increase pressure on land 2. Sectoral competition ameliorated
2. Sectoral activities co-ordinated and
and water resources in the respective districts 3. Consultation and participation
optimised
linked to the ORB.
mechanisms for engendering public
3. Basin stakeholders more responsive
2. Sectoral competition for water increases and
participation in environmental planning
to environmental protection
locally sustainable development
and management expanded and better
measures
opportunities through natural resource
informed.
4. Completion of national analysis
management lost
4. Basin frameworks
5. Strengthened national capacities in
3. Limited scope for public involvement in
5. Institutional and human capacity
international basin negotiation
environmental management of the river
strengthened in the arena of integrated
system. Basin stakeholders poorly engaged
land and water body management
with environmental concerns at local and
district/provincial level
4. National data collection , processing, and
analysis limited to surface water resource
information only
5. National capacities to effect integrated land
and water body management measures
limited.
Global/Regional 1. Globally significant river basin experiences
1. Globally significant basin protected
1. A Strategic Action Programme is
Benefit
degradation in water quantity, quality and
Identify strategic measures to address root
prepared to address basin
sediment regime along its length, leading to
causes of transboundary degradation of the
degradation and is endorsed by all
loss of aquatic habitats and associated bio-
Okavango River system
three riparian countries.
diversity.
2. International competition for water
2. Agreements on sharing of benefits
2. International competition for water
ameliorated
concluded
exacerbated. Sustainable development
3. Public participation in Okavango River
3. Process of consultation ,
opportunities for the basin as a whole
basin management increases the sense of
communication, knowledge building
foregone
ownership of civil society over
and natural resource integration
3. No basin-wide forum for discussion and
management and rehabilitation efforts
initiated at basin level and active fora
consultation Lack of awareness about
4. Wide civil society support in the three
for basin stakeholders established
transboundary issues
riparian countries facilitates the planning
4. Improve linkages between regional
4. Lack of regional communication and co-
and implementation of management
stakeholders through meetings,
ordination among and between Okavango
measures (enabling transboundary issues
Internet and print communications.
River basin stakeholders/civil society and
to be addressed).
Raise awareness of the findings of the
limited opportunities to develop negotiation 5. Basin-wide synthesis made possible
Transboundary Analysis and
skills
6. Improved understanding natural resource
sensitise stakeholders to the need for
5. International negotiation limited by
management and protection needs at basin
regional action to mitigate basin
infrequent technical meetings and lack of
level enabling follow-up action at national
degradation
detailed hydro-environmental information
and regional levels.
5. Synoptic view of basin established,
for basin as a whole.
7. Improved regional capacity for data
hydro-environmental and socio-
6. No basin-wide hydro-environmental or
collection, integration, analysis and use in
economic data complete the regional
7
Costs/Benefit
Baseline (B)
Alternative (A)
Increment (A-B)
socio-economic synthesis possible. Limited
decision-making.
picture, transboundary knowledge
understanding of basin-wide implications of
8. Adaptive and innovative river basin
base significantly enhanced.
resource use and protection, (including)
institution created
6. Clear spatial frameworks for natural
biodiversity hot spots and protected area
9. Transboundary mechanisms established
processes and socio-economic
needs. Limited knowledge of cross-border
10. ORB countries committed to a co-ordinated
dynamics established
linkages
basin-wide approach.
7. Furnish structured knowledge base
7. ORB environmental data dispersed;
11. Identification of innovative financing
for international discussion,
collection and utilisation of Okavango data
mechanisms for basin-wide management.
negotiation and participation.
inadequate
8. OKACOM strengthened and
8. OKACOM cannot act as a substantive expert
transboundary policy initiatives
office.
launched
9. Lack of specific operational regional
9. institutional mechanisms to drive
mechanisms to co-ordinate and implement
and co-ordinate basin-wide action.
joint action to manage transboundary river
Improve understanding of policy/
basins. Policy/legal/economic framework for
legal/ economic mechanisms
co-ordinating and enforcing river
required for integrated sustainable
management is inadequate.
river basin management
10. Lack of integrated strategic approach to
10. SAP process adopted in ORB region
Okavango River basin management and
11. Financial sustainability of regional
protection at regional scale. Okavango River
waterbody management measures
basin activities not integrated into basin-wide
and institutions assured.
approach .
11. Lack of capacity to finance the transactions
costs of regional co-operation.
8
Purpose (Component)/Output
Baseline (B)
Alternative (A) Increment (A-B)
A. STRENGTHENED MECHANISMS FOR JOINT MANAGEMENT OF THE ORB
A1 Expertise
Strengthened
0
1,234,900
709,900(GEF)
525,000(non-GEF)
A2 Stakeholder
Participation
100,000
1,150,600
850,600 (GEF)
200,000 (non GEF)
A3 Policy, legal, institutional and human resource initiatives
100,000
247,000
47,000 (GEF)
100,000 (non-GEF)
A4 Monitoring and Evaluation
0
165,000
165,000 (GEF)
B. COMPLETED TRANSBOUNDARY DIAGNOSTIC ANALYSIS
0
0
B1 Water Resources Assessment and Analysis
1,150,000
3,101,000
551,000 (GEF)
1,400,000 (non-GEF)
B2 Socio-economic analysis completed to establish current and future patterns of water
200,000
930,000
530,000(GEF)
resource use and levels of demand
200,000 (non-GEF)
B3 Super-imposed hydro-environment and socio-economic frameworks to define
0
96,000
96,000(GEF)
environmental system limits and parameters
B4 Environmental assets of the ORB described and valued to structure water resource
0
120,000
120,000(GEF)
management models
B5 Comprehensive set water of resource alternatives for the ORB assessed to structure
0
360,000
360,000(GEF)
model scenarios
B6 Water resource development and management models used to produce water resource
0
130,000
130,000(GEF)
management options
B7 A set of guidelines/criteria to guide SAP development and implementation
0
92,000
92,000(GEF)
C. STRATEGIC ACTION PROGRAMME (SAP) FORMULATION
0
0
C1 Technical and policy implications of water resources management options evaluated
0
114,000
114,000(GEF)
C2 Joint integrated management programme (JIMP) for water sector investments
29,500,000
29,925,000
425,000(GEF)
negotiated and designed amongst riparians
C3 Policy, legal, institutional and human resource commitments necessary for SAP
0
140,000
140,000(GEF)
implementation defined
C4 SAP document produced and endorsed
0
250,000
250,000(GEF)
C5 SAP finance mobilised in preparation for implementation
0
165,000
165,000(GEF)
Total
31,050,000
38,220,500
7,170,500
Project Support Services
380,000
PDF
374,000
Total Project Cost
7,924,500
9
Sources of Baseline and Co-financing
Output/Activity
Baseline
Co Finance
A1 Expertise Strengthened
Govts A/B/N staff and logistical support to
OKACOM related activities(1999-2001) 325,000
UNDP support 1999 (N)
100,000
World Bank support 1999-2000 (A/N)
100,000
A2 Stakeholder Participation
GoN Decentralisation Programme (1999-2000)100,000
NGO support 1999(B)
50,000
NGO support 1999 (N)
50,000
UNDP support 1999-2001 (N)
100,000
A3 Policy, legal, institutional and Govts A/B/N water policy initiatives (1999-2001) 100,000
World Bank support 1999-2001 ( A/N)
human resource initiatives
100,000
A4 Monitoring and Evaluation
0
0
COMPONENT A SUBTOTAL
200,000
825,000
B1 Water Resources Assessment and National natural resource info Govts A/N/B: $250,000
Staff time and logistical support to national
Analysis
(1999-2001)
hydrometric programmes in the ORB: Govts
State of the Environment Reports Govts B/N:
A/N/B(1999-2001): $ 1,300,000
$200,000 (1999)
World Bank support 1999-20001 A/ N
Groundwater Studies Govt B/N $200,000 (1999-2001)
100,000
Okavango Delta Research Station Private (B)
$500,000 (1999-2001)
B2 Socio-economic analysis completed to National Social Assessments Govts B/N 200,000
Bilateral support 1999-2001 (N/A)
establish current and future patterns
200,000
of water resource use and levels of
demand
B3 Super-imposed hydro-environment
0
0
and socio-economic frameworks to
define environmental system limits
and parameters
B4 Environmental assets of the ORB
0
0
described and valued to structure
water resource management models
B5 Comprehensive set water of resource
0
0
alternatives for the ORB assessed to
structure model scenarios
B6 Water resource development and
0
0
management models used to produce
water resource management options
B7 A set of guidelines/criteria to guide
0
0
SAP development and
10
implementation
COMPONENT B TOTAL
1,350,000
1,600,000
11
Output/Activity
Baseline
Co Finance
C1 Technical and policy implications of
0
0
water resources management options
evaluated
C2 Joint
integrated
management
GoA1: 8,000,000 (1999-20001)
0
programme (JIMP) negotiated and
GoB2: 9,000,000 (1999-2001)
designed amongst riparians
GoN3: 12,500,000 (1999-2000)
