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Thursday, July 30, 2026
News and Views from the Global South
The Southern Africa Water Wire
SOUTHERN AFRICA: The Indispensable Role of Mud Flats, Marshes and Swamps
The need for greater urgency in addressing loss of wetlands in the Zambezi River Basin has been highlighted at a recent meeting in northern Zimbabwe.SOUTHERN AFRICA: Co-operation and Investment a Defence Against Floods
To prevent, monitor and manage floods in the Zambezi River Basin - and reduce the number of flood victims - regional governments and parties involved in the water sector urgently need to adopt a more proactive approach, experts said during the third Zambezi Basinwide Stakeholders Forum, held recently in Victoria Falls, northern Zimbabwe.
ENVIRONMENT-SOUTH AFRICA: Radioactive Water, the Price of Gold
Large gold-mining companies operating to the west of South Africa's commercial centre, Johannesburg, stand accused of contaminating a number of water sources with radioactive pollutants.ENVIRONMENT-ZAMBIA: An Unwelcome Guest Has Taken Root
An invasive shrub has colonised a corner of the Lochinvar National Park, upsetting the balance of one of Zambia’s most diverse ecosystems. Mimosa pigra, originally from Mexico, is now threatening wildlife and pastoralists who depend on grazing lands in and around the park.SOUTHERN AFRICA: “Make the Issue of Water Attractive to the Authorities”
To tackle droughts in Southern Africa, one needs to think out of the box instead of pointing fingers at obvious causes such as lack of rainfall, experts said this week during the third Zambezi Basinwide Stakeholders Forum, held in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe.SOUTH AFRICA: A Tale of Ongoing Water and Sanitation Woes
When the number of people reported with diarrhoea began to increase alarmingly in the town of Delmas in Mpumalanga Province towards the end of October, residents had flashbacks to an outbreak of diarrhoea and typhoid that took place in August and September, 2005. They feared the worst as the number of cases grew in the community of about 45,000 people - 60 kilometres east of South Africa's financial centre, Johannesburg.
MOZAMBIQUE: Committees for Water – But Sometimes in Name Only
Impoverished residents in the suburb of Carrupeia in Nampula, Mozambique's third largest city, do not have access to potable water because their water committee has effectively ceased to function.
Q&A: "Wetlands Have Had a Pretty Raw Deal, Historically"
Environmental organisations can work with developers to manage wetlands in urban areas, says John Dini: programme manager at Working for Wetlands, a state organisation that tries to ensure the long term viability of wetlands in South Africa.
DEVELOPMENT-NAMIBIA: Interest in Uranium Powers Desalination Plans
Efforts to build Namibia's first large-scale desalination plant are gaining momentum. The project is a joint undertaking of the Namibian Water Corporation (NamWater), a government owned utility, and mining company UraMin Inc.DEVELOPMENT-SOUTH AFRICA: Power Cuts Lead to Sewage Spills
Sewage plants in South Africa’s northern Gauteng Province poured millions of litres of untreated waste into three rivers between the capital, Pretoria, and the commercial centre of Johannesburg earlier this month. National power utility Eskom cut electricity to the treatment plants, which were then unable to process the waste water before it was released into the rivers.SOUTH AFRICA: Flush Still Considered Flash When it Comes to Toilets
Waterless or composting toilets are being touted as a promising solution to many of South Africa's sanitation woes.DEVELOPMENT-SWAZILAND: Water – "Just a Matter of Delivery"?
The main religious ceremony of the Swazi people is the "Incwala" or ‘Festival of the First Fruits’, held in late December. Dressed in traditional attire, tens of thousands of Swazi men and women dance and chant prayers to their ancestors. They seek good rains that will ensure abundant crops.
ENERGY-SOUTH AFRICA: The Poor Fly Under the Solar Water Heating Radar
Earlier this year, IPS reported that the South African coastal city of Cape Town was debating a "first of a kind" bylaw that would make solar water heating compulsory for relatively costly new buildings, and certain renovations. This got us thinking: what of solar water heating for less expensive structures - especially homes being built under the country's extensive low cost housing programme...Are any initiatives on the drawing board in this regard?HEALTH-SWAZILAND: Septic Tanks Preferred to the Latest in Sewage Treatment
Located on the outskirts of Swaziland's commercial hub, the state of the art Manzini Waste Treatment Centre was built to end the city's sewage disposal problems. A World Bank loan was secured by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development to construct the 16 million dollar facility: a spotless, landscaped plant which has a lifespan of 25 years.
SOUTH AFRICA: High Stakes Battle Between Mining and Environment
Environmentalists and tour operators appear to be losing the battle against mining companies in Mpumalanga, a province in the east of South Africa. This confrontation - which also pits two ministries against each other - will determine the future of hundreds of lakes and rivers, and has implications for the economic sustainability of the province.ZIMBABWE: A Water and Sewerage Crisis That Goes "Straight to the Grave"
A young Zimbabwean couple glances furtively around before settling on a bench in a bare patch of ground that used to be a recreational park in Glen View, a sprawling, high-density suburb of the capital, Harare. It’s a Monday morning, and the two of them are struggling to come to terms with a strange sickness that has gripped their family. Every move they make in the direction of the Glen View One Satellite Clinic shows they are in great pain.
DEVELOPMENT-MALAWI: Lack of Running Water Puts Girls' Education at Risk
Rita Kalikokha of Dowa, a rural district in central Malawi, thinks about abandoning school every time she menstruates.DEVELOPMENT-SOUTH AFRICA: “We Drink Condoms and Panties”
Police arrested ten people who were part of a large group of protesters blocking the N4 highway linking South Africa and Botswana earlier this month. Residents of the tiny village of Ntsweletsoku were so angry about the persistent water shortages in their area that they resorted to violent demonstrations to attract the attention of the authorities.SOUTHERN AFRICA: Plans to Dam the Cunene River Are Shelved Again
Political interests and specialist lobby groups appear once again to have stalled plans to dam the Cunene River where it forms the border between Angola and Namibia. After years of negotiations, several expensive feasibility studies and considerable political rhetoric, the proposed Epupa Dam on the Cunene River is not even close to the beginning of a construction phase.
ENVIRONMENT-ZAMBIA: Efforts to Halt the Strangulation of Kafue
The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), an international conservation organisation, has launched an initiative to protect Zambia's Kafue River from pollution: the 'Save the Kafue River Campaign'. At present, the river provides potable water to over 40 percent of people in the Southern African country.
MOZAMBIQUE: Water Supplies Still a Pipe Dream at Certain Health Facilities
A swelling crowd of people has gathered at the rural health centre at Monte Xiluvo in Nhamatanda district, in the central Mozambican province of Sofala. Most are mothers with young children who try to protect themselves from the gusty winds as they wait for their consultation with Caetano Mendosa, the nurse responsible for the centre.« Previous Page — Next Page »
The Southern Africa Water Wire provides in-depth coverage of a diverse range of water-related issues in Africa, linking water to economic development, social well-being and environmental protection. Local journalists from across the continent explore the challenges, failures and successes of managing this vital resource.
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