Authors: Cebo, Yakob, Fadhili, Rehema, Jonathan, Davies
Nestled between the borders of Malawi and Tanzania lies the Songwe River Basin, a region teeming with ecological richness and cultural vibrancy. Spanning over 4243 km2 and covering seven districts, this basin serves as a lifeline to a population of more than 425,000 people, whose livelihoods are intricately woven with the land they inhabit. However, beneath the surface of this natural beauty lies a host of challenges. The dynamic Songwe River, snaking through the basin, not only delineates the boundary between the two nations but also presents a formidable obstacle to border demarcation. Its unpredictable course brings with it flooding and land displacement, leaving communities along its banks vulnerable to its whims. Increased river flows during the rainy season, coupled with abrupt decreases in flow at other times of the year, pose significant threats to community resilience, livelihoods, and sustainable development efforts. This underscores the urgent need for sustainable water resources management in the basin.
In the face of these challenges, collaborative efforts are essential to navigate the complexities of sustainable basin management. Toward this end, the Joint Songwe River Basin Commission (SONGWECOM) was established by the governments of the Republic of Malawi and the United Republic of Tanzania through a Convention that was ratified in 2017 and came into force in 2018. As a bilateral transboundary river basin organisation, SONGWECOM with financial support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), implemented by the African Development Bank (AfDB), has made efforts to address these challenges such as embarking on the development of the Flood Early Warning System (FEWS) to address the threats of floods in the basin, and undertaking soil and water conservation work in the headwater to reduce soil erosion. However, significant challenges persist, impeding the full realisation of these initiatives. For instance, 1) the functionality of the FEWS remains limited due to infrastructural constraints such as sustainable internet and power fluctuation, 2) limited coordination efforts to incorporate a national forecasting system into the FEWS system, 3) limited hydrometeorological monitoring stations to calibrate and validate the FEWS 4) limited resources has led to wider part of the basin not been covered by soil and water conservation initiative through the GEF project. Therefore, the growing activities in the basin called for a need to create a cohesive plan or roadmap, to jointly prioritise what should come first, and sustain the ongoing activities in the basin.
Figure 2: Yakob & Jonathan on the banks of Songwe River during their visit to one of the river monitoring stations in the lower part of the basin.
In this context, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) in collaboration with SONGWECOM, with financial support from the Shared Water Facility Project and BRIDGE convened a workshop from the 27th to 28th February 2024. The workshop aimed at co-developing a comprehensive roadmap of key activities in the Songwe Basin, identifying tangential activities that can be pursued, and discussing the Songwe Transboundary Multi-Stakeholder Platform. The workshop brought together 30 participants from both countries representing institutions such as the Ministry of Water, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Energy, Ministry of Local Government, Climate Change and Meteorology Services Institutions, Environmental Affairs, National Water Resources Authority, Water and Environmental Sanitation Network, Ministry of Lands, Ministry of Finance, National Irrigation Commission, Basin Water Board, Academic Institutions, Non-government organisation, Civil society, and private sectors. Critical discussions have been made between the stakeholders, the SONGWECOM Secretariate, and the partnerships on how to develop an inclusive transboundary Multi-stakeholder Platform to address the challenges in the Songwe river basin.
As the main outcome, the roadmap of key Songwe activities has been co-developed by the stakeholders and partnerships. Furthermore, 29 tangential activities were identified, and through small groups, the stakeholders discussed the activities and prioritised the activities that had to be pursued in the basin. The activities are mapped according to their deliverables, whether they are new or ongoing activities, the time frame when they are delivered, potential partners, and their proposed budget. Notably, both IUCN and IWMI emerged as key partners in several activities, and they will build on those activities to develop a concept note for resource mobilisation.
In the Songwe River Basin, as in any transboundary basin, the path to sustainability is achieved via collaboration, dialogue, and a shared commitment to sustainable growth. The outcomes of the workshop have paved the way for enhanced collaboration and thus, play an important role in improving conditions in the basin, particularly, through resource mobilisation to sustain the work that has started under the GEF project. Plans are underway to mobilise the resources through regular financial channels such as AfDB and bilateral funding through joint proposal preparation in which IUCN and IWMI play a pivotal role. Through concerted efforts and continued collaboration, the vision of a resilient and thriving Songwe Basin can be realised, ensuring a prosperous future for generations to come.