Sub Total $29,500,000
C3 Policy, legal, institutional and human
0
0
resource commitments necessary for
SAP implementation defined
C4 SAP document produced
0
0
C5 SAP finance mobilised in preparation
0
0
for implementation
COMPONENT C TOTAL
29,500,000
0
GRAND TOTALS
31,050,000
2,425,000
0
1 Estimated expenditures based on proposed multi-lateral assistance to Angola.
2 Estimated expenditures of Department of Water Affairs in the project region.
3 Estimated expenditures of Department of Water Affairs in the project region.
1
Annex II. Logical Framework Matrix: SAP Development for the Okavango River Basin
Intervention Logic
Indicators of Performance
Means Of Verification
Assumptions
Development Objective:
·
No unforeseen threats to the
· To alleviate imminent and long term ·
Environmental indicators (state-response, ·
International NGO and
basin environment that cannot
threats to the linked land and water
stress reduction, and source vulnerability)
multilateral organisation
be addressed through joint
systems of the OR through the joint ·
Socio-economic indicators (policy, legal, and
reports
management
management of the ORB water resources
institutional processes)
·
National State of
·
Enhanced basin management
and the protection of its linked aquatic
Environment Reports leads to flow of global and
ecosystems (comprising all wetlands, fluvial
(Namibia and Botswana)
domestic benefits
and lacustrine systems) and their biological
·
Political process remains
diversity.
stable
·
Baseline planning and
budgeting remains constant
Project Purpose:
· Consultative fora established.
·
Annual and periodic ·
Countries commit to and
· To strengthen mechanisms for joint · Enabling environment (policy, law
reports from OKACOM
donors agree on SAP
management of the ORB.
institutions and human resources) enhanced
and Ministries of
·
Processes to ensure enhanced
· To complete a transboundary analysis to · Public and private sector capacity to
Environment, Water and
basin management are
underpin a programme of joint implement SAP
Agriculture and NGOs
sustained beyond life of
management.
· OKACOM review completed and etc.
project
· To facilitate the formulation of an
internalised
·
Government policy
·
Processes can be synchronised
implementable SAP to address threats to · Completed TDA
statements
by all three riparians
the basin's linked land and water system
· SAP endorsed and financed
·
Economic planning
·
Donor support is locked in
reports
·
Ministry staffing tables
and private sector
inventory
Project Components/Outputs: A. STRENGTHENED MECHANISMS FOR JOINT MANAGEMENT OF THE ORB
Output A1.
Expertise within the riparian countries strengthened to drive the necessary inter-governmental and intra-governmental technical and policy initiatives
in water resource planning and management of the ORB
Output A2
Basin-wide mechanisms for stakeholder participation in basin management established and tested to secure consensus and ensure replicability and
taking to scale
Output A3
Policy, legal, institutional and human resource initiatives launched for the ORB and linked to national policy reviews to co-ordinate
water
resource management approaches across the basin
Output A4
Monitoring and evaluation procedures for implementation of joint management
B. COMPLETED TRANSBOUNDARY DIAGNOSTIC ANALYSIS
Output B1
Water resource assessment and analysis completed to establish hydro-environmental processes, characteristics and limits
Output B2
Socio-economic analysis completed to establish current and future patterns of water resource use and levels of demand
Output B3
Water resource and socio-economic analysis super-imposed to define environmental system limits and parameters
Output B4
Environmental assets of the ORB described and valued to structure models
Output B5
Comprehensive set water of resource alternatives for the ORB assessed and tested (at pilot level) to structure model scenarios
Output B6
Water resource development and management models used produce water resource management options
Output B7
Economic and environmental criteria produced to guide water resource development and allocation decisions
C. STRATEGIC ACTION PROGRAMME (SAP) FORMULATION
Output C1
Technical and policy implications of water resources management options evaluated
2
Output C2
Joint integrated management plan negotiated and designed
Output C3
Policy, legal, institutional, human resource and financial arrangements and commitments necessary for SAP implementation defined
Output C4
SAP document produced and endorsed through integration of outputs C1, C2 & C3 in collaborative process with SAP partners
Output C5
SAP finance mobilised in preparation for implementation through WB led donor conference
3
Intervention Logic
Indicators of Performance
Means Of Verification
Assumptions
Output A1.
Strengthened expertise to drive both inter- ·
Project expertise transferred
·
PMU progress and
·
PMU demonstrate its
governmental and intra-governmental technical and policy
and internalised by riparian
expenditure reports and
expertise and influence
initiatives in water resource management for the ORB
countries by end of project
published ORB Forum
partner organisations.
newsletters
Activities
A1.1 Establish a Project Management Unit (PMU) and
· PMU operational within 3 PMU publications
National Co-ordination Units (NCUs) to execute all
months of project inception
project activities at regional and national level and
· OKACOM review completed
support OKACOM for the duration of the project.
and recommendations put to
A1.2 A review of OKACOM mandates and functions
OKACOM meeting in first year
A1.3 Establish regional expert groups on water resource
of project
management and environmental protection
· Expert working groups working
A1.4 PMU/NCU to assess and service national and regional
within 6 months of project
training needs in environmental policy, legislation, basin
inception
management and communication skills
· Training needs identified within
A1.5
Create an inter-ministerial project management
6 months of project inception
committee with representation from key ministries in · project management committee
environment, water, energy, mining, agriculture,
convened within first three
planning and finance and including Implementing
months of project and regular
Agencies, NGOs, research institutions and PMU
quarterly meetings scheduled
representatives .
