Story by John Nhandara
ZIMBABWE is collaborating with other members of the Zambezi Water Course Commission (ZAMCOM), to improve hydropower infrastructure and ensure efficient management of water resources in the Zambezi basin.
A team of 10 riparian states under the Nile Basin Initiative is in Zimbabwe on an experimental tour of the Zambezi Water Commission (ZAMCOM), sharing notes on transboundary water management and water quality management, among other issues.
Zimbabwe is a member of ZAMCOM together with eight other member states, including Zambia, Botswana, Angola, and Namibia.
“There will be a trip to Kariba for a tour witnessing the joint infrastructure between Zimbabwe and Zambia and how they can replicate the same in their countries and also getting an understanding of the Zambezi river basin which covers four catchment areas that is Lupane, Gwayi, Sanyati, Manyame and Mazowe,” said the Acting Director in the department of Water Resources, Development and Utilisation in the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water, and Rural Development, Engineer Tatenda Mawokomatanda.
Zimbabwe’s major interest is in the development of hydropower infrastructure and storage dams to realise maximum benefits from the Zambezi Basin water resource.
“Our region is facing challenges like droughts, disasters, and a deficit of infrastructure. We have a few hydropower infrastructures compared to the potential. We have a few storage dams. Those challenges need a holistic approach to address them in the Zambezi region, so we now have a strategic plan guiding us on investment plans for addressing these challenges,” said ZAMCOM Executive Secretary, Mr Felix Ngamlagosi.
The experimental tour will enable the Nile Basin Initiative and ZAMCOM member states to develop win-win solutions for transboundary water management.
“This experimental tour will enable us to enhance cooperation and cooperation on the management of the resources. It will help us with win-win benefits for all the country,” said the Executive Director of the Nile basin Initiative, Dr Florence Grace Adongo.
The Nile Basin Initiative is an intergovernmental organisation comprising 10 Nile Basin riparian States that include Burundi, Rwanda, Kenya, and Tanzania, to promote sustainable socio-economic development through the equitable utilisation of the shared Nile Basin water resource.
