Wednesday 7 November

The theme for the final day of the conference

was: Adapative Water Governance and its

implementation. Ecosystem Services

Sita Vulto and Jan Saaf introduced the

CarboWet Foundation, whose main

the ecosystem valuation function of certified

carbon trading. The presenters said

providing an economic valuation for wetlands,

the value of these wetlands will increase.

Kevin Zunckel introduced the Drakensberg

Mountain Range, running through KwaZ

Natal and the Eastern Cape, as one of the few

portions in South Africa with a positive water

balance.

It was said that the importance of this area is

emphasized by the existence of reservoir and

water transfer infrastructure that must take

surplus water from this area to areas of deficit.

The benefits associated with the ecosystem

services derived from the Maloti-

Transfrontier Project out-weighs costs.

DAILYBULLETINThe theme for the final day of the conference

Adapative Water Governance and its

Sita Vulto and Jan Saaf introduced the

, whose main interest is

the ecosystem valuation function of certified

said that by

providing an economic valuation for wetlands,

the value of these wetlands will increase.

Kevin Zunckel introduced the Drakensberg

Mountain Range, running through KwaZulu

Natal and the Eastern Cape, as one of the few

portions in South Africa with a positive water

It was said that the importance of this area is

ed by the existence of reservoir and

water transfer infrastructure that must take

r from this area to areas of deficit.

he benefits associated with the ecosystem

Drakensberg

weighs costs.

Suvarna Chandrappagari introduced a number

of initiatives undertaken since 1994 by the

Government of Andhra Prasesh, India aimed at

promoting improved participatory watershed

management in this sub

studies undertaken by the Government of

Andhra Prasesh, India

finalisation of 455 watershed projects

spreading over 1.96 million hectares of

drought prone areas covering some 3

villages.

Bimo Nkhata provided

“property rights” approach to fresh water

governance. Property rights are key drivers of

ecosystem services and

sustainable development and fresh water

governance.

Investing in water security for growth and climate resilience development

DAILY BULLETIN

Suvarna Chandrappagari introduced a number

of initiatives undertaken since 1994 by the

Government of Andhra Prasesh, India aimed at

promoting improved participatory watershed

management in this sub-region of India. The

studies undertaken by the Government of

have resulted in the

455 watershed projects

spreading over 1.96 million hectares of

drought prone areas covering some 3 100

Bimo Nkhata provided an insight into a

approach to fresh water

roperty rights are key drivers of

and are central to

sustainable development and fresh water

Investing in water security for growth and climate resilience

Closing plenary

Chair of the Closing Plenary, CEO of the WRC,

Dhesigen Naidoo highlighted the fact that the

global dialogue on water is generally

unanimous that we are moving into a very

difficult water future on the back of factors

including unprecedented population growth

combined with rapid levels of economic

movement in the developing world in

particular.

Centuries of environmentally insensitive and

water wasteful mining and industrial practices

have come back to haunt us. This combined

with the newer challenges of Global Change

has defined the Water Challenge of the 21st

Century.

Over the past three days of this conference,

we have made an important start to that

global dialogue. We have converged here from

29 countries, across 5 continents to apply our

minds, experiences and insights, and engaged

these issues into five baskets: Legislation,

regulatory environments, human and

environmental rights; Markers and measures

of good governance in the water domain;

Multi-level, multi-sectoral and transboundary

governance and adaptive management; Tools

for implementation, and; The need for new

knowledge and capacity through investments

in research and development to develop and

implement better and sustainable solutions to

challenges.

This has been enormously beneficial, we have

forded a few solution streams and started on a

path of many more, and have organised

ourselves an important continuity, whereby

we will move to the next level in a series of

discipline and area specific domains, including

next year’s International Conference on Water

and Gender, and the International Conference

on Fresh Water Governance 2 in Adelaide,

Australia taking place in 2014.

The session was built on the motivation that

the existing uncertainty on how climate

change will affect water resources. However,

this should not deter investments for water

security. No and low regret investments have

the key characteristics of delivering benefits

under any future climate scenario and building

confidence in the long term sustainability of

development activities. Fast-tracking this

investment allows action to be taken despite

the large uncertainties in the future climate. At

the same time there is need to focus on

developing climate resilient infrastructure at

all levels and this requires innovative and

informed planning. This session aimed at

discussing ways of ensuring that short and

long term investment strategies aimed at

increasing water security and improving

climate resilience are prioritised at different

levels.

More systemic, more adaptive: The way forward for water governance?

The purpose of this session was to highlight

why and how systemic thinking, including

adaptive management and social learning, can

contribute to responsive, adaptive and

resilient governance arrangements at various

interconnected levels. This session was

conducted in a participative way, by

emphasizing group work and carousel stations.

Group work followed with conversational

mapping activities relating to: Systems

approaches in water resources governance.

This activity aimed at drawing on the collective

experience of participants with regard to

systems thinking and its application in water

governance. The session overall produced

some controversial discussion, with the major

challenges for adopting a systems approach

being highlighted.

What should we be taking to the world?

In his closing statement, Hastings Chikiko,

Regional Representative of IUCN in South

Africa said that the overall consensus is that

water governance is about people.

Water management is a traditionally technical

field but water management involves people

and should be driven into development debate

and plans. Water resources are a critical

enabler, or constraint, for most economic

activities and social needs so water

governance is about development and people

– hence it is about equity.

The main messages of this conference, focused

on four main topics: Legislation, regulation,

rights and accountability; The markers of good

governance; Multi-level, multi-sectoral and

transboundary governance and adaptive

management, and; Tools for implementation.

An important quote from the conference’s

opening remarks was: While serving the needs

of big business, the mines, the farmers, our

systems must ensure that Mrs Mkwanazi just

down the road here is able to access water for

productive and domestic purposes, that she

has access to sustainable sanitation services,

that she has access to a road and transport

services to get her produce to market, and

that she can make a living that enables her to

feed and educate her family, and to live with

dignity.

The four conference’s Daily Bulletins have been

compiled by Debbie Besseling of Idube Media and

Hlengiwe Cele of the Water Research Commission.

Contact details: eMail: debbie@idubemedia.co.za and

hlengiwec@wrc.org.za

The African Water Calendar

Dr Mathole Motshekga, founder of Kara

Heritage Institute and Chief Whip of the

Majority Party, Parliament of the Republic of

South Africa presented the keynote address

for the closing plenary entitled the African

Water Calendar. Dr Motshekga highlighted the

fact that in many conferences covering the

topics of water, environment and sustainable

development, the indigenous African cultural

heritage and knowledge systems are left out of

account. The scientific or materialist concepts

used in such conferences and the resulting

literature do not make sense to indigenous

people because they do not cover the spiritual

and material aspects of water and the

environment.

These eurocentric approaches have also

rooted out African spirituality and the worship

of the Water Goddess who was (and still is)

central to water and environmental

conservation and protection. The celebration

of water festivals by Balobedu of Mudjadji the

Rain Queen and other communities in

southern Africa and the rediscovery of the

Maphungubwe heritage site which was the

first rain making shrine in southern Africa,

provides a framework for the revival of the

African Water Calendar and its use as a tool to

raise the awareness of indigenous African

communities whose culture of water and

environmental conservation and protection is

fast diminishing. The Water Goddess, Mohale,

Mwalinkulunkulu or Mwari We Denga was

(and still is) worshipped in southern Africa and

Africa and African religion has also been

recognised as one of the major world religions,

there is a conducive climate for the revival of

the African Water Calendar as a tool for the

African Cultural Renaissance.

Note: The content in this newsletter is compiled from

reports submitted by Rapporteurs timeously.