Output A2
Enhanced basin-wide mechanisms for ·
Okavango River Basin Forum ·
PMU progress and
stakeholder participation in water resource planning and
(inc. sub-fora) established at
expenditure reports
management established to secure consensus.
district/provincial, national Published ORB Forum
and basin level by end 2000
newsletters
Activities
·
The ORB initiative is
A2.1 Consolidate identification of key stakeholders
· Public invitations issued
· Published list of stakeholder
embraced at all levels
A2.2 Initiate the consultative process in Angola
· Public meetings Cubango/Cuito
groups
·
Stakeholders responsive to
A2.3 Extend the consultative process in Botswana
· Outreach to schools and · Minutes of public meetings
consultation process
A2.4 Extend the consultative process in Namibia
institutions
· Minutes of NGO sub-forum ·
Communication channels
A2.5 Regional stakeholder consultations: sponsor and · Outreach to schools and published
open frequently and are
organise bi-annual basin NGO sub-forum
institutions
· Published minutes and formal
stable and cheap
A2.6 Undertake selected pilots and demonstrations in each · NGO sub-forum established
expressions of interest/co-
country to test replicability and taking to scale during · Environmental curriculae
financing OKACOM
SAP implementation
adopted in schools
publications produced
A2.7 Improve web access
· Pilots projects identified ,
digitally
A2.8 Publish and disseminate SAP information
executed and evaluated
· Hardcopy publications
A2.9 Create public awareness and environmental education · Web site updated monthly by
publicly available in all three
campaigns environmental curricula
mid 1999.
riparian countries
· Publications compiled and · Press coverage
broadcast on quarterly basis
from mid 1999
4
Intervention Logic
Indicators of Performance
Means Of Verification
Assumptions
Output A3. Policy, legal, institutional and Policy statements and institutional reviews Endorsed map of function All relevant institutions agree to
human resource initiatives launched and linked carried out in key sector departments at national institutional linkages at national be part of initiative.
to national policy reviews to co-ordinate water level and within OKACOM at regional level
and basin level published by
resource management approaches across the
OKACOM
basin
Activities
A3.1 Specify natural resource linkages within · All institutional players identified in
national administrations/jurisdictions and
formally agree to participate in the ORB
NGOs associated with the basin boundaries
initiative in first 12 months of project
A3.2
Link the basin initiative to regional · National policy initiatives launched and
planning and socio-economic development
institutional and legal arrangements
initiatives and the activities of regional
reviewed in all three riparian countries in
NGOs.
first 24 months of project
A3.3 Evaluate current national policy, legal, · Regional co-operation agreements reviewed
institutional and human resource by end of project
arrangements in respect to basin co-
ordination and joint management
A3.4 Evaluate the use of existing regional and
national legal instruments to facilitate basin
co-ordination and joint management
A3.5 Formulate national and regional policy
initiatives to facilitate basin co-ordination
and joint planning
A3.6 Convene regional expert group meetings
environmental policy, legislation and basin
management and publish findings
A3.7
Prepare draft water management
agreements and protocols for consideration
by OKACOM
Output A4: Monitoring and Evaluation
Procedures for SAP implementation
A1.1 Develop hydro-environmental and
institutional adaptation sustainability
indicators
A1.2 Develop monitoring and evaluation
procedures
5
Intervention Logic
Indicators of Performance
Means Of Verification
Assumptions
Output B1. Water resource assessment and
Reports/data collection services
Reports published by PMU
· Data collection in Angola not
analysis completed to establish hydro-
commissioned in first year and completed
impeded by peace process
environmental processes, characteristics and
to terms of reference by end of second year.
· Data of sufficient precision
limits
compiled to enable
completion of frameworks at
resolution appropriate for
SAP implementation
Activities
B1.1 Consolidate the network of water resource
· Frameworks elaborated on basis of all ·
Frameworks published by
specialists in the region
spatial and thematic data collected
OKACOM as a basin atlas
B1.2 Convene technical working groups on hydro-
under Output B1 by end 2000
environmental processes
· GIS products available by end 2000
B1.3 Commission a maximum of 5 full cable-way
and continuous level river recording stations
throughout the basin to serve as benchmark
stations for SAP implementation
B1.4 Commission level recorders and spot
gauging sites in the upper Angolan sub-
basins
B1.5 Commission targeted reports on specific
hydrological, hydrogeological and hydro-
ecological processes associated with priority
water uses and management options
B1.6 Specific assessment of the amount of water,
its quality and timing of availability through
the system that is needed to sustain the Delta
B1.7 Consolidate national water resource data and
structure for use in basin analysis
B1.8 Produce associated GIS/mapping products
through the use of multi-temporal imagery
B1.9 Design, calibrate and validate distributed
models of surface and groundwater
processes
B1.10 Prepare detailed analyses of basin
processes, characteristics and limits
B1.11 Produce
working
hydro-environmental
framework integrating processes,
characteristics and limits
6
Intervention Logic
Indicators of Performance
Means Of Verification
Assumptions
Output B2. Socio-economic analysis completed to Reports/data collection services PMU publications
Proxy assumptions
establish current and future patterns of water commissioned first half year 1 and
resource use and levels of demand
completed to terms of reference by
end year 2
Activities
B2.1 Consolidate the network of social and economic
experts from the region
B2.2 Compile demographic framework for basin from
published sources
B2.3 Commission social surveys in Angola to assess
current future patterns of demand for raw water
B2.4 Establish basin-wide patterns of demand
B2.5 Assess opportunity cost of water across the basin
B2.6 Produce working socio-economic framework to
integrate demographic and demand
characteristics
Output B3. Super-imposed hydro-environment and Frameworks compiled in GIS product
socio-economic frameworks to define environmental and analysis initiated mid year 2 and
system limits and parameters
completed by first quarter year 3.
Activities
B3.1 super-impose hydro-environmental and socio-
economic frameworks
B3.2 Identify environmental hot-spots, fixed and
transient
B3.3 Evaluate limits of sustainable use in space and
time
Output B4
Environmental assets of the ORB Valuation of assets entered into basin PMU publications
described and valued to structure water resource planning model in year 1.
management models
Activities
B4.1 Identify environmental entities linked to water in
the ORB
B4.2 Select valuation method(s)
B4.3
Apply valuation method through targeted
surveys
B4.4 Describe and quantify in linkages in economic
terms
7
Intervention Logic
Indicators of Performance
Means Of Verification
Assumptions
Output B5
Comprehensive set of water Alternatives assessed in year 1
resource alternatives for the ORB assessed to
structure model scenarios
Activities
B5.1 Identify sources of freshwater in the region
outside the basin that present feasible
alternatives of raw water
B5.2 Identify and examine resource management
opportunities (structural and non-structural)
for the region
B5.3 Form model component as alternative source
or substitute
B5.4 Execute demonstration and pilot studies in
enhanced recharge, conjunctive use and
demand management
Output B6.
Water resource development and Models designed and compiled on basis Databases published (hard and soft) No restrictions on sovereign
management models used to produce water of Outputs B1 and B2 by mid year 2 and and accessible
data
resource management options
options produced end year 2
Activities
B6.1 Evaluate environmental and economic impact
of a set of alternative water resource
development and allocation scenarios through
the use of appropriate interactive basin
planning models (WEAP, STELLAII etc.)
Output B7. Economic and environmental criteria Transparent criteria agreed for all hydro- Guidelines published and
Knowledge base adequate to
produced to guide water resource development environmental, ecological and socio-
disseminated to stakeholders by develop appropriate and
and allocation decisions.
economic process by end year 2
OKACOM
practical criteria.
