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High-Level Panel on Water Investments for Africa launched

The International High-Level Panel on Water Investments for Africa was launched in March 2022 at the 9^th World Water Forum in Dakar, Republic of Senegal by the country’s President H.E. Macky Sall. The panel brings together current and former heads of state from Africa and other continents to develop actionable pathways for mobilising at least an additional USD 30 billion annually by 2030 for implementing the Continental Africa Water Investment Programme (AIP) and narrowing the existing water investment gap in Africa.

The International High-Level Panel is convened by the African Ministers’ Council on Water (AMCOW), African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), African Development Bank (AfDB), Global Water Partnership (GWP), and Global Centre on Adaptation (GCA). GWP Southern Africa and the Africa Coordination Unit are hosting a joint secretariat for convenors. The four co-chairs of the Panel are H.E. Macky Sall, President of the Republic of Senegal, H.E. Hage Geingob, President of Namibia, H.E. Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, and H.E. Jakaya Kikwete, Former President of the Republic of Tanzania.

The Panel was inaugurated during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt on 8 November 2022, where the Panel members were announced. During the event, invited Panel members presented their commitments to support the mandate of the Panel and shared their perspectives on opportunities for the global community to contribute to the Panel’s work in mobilising water investments for Africa.

The Panel is supported by an Expert Advisory Group of more than 40 experts across various water-related disciplines.

Improving WASH facilities at border posts  

GWP Southern Africa acted as implementation partner for a project to support the reopening of several ports of entry across the South African Development Community (SADC) region, which had been forced to close or reduce their operations during the COVID-19 pandemic because they did not have adequate water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) facilities to minimise disease spread. 

Ports of entry to countries are critical to enhancing regional cooperation and integration. In response to the closures, the SADC Secretariat launched the COVID-19 WASH Border Post Response Project, supported by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ).   

The project was rolled out in two phases. The first phase installed portable hand-washing facilities – ‘WASH Boxes’ – at two of sub-Saharan Africa’s busiest border posts: the Zimbabwe side of Beitbridge, which is between South Africa and Zimbabwe; and Chirundu, on both the Zambian and Zimbabwean side. In the second phase, the hand washing facilities were installed at two more border posts: the Nakonde/Tunduma border post between Tanzania and Zambia and at the Songwe/Kasumulu border post between Malawi and Tanzania. A total of 11 WASH Boxes were successfully installed and set for commissioning in March 2023.  

Each WASH Box offers eight hand-washing facilities, two of which are designed for people with disabilities. As well as reducing the spread of COVID-19, the facilities will help reduce spread of other communicable diseases such as cholera. 

Hydrometeorological equipment installed to promote flood and drought management 

GWP Southern Africa is the regional executing agency for a USD 6 million project to manage competing water uses and associated ecosystems in the Pungwe, Buzi, and Save River basins. The three basins are exclusively shared between Mozambique and Zimbabwe and are experiencing increasing occurrences of floods and droughts.  

In 2022, the project, which is funded by the Global Environment Facility and implemented by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, began installing hydrometeorological equipment, in the form of flow-measuring sensors, in the three river basins to promote sustainable flood and drought management. Installation work will continue into 2023 and is complemented by hands-on training for technicians on the installation, operation, and maintenance of the equipment to ensure the long-term sustainability of the initiative. 

Being able to monitor droughts and floods, provide accurate forecasts, and issue early warnings to vulnerable communities will improve disaster risk preparedness in the basins and reduce the loss of lives and livelihoods.