USAID launches 'A Water Secure Future for Southern Africa' Project

The US Agency for International Development/Southern Africa has awarded USD $2 million to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) for the three-year project "A Water Secure Future for Southern Africa: Applying the Ecosystem Approach in the Orange-Senqu Basin." Working with local NGOs based in each of the four basin countries of Lesotho, South Africa, Botswana, and Namibia, the project will support scientific analysis and pilot projects that balance ecosystem requirements with human development needs to ensure efficient and lasting water provisioning services in priority areas in the basin. Awareness-raising and capacity building activities for the Orange-Senqu River Basin Commission (ORASECOM) and other key stakeholders will also be supported to enhance an integrated water management approach. Complementary activities in the Basin will be supported by the European Union and the Global Environment Facility. Sixty-four percent of the one million square kilometer Basin occurs in South Africa (25% Namibia, 8% Botswana, 3% Lesotho), providing critical water for mining and manufacturing industries, agriculture, energy, tourism, residential services, and conservation.