Activities
B7.1 Define the design state for the basin
B7.2 Develop environmental criteria for resource
use and guidelines for resource protection
B7.3 Develop socio-economic criteria for resource
allocation
B7.4 Develop guidelines for implementation of the
SAP
8
Intervention Logic
Indicators of Performance
Means Of Verification
Assumptions
Output C1
Technical and policy implications Evaluation complete by first quarter year 3
of water resources management options evaluated
Activities
C1.1 Present model outputs to basin stakeholders
C1.2
Feedback responses to policy makers
Output C2
Joint integrated management plan IMP finalised by first half year 2
OKACOM negotiations
Bi-lateral relationships stable
(IMP) negotiated and designed amongst riparians
Activities
C2.1
Prepare plan on basis of stakeholder
consultation
C2.2 Negotiate plan
Output C3
Policy, legal, institutional and Commitments declared third quarter year Government statements,
human resource commitments necessary for SAP 3.
cabinet memoranda
implementation defined
Activities
C3.1 Solicit commitments from governments
C3.2 Confirm commitments
Output C4
SAP document produced through SAP formally endorsed by riparian Draft and final SAP published Bi-lateral relationships stable
integration of outputs C1, C2 & C3 in collaborative countries third quarter year 3. Finance plan by OKACOM
process with basin stakeholders and SAP partners for SAP implementation agreed with
(donors, NGOs, research institutions., schools etc)
governments, donors and investors
Activities
·
Published SAP document by 2003
C4.1 Draft a detailed Strategic Action Programme
·
3 national and 1 regional SAP
C4.2 Present to national and regional fora
workshops held in 2003
C4.3 Consensus on timetable for implementation
·
Implementation schedule agreed end
2003
Output C5
SAP finance mobilised in Finance plan finalised end year 3
Investor confidence maintained.
preparation for implementation
Activities
C5.1 Periodic donor roundtables to focus on SAP
formulation
C5.2 Major donor conference to discuss the final
draft of the SAP and solicit support for
implementation
1
Annex III: STAP Roster Technical Review
1. Overall Impression.
The Okavango River system is of critical global (as well as local) importance. Well organised
efforts to effect a collaborative approach for the protection of the unique ecosystem assets
through the efficient use of the basin's assets should be given highest priority. The present
proposal effectively initiates a planning process that can achieve these goals. The proposal
recognises the importance of participation of the riparian countries and the major stakeholders
while insisting on scientifically valid methods of assessment and planning.
2.
Relevance and Priority.
The proposed project is very important to the long run success of the development aspirations
of the riparian countries as well as to the maintenance of one of the world's truly unique
ecosystems. The maintenance of the Okavango Delta is of global importance because of its
unique features, but it is also of immediate importance to the economies of the riparian
countries. Tourism related to the Okavango Swamp and the scientific importance of that
ecosystem warrant the development of efficient action plans that will allow both needed
economic developments and environmental protection.
3.
Approach.
The recommended approach is appropriate in its main features: networking and
communication; completion of an adequate hydro-environmental and socio-economic
framework; and establishment of a viable planning, co-ordination and enforcement structure. It
would be advantageous, however, to develop early in the action plan process more detailed
guidelines that help identify priorities in the gathering of data and the types of scenarios that
truly identify the tradeoffs faced by the riparian countries in deciding on an action plan. Such
guidelines must be derived from an overall list of key issues that constitute the heart of river
basin planning: key water uses and their marginal values from a total value viewpoint; tradeoffs
between upstream uses and downstream uses; tradeoffs between environmental protection and
traditional economic activities; equity considerations among the riparian countries, including
plans for compensation of parties that lose in the interests of the overall system.
The strategic approach noted on p. 8 of the present version consists of three main processes, key
components in the development of the SAP: (1) comprehensive consultation and
communication; (2) enhanced hydro-environmental and socio-economic knowledge base; and
(3) progressive natural resource POLICY FORMULATION, CROSS-SECTORAL INTEGRATION
AND COORDINATED PROGRAMMING. This title for the third component correctly describes
what the intended activities are to be. Elsewhere in the Brief, this set of activities is called
"natural resource management in the ORB" (e.g. on p. 10, p. 16, annex tables) which is
misleading. Readability would be improved by using the title given as (3) just above.
4. Objectives.
The objectives are clearly and correctly stated: a protected river basin and wetland system (p. 8);
socio-economic gains related to the healthy ecosystem; and integrated resource use policies
carried out through adaptive management institutions.
5.
Background and Justification.
These are sufficiently provided in the introductory sections of the document.
6. Activities.
(ref. Project Components and Expected Results, p. 13 ff) Output B3 needs greater detail and
emphasis, as well as being scheduled earlier in the project exercise (this was noted earlier). At
present, a clear strategy for guiding the major component activities, especially outputs
2
B1 and B2, is lacking.
7.
Project Funding.
Proposed levels of funding are said to be based on experience in carrying out the TDA. More
detailed costing would be helpful, especially for the larger items and, particularly, the funds
requested for "an enhanced OKCOM" (p.23).
8. Time
Frame.
The time frame seems reasonable.
9.
Rationale for GEF Support.
The project appears to be totally congruent with the intent and policies of the GEF insofar as this
reviewer understands them. The GEF can make a very important contribution to global
conservation and to the evolution of new policies that make the tradeoffs between
environmental protection and economic-demographic development as efficient as possible.
10.
Added Comments.
a)
the project milestones (p. 12) need to be sharpened and made more detailed.
b)
the phasing of the outputs should be changed (as noted earlier)to provide clearer
guidelines for the execution of the data gathering phases.
c)
the question of the separation of policy making and "execution" (p. 20) should be given
further consideration. It is not clear that this is really intended (see functions of
OKCOM), nor is it clear that this should be done, given the limitations on personnel and
decision capacity.
Annex IV: Map of Okavango River Basin
Annex V: Figures
Figure 1: Strategic Approach to Project Design
Project Site
Okavango River Basin
Global Significance
Okavango River Basin
Threatened?
