1. Water seminar Brussels, July 2010 Lessons on transboundary cooperation A. Liebaert, DG DEV/B/1

2. Transboundary basins - context Water (surface & ground) crosses boundaries Political & physical boundaries at local, national, & regional levels Management of water at the regional level is in itself a public good - Flood & drought protection, water quality management, ecosystem services Sharing benefits from water development vs sharing physical quantities of water –Rationale choice in water scarce regions Cooperation on TB waters can support wider regional integration objectives

3. Africas 63 transboundary river basins account for: - 93% of the resource - 77% of the population - 61% of the surface area Climate variability Colonial legacy - borders & boundaries Regional integration agenda The transboundary water resources challenge in Africa

4. Development - key clusters of tangible benefits 1. Hydropower Storage for hydropower Electricity trade (power markets) 2. Primary production Agriculture Forestry Bioenergy 3. Industry & Urbanization Domestic use Industrial use Navigation Flood & drought protection 4. Environmental services Water quality management Biodiversity & conservation Tourism Fisheries SIWI, CSIR, DPA 2008

5. Water activities – adding value Water information Monitoring & data collection of all raw water flows Classification of water systems Water information to support decision making Water governance Water policy choices to guide water use - Eg cost recovery Planning water use in society -Eg tradoffs Water access rights Institution building - Several levels Water services Multipurpose water development & storage Watershed restoration & management Service provision including: Energy production Primary production Industry & domestic use & treatment Ecosystem services Granit, 2010

6. Lessons from the Nile

7. 10 countries: Burundi, D.R. Congo, Egypt, (Eritrea), Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda 300 m people in the basin (Egypt and Ethiopia largest) 600 m 2025 Poverty: 4 of 10 poorest Climate variability Landscape vulnerability Limited infrastructure Nile Basin geography & challenges

8. Irrigated Agriculture Flood mngmt. Watershed Management Regional Transmission System Local Community Infrastructure Hydromet System Hydropower From Single Output … Growth Pole Investments to Multiple Interests (WB, Fields) Energy for growth Fisheries & aquatic ecosystems

9. From sharing water (quantity) to sharing benefits - incentives for cooperation Environmental: to the river e.g. water quality & biodiversity Direct economic: from the river productive use e.g irrigation Reducing costs: because of river e.g. conflicts Indirect economic: beyond the river regional integration

10. Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) Shared Vision – Shared Goals to achieve sustainable socio-economic development through the equitable utilization of, and benefit from, the common Nile Basin water resources Building Trust Agreeing to work together in a structured way Cooperating through accelerated investments Yet after 10 years, negotiations remain centered around Old Perceptions

11. SVP Applied Training Project (APT) Nile Transboundary Environmental Action Project (NTEAP) Efficient Water Use for Agricultural Production (EWUAP) Confidence Building and Stakeholder Involvement (CBSI) Socio-economic Development and Benefit Sharing (SDBS) Shared Vision Program Coordination Project (SVP-C) Regional Power Trade (RPT) ENTRO Addis NBI SECRETARIAT Entebbe Water Resources Planning and Management (WRPM) NELSAP-CU Kigali

12. Potential for cooperative investment Sufficient water for multi-purpose development in a cooperative framework Hydropower development through the Blue Nile storage will have no lasting adverse downstream impacts provided an agreed filling strategy takes into account downstream needs The planned aspirations for water withdrawal for consumptive use can be met with only minor impacts on reliability There are significant opportunities for water conservation measure in higher rainfall zones (e.g,. In reservoirs, lakes/wetlands and irrigation) Climate change is a significant issue facing the Basin. There is need to develop credible methods to examine possible future impacts.

13. The cost of non-cooperation Risk for negative impacts on human security and human development Unpredictability, less preparedness for floods and drought Mobilising funds for multi-purpose investments and infrastructure is hard without co-operation Risk for increased tension and conflict

14. Lessons from donor cooperation in transboundary basins in Africa

15. Note: One donor per bullet Source: GTZ (2007): Donor activity in transboundary water cooperation in Africa Financial support for river and lake basins Donor Support – ODA to transboundary water

16. Challenges for Implementing Paris Declaration at regional level Donor Coordination across basins is weak Donor coordination around each institution is weak with only a few exceptions (SADC, Nile) Potential for increased coordination through mechanisms such as lead donor arrangements, basket funding, TA-pooling, etc

17. Support to TBW - Issues Improved predictability needed Alignment and closer links between regional and national support programs Lack of investment-ready proposals Capacity development Strengthen institutional framework and planning processes

18. Lessons from EC support to transboundary basins in Africa

19. EC support to TBW Regional programming : no priority for TBW EUWI/Africa-EU Partnership : 5 basins (Niger, Volta, L. Chad, Kagera, Orange) EUWF : direct agreement (NBI, Niger, AWF/Congo), calls for proposals (Niger, Sénégal, ANBO) Infrastructure TF : only one out of … - case of Lake Victoria

20. Lessons TIME … Ownership : no demand channeled through Regional organisations Reinforcement of an institutional architecture (AUC, AMCOW, RECs, RBOs) to prioritise TBW in regional programmes Need for ad-hoc donor driven support – to strengthen RBOs and processes Complementarity of regional – national WRM plans Project preparation – pooling of resources for large scale investment