Basin integrity
Causes of Threat
Water abstraction and unsustainable use of natural resources resulting in land degradation
and threatening water quantity, quality and sediment loads
Intermediate
Proximate
Ultimate
No alternative sources of water , land and associated
Demand for water, land
Socio-economic trends
natural resources
and natural resources
Baseline Scenario Defined
Baseline Action 1
Baseline Action 2
National Environmental Assessments
National Development Plans
Alternative Strategy to Eliminate Threat
A Programme of Joint Management
Action 1
Action 2
Action 3
Mechanisms for Joint Management
Hydro-environmental, and
SAP Formulation
of the ORB
Socio-economic Analysis at Basin Scale
Figure 2. Project Implementation Arrangements
Project Steering Committee
OKACOM and GEF IAs
Project Management Committee (OBSC led)
PROJECT MANAGEMENT UNIT
Consultative Process
SAP Design and Implementation
SAP Programme Manager
Regional activities
Administrative Support
Coordination with
Regional NGOs
3 National Programme
Co-ordinators
Regional Consultant
Services and Support
GEF
FUNDING
NATIONAL CO-ORDINATION UNITS (x3)
Coordination with Line
Ministries
National Programme Co-ordinator
National activities
Administrative Support
Co-ordination with
National NGOs
National OBSC representation
National Consultant
Services
1
Annex VI: Root Cause: Table of Contents & Summary of Draft Transboundary Diagnostic
Analysis
Table of Contents
SECTION A
1. INTRODUCTION
2. AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION AND DATA
3. STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION AND PARTICIPATION
3.1 Introduction/General
3.2 Namibia and Botswana
3.2.1 The Stakeholders
3.2.2 Work carried Out
3.2.3 Feedback
3.3 Angola
3.2.1 General
4. DESCRIPTION AND HISTORY OF THE AREA
4.1 History
4.2 Geology, Soils, Topography, Geomorphology and Vegetation
4.2.1 Introduction
4.2.2 Data Available
4.2.2.1 General
4.2.2.2 Catchment Topography, Topographic Maps aerial photography, satellite Imagery
4.2.2.3 Catchment Geomorphology Soils (data availability)
4.2.2.4 Vegetation
4.2.3 Overview/Analysis
4.2.3.1 Catchment Topography
4.2.3.2 Catchment Geomorphology Soils Geological Setting
4.2.3.3 Catchment Vegetation
4.3 Climate
4.3.1 Introduction
4.3.2 Data available
4.3.2.1 Rainfall
4.3.2.2 Temperature
4.3.2.3 Other Climatic parameters
4.3.3 Overview
4.3.3.1 General
4.3.3.2 Precipitation
4.3.3.3 Temperature
4.2.3.4 Evaporation
4.4 Human Links with the Basin
4.4.1 Introduction
4.4.2 Data Available
4.4.3 Previous Studies and Research
4.4.4 Overview
5. HYDROLOGY, HYDRAULICS AND HYDROGEOLOGY OF THE OKAVANGO RIVER BASIN
5.1 Introduction
5.2 River Morphology
5.2.1 Data Available
5.2.2 Overview/Analysis
5.3 Water levels and Runoff
2
5.3.1Introduction
5.3.2 Data Availability
5.3.2.1 Gauging Network
5.3.2.2 Completeness and Quality of Data
5.3.3 Overview/Analysis
5.3.3.1 General
5.3.3.2 Cubango River and Tributaries (take down through Angola and include Rundu)
5.3.3.3 Cuito River and Tributaries
5.3.3.4 Okavango River
5.3.3.5 Inflow: Okavango at Mohembo
5.3.3.6 Outflow Rivers
5.3.3.7 Conclusions
5.4 Erosion, Sediment Loads and Sedimentation
5.5 Groundwater
6. WATER QUALITY AND CHEMISTRY OF THE OKAVANGO RIVER SYSTEM
6.1 Introduction
6.2 System variables
6.3 Non-toxic Inorganics
6.4 Mass Balance, Salinity and Carbonate Formation
6.5 Groundwater Salinity
6.6 Toxic Constituents
6.7 Nutrients
6.8 Plankton, Bacteria, and Dissolved Organic Carbon
6.9 Water-borne Diseases; Health Hazards
6.9.1 Introduction
6.9.2 Data available and review of previous and present studies
6.9.3 Analysis
7. THE OKAVANGO RIVER ECOSYSTEM
7.1 Introduction
7.2 General Approach/Main Ecosystem Sub-divisions
7.3 Primary Producers
7.3.1 Introduction/General
7.3.2 Data Available/Previous work
7.3.3 Analysis
7.3.3.1 (Major) Components of the System
a)
Basin Within Angola
b)
Basin Within Namibia
c)
Basin Within Botswana
7.3.3.2 Determinants
7.3.3.3 Plants Species and Communities of Conservation Importance
7.3.3.4 Invasive Alien Flora
7.3.3.5 Use of Plant Resources
7.4 Secondary Producers
7.4.1 Introduction/General
7.4.2 Data Available/Assessment
7.4.3 Analysis
7.4.3.1 Amphibians
7.4.3.2 Reptiles
7.4.3.3 Fish
7.4.3.4 Birds
7.4.3.5 Mammals
7.4.3.6 Invertebrates
3
7.5 Fauna and their Habitats
7.5.1 Introduction
7.5.2 Mammals
7.5.3 Fish and Fisheries
7.5.4 Birds
7.5.5 Reptiles
7.5.6 Amphibians
7.5.7 Invertebrates
7.6 Environmental Water Demand
7.6.1 Data Available/Work done
7.6.2 Analysis (Flora and Fauna combined)
7.7 Functioning of the Ecosystem
7.8 Ecosystem/Flood Regime Interaction
7.9 Influence of Man
8. MAN AND THE OKAVANGO RIVER BASIN
8.1 Introduction
8.2 The People and Their Socio-economic Stucture
8.3 Asset Ownership and Legislation
8.4 Water Demand, Supply and Resource Development (take this section from Rui marques)
8.4.1 Current Situation
8.4.2 Potential Development
8.5 Land Use
8.5.1 Data Assessment and Availability
8.5.2 Overview
8.5.2.1 General
8.5.2.2 Protected Areas, Wildlife Management and Controlled Hunting Areas
8.5.2.3 Agriculture
8.5.2.4 Tourism
8.5.2.5 Mining
8.5.2.6 Fisheries
8.5.2.7 Urban and Industrial
8.5.2.8 Other
8.6 Natural Resource Economics
8.6.1 Data Assessment and Availability
8.6.2 Overview
8.6.2.1 Natural Vegetation
8.6.2.2 Fisheries
8.6.2.3 Arable Agriculture
8.6.2.4 Livestock
8.6.2.5 Wildlife and Landscape
8.6.2.7 Transport
SECTION B
1. INTRODUCTION
2. APPROACH
2.1 Stakeholder Consultation and Participation
2.1.1 The Need for Consultation and Participation
2.1.2 Work Required
2.1.2.1 Introduction
2.1.2.2 Start Up Phase
4
2.1.2.3 During the Environmental Assessment & Integrated Management Planning
Process
3. GENERAL CATCHMENT INFORMATION
3.1 Climate
3.1.1 General
3.1.2 Information Gaps
3.1.3 Work Required
3.1.3.1 Investigations and Data Collection
3.1.3.2 Research and Analysis
3.2 Physical Catchment Description
3.2.1 General
3.2.2 Applications of Satellite Imagery
3.2.2.1 Introduction
3.2.2.2 Applications of Remote Sensing for the Environmental Assessment
3.2.2.3 Role of a GIS in the Environmental Assessment Phase
3.2.2.4 Effective Remote Sensing to GIS Links
3.2.2.5 GIS and IP Systems currently in operation in Botswana and Namibia
3.2.3 Information Gaps
3.2.3.1 Catchment Topography
3.2.3.2 Catchment Geology, geomorphology and Soils
3.2.4 Work required
3.2.4.1 Satellite Imagery and GIS
3.2.4.2 Catchment Topography
3.2.4.3 Soils Studies
4. HYDROLOGY, HYDRAULICS AND HYDROGEOLOGY OF THE OKAVANGO RIVER
4.1 Hydrology
4.1.1 General
4.1.2 Information Gaps
4.1.3 Work required
4.1.3.1 Hydrometric Network
4.1.3.2 River Modelling
4.2 River Morphology, Hydraulics, Erosion, Sediment Loads and Sedimentation
4.2.1 Data Collection and Work Required
4.3 Groundwater
4.3.1 General
4.3.2 Information Gaps and Work Required
5. WATER QUALITY OF THE OKAVANGO RIVER
5.1 Ambient Characteristics, Dissolved Solids, Salinity, Fertilisers
5.1.1 General
5.1.2 Information Gaps and Work required
5.1.2.1 Introduction/general
5.1.2.2 Uncertainties in Chemical Processes
5.1.2.3 Methodologies and Analytical Procedures
5.1.2.4 Monitoring Chemical Constituents and Baseline Determinants
5.1.2.5 Area Selection Criteria
5.1.2.6 Work programme
5.2 Water-borne diseases/health Hazards
5.2.1 General
5.2.2 Information Gaps
5.2.3 Work required
5.2.3.1 Investigations, Data Collection and Research
5.2.3.2 Research and Analysis
5
6. THE OKAVANGO RIVER ECOSYSTEM(s)
6.1 Primary Production
6.1.1 Information Gaps and Work Required
6.1.1.1 General
6.1.1.2 Taxonomy
6.1.1.3 Mapping
6.1.1.4 Ecosystem Functioning and Plant Environmental Requirements
6.1.1.5 Monitoring Issues
6.1.1.6 Resources and Management
6.2 Secondary Production
6.2.1 General
6.2.2 Information Gaps
6.2.2.1 Mammals
6.2.2.2 Fish and Fisheries
6.2.2.3 Birds
6.2.2.4 Reptiles
6.2.2.5 Amphibians
6.2.2.6 Terrestrial Invertebrates
6.2.2.7 Aquatic Invertebrates
6.2.3 Further Studies Required
6.2.3.1 Mammals
6.2.3.2 Fish and Fisheries
6.2.3.3 Birds
6.2.3.4 Reptiles
6.2.3.5 Amphibians
6.2.3.6 Terrestrial Invertebrates
6.2.3.7 Aquatic Invertebrates
6.3 Functioning of the Ecosystem
6.4 Influence of Man
7. MAN AND THE OKAVANGO RIVER BASIN
7.1
Introduction
7.2
The People and their Socio-economic Structure
7.4.1 General
7.4.2 Demographic Data
7.4.3 Economic Activities
7.4.4 Social and Economic Stratification
7.4.5 Natural Resource Use
7.4.6 Maps and GIS Data
7.3 Asset Ownership and Legislation
7.4 Natural Resources Utilisation, and Natural Resource Economics
7.4.1 Water
7.4.1.1 Unit Water Demand and Projections of Water Demand
7.4.1.2 Water Supply Balances
7.4.1.3 Role of the Okavango River as a source for Water Supply
7.4.1.4 Okavango River Consumer Register
7.4.1.5 Legislation and regulation
7.4.1.6 Management Information Systems
7.4.2 Other Natural Resources
7.4.2.1 Protected Areas and Tourism
7.4.2.2 WMAs and associated CHAs
7.4.2.3 Urban Areas
7.4.2.4 Land Use
6
SUMMARY
Introduction
One of the aims of the PDF work has been to prepare a Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis
(TDA) of the Okavango upon which to develop a Strategic Action Programme (SAP). The TDA
has been based on the inputs of some 20 specialists drawn from the three riparian countries
who were responsible for individual reports on the status of the ORB. The TDA was divided in
to two sections. Section A describes the data available and an overview of the subject and
Section B highlights data deficiencies and outlines work that will be required to develop a SAP.
The summary, combines the two sections.
Availability of Information
A total of twenty national consultants were commissioned within the three riparian states to
compile specialist reports covering a wide range of relevant topics. In general, the approach was
to commission reports to cover areas and topics not covered in other studies and to try by these
means to acquire a good overall summary of existing knowledge within the basin. For some of
the topics covered this was easier than others, and the usefulness of the reports received varied
considerably. The work of the consultants in Angola was particularly difficult for a number of
reasons. These include difficult communications, no possibility of visiting the catchment,
difficulty in obtaining data from government offices, and a generally extreme lack of any up-to-
date information on almost all the fields of study. The need for a concentration of efforts within
the Angolan part of the catchment during the SAP preparation is clear.
Stakeholder Consultation and Participation
A key goal of the PDF work was to establish co-ordination and consultation mechanisms that
is to establish channels of communication for the further effective co-ordination, consultation
and co-operation between basin stakeholders. This will facilitate stakeholder participation in the
implementation of the SAP. Stakeholders were broadly defined as those parties which have a
perceived interest in what happens in and to the Okavango River Basin as well as those who
would be affected directly or indirectly by developments. While this goal was largely achieved
in Botswana and Namibia, progress within Angola was limited by operational difficulties, and it
is clear that the consultative process will still have to be properly initiated there.
The scope of the communication and consultation component during the PDF work and during
its SAP preparation and implementation should not be underestimated, particularly when
involving communities and interest groups. This process necessarily drives the design of the
alternative course of action and the achievement of global environmental objectives. In this
regard it is considered important that education is incorporated into communication. Attitudes
and practices can be changed through education and it is through this that an integrated basin
management plan can best and most successfully be implemented.
The work that needs to be carried out with respect to Stakeholder Consultation and
Participation falls into three main categories,
7
1. A high intensity effort during the first 3 to 6 months of the project to initiate the process in
Angola and further extend it in Namibia and Botswana during which time the main points
arising can be incorporated into the outline Strategic Action Plan.
2. A continuing effort in which the main aim will be to maximise interest and input from all
stakeholders.
3. Presentation and discussion of a final SAP
Categories 1 and 2 will include a programme to establish comprehensive understanding of the
ORB in school curricula in the region. A certain number of bursaries could also be made
available to the most able of the school leavers to enable them to study further. It is also
proposed that a small number of suitably qualified graduates, preferably from the region, could
be employed alongside the school leavers in order to strengthen capabilities in catchment
management and conservation. Previous experience has shown that this type of project can
often attract funding for PhD and post-graduate studies, and this sort of support should
encouraged, but not at the expense of the education of the grass root stakeholders.
General Catchment Information: the mapping base
Topographic mapping at various scales is, in principle, available for the entire catchment. The
scales used vary from country to country, although all three countries have mapping available at
both 1:250 000 and 1:500 000. Namibia has up-to-date 1 : 50 000 mapping for its Okavango
Region, but otherwise mapping is at least 15 30 years old.
High resolution digital satellite imagery (Thematic Mapper) covering all of the catchment in
Angola, and active parts within Botswana and Namibia for July/August 1993 were purchased,
processed and printed as part of the TDA activities. Once sufficient ground observation has been
carried out, these will represent the best available general mapping for the catchment in Angola.
Slightly lower resolution imagery (Landsat) covering the catchment in Angola for August 1973
were also purchased and processed and these will be used to assess changes in the catchment
over the last twenty years.
The suggested methodology for the production of useful; mapping will be to scan and digitise
the existing 1 : 100 000 (or 1:50 000) mapping where this is not already available. The
information on these maps should be limited to infrastructure (roads, towns etc) and contours.
The 1993 TM Landsat imagery (or more recent) should be used as a backdrop for these maps
and will allow the up-dating of infrastructure, such as the position of roads, settlements ,
agricultural developments, land-use changes.
For both environmental assessment and river basin management purposes, the production of a
regional standardised soils database is imperative. The Soil and Terrain Database for Southern
Africa (to be released by FAO) contains a preliminary correlation of Angolan soils to the FAO
Revised Legend in addition to a full dataset of Botswana soils.
The initial scope of work to be undertaken in the environmental assessment phase should focus
on the development of a regional soils database in which information is based upon the FAO
Revised Legend and from which thematic maps may be derived at a scale of 1:250,000. This
8
scale is consistent with the general scale to be utilised for the base satellite mapping. It is also a
convenient scale for the production of hard copies of complete satellite image scenes.
The Physical Background: Climate, Hydrology, Hydraulics and Hydrogeology of the ORB
Mean annual precipitation decreases from around 1350mm over the headwaters of the Cubango
River down to around 450mm at Maun. Up to 20 rain gauges once operated within the
catchment area in Angola, but no data are available since 1975. In the Namibian portion of the
catchment relatively long rainfall records are available for 11 stations along the riverside. There
are 7 established raingauge stations located in the Delta area, generally around its peripheries,
and an expansion programme is currently underway. There are virtually no rainfall intensity
data. The need to collect supplementary rainfall and other climate data is fundamental,
especially within Angola to complete the TDA. It is anticipated that low cost telemetrically-
linked data collection platforms with a range of climatic sensors will be used to ensure precision
The Cubango River rises in the Bié plateau, Angola's hydrographic centre, the Cuito River
further to the east. In Angolan territory, the basin covers an area of 148 860 Sq. Km, of which 60
860 belongs to the basin of the Cuito River. On reaching the border with Namibia the Cuito
River makes its confluence with the Cubango (Okavango) River and then turns more
southwards, crosses the Namibian Caprivi Strip and enters Botswana. Seventy kilometres
further downstream the mainstream starts to divide and the Okavango Delta is formed. Flow of
the Okavango and Cuito Rivers just upstream of their confluence is estimated at 5391 Mm³/a
and 4350 Mm³ respectively. At Mohemebo at the top of the panhandle the mean annual runoff is
approximately 9900 Mm³/a. Flows in the Okavango River even close to the confluence show
great variability with a minimum flow of a little as 13m³/s , but a maximum of as high as
909m³/s. By contrast the flow of the Cuito River just upstream of the confluence rarely drops
below 90m³/s, but only rises to around 550m³/s on very rare occasions.
No river flow data have been collected upstream of Rundu in Namibia since 1975. The longest
record for any station in Angola is only 12 years and many are much shorter. Thus while
relatively reliable records of more than 50 years exist for the downstream reaches of the river,
information on the main runoff-generating portions of the catchment is patchy, of questionable
accuracy and representing a very limited time period. A priority task will be to set up a new
gauging network in the Angolan portion of the catchment. In many cases it will be necessary to
select new sites.
While the hydrogeology of the Okavango region within Namibia and Botswana has been
investigated on an ad-hoc basis only. Monitoring of both levels and quality is an important issue
especially around the Delta. Groundwater quality is generally good although there are isolated
areas downstream of the Delta where TDS values can be as high as 2000mg/l. There are no
recent data available for the catchment within Angola and this is an area which will require
investigation during the project to develop the SAP
9
Water Quality and Chemistry
Detailed studies on water quality in the Angolan and Namibian portions of the catchment are
lacking. A 1984 survey measured a range of chemical parameters at 35 mainstream and 10
backwater sites along the river in Namibian territory. Other water quality data are available
from The Division of Water Environment within DWA Namibia. The water quality of the water
in the Okavango rivers measured in the section shared by Namibia and Botswana is relatively
good, and this is likely to be the case for the upstream tributaries. The water is typically soft,
with very low conductivity. Chemical and nutrient concentrations are low. The pH of the
Okavango surface water varies between 5.9 to 7.6. The temperature of Okavango water entering
the panhandle varies seasonally and ranges from 18°C in July to 29°C in January. Temperatures
are generally found to be 3 to 4 degrees higher at the distal end of the Delta, ranging from 22°C
in July to 32°C in January.
Dissolved Oxygen content throughout the flowing waters of the Okavango is generally high and
near saturation conditions. Predicting the mass of TDS added to the overall system by rainfall is
limited by seasonal variability in volume, distribution, infiltration and runoff. However,
rainwater TDS mass is around 3% of floodwater mass derived from the Angolan mountains, so a
crude estimate would be in the range of 8 000 to 10 000 tonnes of TDS and therefore could have a
significant input on water chemistry/quality. Little to no work has been done on rainwater
chemistry. Approximately 96% of the water entering the Okavango Delta is lost through
evapotranspiration. Two percent leaves via groundwater paths and two percent leaves via
surface flow.
The mass of TDS of inflow water to the Delta is approximately 400 000 tonnes. The outflow is
only 30 000 tonnes, but the occurrence of saline surface water is rare.
Inorganic and organic toxic constituents of water in the Okavango Delta are present in low
values and represent mostly natural background accumulations. It is important, however, to
establish a baseline of present concentrations, should the concentrations change through later
development.
No recent information exists on the ambient water quality of the Cubango and Cuito Rivers and
their tributaries within Angola, and this should be collected as soon as possible. It is important
to collect data up and downstream of major settlements such as Menongue and other large
settlements and to monitor this regularly .
The Okavango River Ecosystem
Almost no work has been done in the Angolan portion of the catchment. By contrast, aspects of
flora, fauna and ecosystems have been studied in some detail in Namibia and especially
Botswana. Despite this, a number of fundamental issues requiring detailed study have been
identified in Namibia and Botswana.
With respect to the catchment in Namibia, very little original research (with the exception of fish
studies) has been done in recent years The lack of comprehensive baselines, long-term data
10
series and monitoring programmes in Namibia, which are relevant to developing an
understanding of the biology and ecosystem functioning, is a major problem in clarifying the
potential impacts of the broad scale changes that have occurred as a result of human
interventions over the past 20 years.
No studies have been carried out in the Namibian sector of the river which detail the
determinants and processes involved in defining the principal riverine and associated
vegetation units The importance of plants in the hydrological and biological cycles of the river
has not been studied in any detail. This work is clearly fundamental to a good understanding of
the functioning of the ecosystem.
While the use of satellite imagery will be an extremely important component in vegetation and
land-use studies, the need for sufficient fieldwork can not be over-emphasised.
Ultimately the aim of this part of the work will be to achieve an understanding of the linkages
between climate, runoff, physical determinants, primary and secondary producers. In this
particular study, which must not be seen as merely an inventory exercise of flora and fauna, it is
particularly important to understand how the ecosystems are functioning and how they are
affected by natural or man-made changes to flora and fauna and water management regimes.
Evidence from research in the Delta has already established the sensitive links between
hydrochemistry, sediment, flora and channel hydraulics. Understanding of the same
hydrogeomorphological links needs to be extended upstream to assess the vulnerability of the
Angolan sub-basins.
Man and the Okavango River Basin
The population density of the Okavango river Basin in general is low, although the river-side
environment is, in places quite heavily settled. Demographic information for Namibia and
Botswana, although several years out of date is quite accurate. Large settlements within the
catchment are limited in number. With a population of around 100, 000, Menongue is by far the
biggest town in the Angolan portion of the basin.
Water demand is currently low due to the absence of industry and major irrigation schemes.
There are currently no large-scale water transfer schemes taking water out of the system
although such a scheme is part of Namibia's short to medium-term planning. Domestic demand
in Angola is particularly low due to a lack of water distribution infrastructure This can be
expected to increase dramatically as peace leads to an increase in the standard of living and
pressures for development, irrigated agriculture in particular.
Population pressures in Botswana and especially Namibia have led to significant degradation of
the riverside environment. The poor condition of the Namibian flood plains and their immediate
proximity, which has developed over the last two decades, is in sharp contrast with the Angolan
side of the river. This is clearly visible from a comparison of 1973 and 1993 satellite imagery. By
contrast a comparison of the imagery covering the catchment within Angola indicates that there
has been little significant degradation. Indeed, for some areas the catchment looks less impacted
ion 1993 than it did in 1973. For the few urban areas, monitoring of water use and effluent
production will be necessary. Population and industrial growth both result in increased
11
demand for water supply of a given quality and both result in the production of water of lower
quality.
Man's activities are concentrated around agriculture, fisheries and tourism. Within the
agriculture sector the emphasis is on cattle-farming although cereals are grown extensively at a
subsistence level. Livestock levels in Angola have been reduced to nearly zero. There are a
handful of medium-sized irrigation schemes in Namibia and also on the panhandle in
Botswana.
An inventory of land-use will be a useful point of departure, although some care will have to be
taken with respect to the catchment in Angola to look at likely future scenarios representing a
situation of normality. Within all three countries no survey on the extent of subsistence and
commercial use of and dependency on key natural resources has been done. No quantitative
data exist on rates of extraction for any plant species. This is an issue of major concern because
of the large increase in commercial off-takes of reeds and thatching grass for sale in main centres
such as Maun. Within Angola, it will once again be important to look at historical and potential
use of natural resources. It will be necessary to complete the existing picture of asset ownership
and to consider carefully how existing ownership within the catchment will fit in with
integrated management of the basin, since no management plan can function if it does not fit
with existing ownership and management patterns.
12
Annex VII: National Expert Group and Specialist Report Titles
REGIONAL EXPERT
TITLE OF REPORT
E. Bereslawski
Geohydrology, Geology and Soils of the Cubango River
Basin ; Angolan Sector
A. Grion
Demographics and Socio-economics ; Angolan Sector
F.A. Leite
Flora/Fauna ; Angolan Sector
H. dos Santos
Agriculture and Land Use Studies ; Angolan Sector
R. Marques
Climate, Hydrology and Water Resources ; Angolan Sector
I. dos Santos
Communication and Consultation ; Angolan Sector
D. Alheit
A Photographic Reconnaissance Survey of the Cubango
and Cuito River Basins in Angola
L. Cassidy
The Human Environment ; Botswanan Sector
A. Sefe
Climate and Water Resources ; Botswanan Sector
A. Cashman
Communication and Stakeholder Consultation ; Botswana
and Namibia
F. Becker
Water Demand, Supply and Resource Development;
Namibia and Botswana
R. Harris
The Application of Remote Sensing and GIS Technology
S. Simmonds
Soil Studies ; Namibia and Botswana
B. Curtis
Aquatic Invertebrates (Namibian Sector) and Water-borne
Diseases of the Okavango River Basin
C. Hines
The Biophysical and Human Environment ; Namibian
Sector
M. Murray-Hudson/D. Parry
Biophysical Environment ; Botswanan Sector
M. Murray
Fauna of the Okavango River ; Botswana
P. Warmeant
A Review of Water Chemistry and Water Quality in the
Okavango Delta
1
Annex VIII: Public Involvement Plan Summary
Introduction
A key goal of the Preparatory Assessment Study was to Establish Co-ordination and
Consultation Mechanisms that is to establish channels of communication for the further
effective co-ordination, consultation and co-operation between stakeholders. This will facilitate
stakeholder participation in the Environmental Assessment and towards the development of a
Strategic Action Plan.
One of the first tasks was the identification of stakeholders. Stakeholders were broadly defined
as those parties which have a perceived interest in what happens in and to the Okavango River
Basin as well as those who would be affected directly or indirectly by developments.
Stakeholders were identified either through knowledge and experience of the region or through
consultation with various parties.
While this goal was largely achieved in Botswana and Namibia, progress within Angola was
limited, and it is clear that the consultative process will still have to be properly initiated within
Angola.
THE NEED FOR PUBLIC CONSULTATION AND PARTICIPATION
During the public meetings with traditional and regional leaders and communities held during
the Preparatory Assessment the desire to be kept informed was strongly expressed. This is the
clearest possible expression of interest in being involved from the grass roots level and
communities will be involved in refining the outline SAP through consultative public meetings,
reviews and seminars. In this regard, special emphasis must be given to activities in Angola.
This process is at the core of the design of the alternative course of action and the achievement of
global environmental objectives.
The scope of the communication and consultation component during preparation of the
Strategic Action Plan and during its implementation should not be underestimated, especially
when it comes to involving communities and interest groups. These are key players in the
process and much of the success of the exercise will depend on them as much as on the efforts of
government and specialists. In this regard it is considered important that education is
incorporated into communication. Attitudes and practices can be changed through education
and it is through this that an integrated basin management plan can best and most successfully
be implemented.
Consultation will include the involvement of interested and affected parties from the
development of the terms of reference of individual study modules, through the selection of
specialists, the management and the review of their work.
Workshops and interviews of key informants will have to be the principal means of
communication. A balance between involving the general public and those who represent
2
particular interest groups will need to be struck. Overall this the process of consultation and
communication must be seen as being constructive and transparent by all parties involved. The
effort required to achieve this should not be underestimated and it is likely to generate a
considerable amount of work.
WORK REQUIRED
The work that needs to be carried out with respect to Stakeholder Consultation and
Participation falls into three components.
1. A high intensity effort during the first 3 to 6 months of the project to initiate the process in
Angola and further extend it in Namibia and Botswana during which time the main points
arising can be incorporated into the outline Strategic Action Plan.
2. A continuing effort in which the main aim will be to maximise interest and input from all
stakeholders.
3. Presentation and discussion of a final SAP
Component 1
The main activities will comprise:
· Drawing up of publicity material and dissemination to all stakeholders, both locally,
regionally and internationally
· Workshops/meetings with :
i) Government
ii) Local government and Community leaders, including teaching community
iii) Public meetings
iv) Meeting with appropriate NGOs and groups interested in having an input to the
Strategic Action Plan and/or participation in the Environmental Assessment and Integrated
management Plan
v) Meetings with the scientific and technical community to review the TDA, its specialist
inputs and other relevant studies
· Registering of all issues, concerns and ideas. Formulation of a preliminary draft elaborated
Strategic Action Plan will follow from these meetings and workshops.
The final step in the Start-up Phase of the consultation process will be the presentation of the
detailed activities to be undertaken during the three year period, the laying down of
mechanisms for feedback and the definition of targets for the final SAP.
Component 2. During the SAP Formulation
· Regular Meetings with those actively involved in the work. Such meetings will be both
informal and informal and will involve members of the PMU, national specialists, NGOs and
other groups who are playing a part in the implementation of the Strategic Action Plan.
· Bi-annual workshops should be held, open to all the stakeholders in order to keep
everybody informed with the progress of the project.
3
· The existing website on the internet should be continued and expanded, and continually
updated with feedback from the ongoing research and the feedback on the outcomes of the
various meetings and workshops.
Education: The implementation of an education programme will be extremely important. It is
recognised that this is an indispensable tool in the implementation of the project. A programme
providing the necessary background for a good understanding of the Okavango River basin
should be worked into the school curricula in the region. If this can not be done in formal way it
could be achieved in the form of school projects or similar approach. In this way school-leavers
will be a position to participate more effectively in the stewardship of the river basin. The
collection of rainfall and other useful data by volunteers should be promoted and the project
could consider employing a certain number of school leavers from the region who would be
tasked to assist the various specialists in their work especially where data gathering is
concerned. School leavers would have to receive training and this would have to be
incorporated into the brief of the specialists and researchers. They could also assist with
providing feedback to local communities as well as liasing with schools.
A certain number of bursaries could be made available to the most able of the school leavers to
enable them to study further. It is also proposed that a small number of suitably qualified
graduates, preferably from the region, could be employed alongside the school leavers in order
to strengthen the capabilities.
This approach is strongly recommended and should be considered as a priority. Previous
experience has shown that this type of project can often attract funding for PhD and post-
graduate studies, and this sort of support should encouraged, but not at the expense of the
education of the grass root stakeholders.
Component 3. Presentation and discussion of a final SAP
It will be necessary and advisable to present the draft final SAP at a number of Public
workshops. This would best be achieved through a number of steps within a relatively short
period :
i)
Workshop for key members of the technical team.
ii)
Presentation to OBSC
iii)
Public Presentation and Discussion
At this stage it would be possible to finalise the documents for endorsement by OKACOM.
Annexe IX: GEF Operational Focal Point Letters of Endorsement
Annex X:
OKACOM Agreement