Routledge
256 pages | 134 Color Illus.
The Zambezi river is the fourth longest in Africa, crossing or bordering Zambia, Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. The river basin is widely recognised as one of the most important basins in southern Africa and is the focus of contested development, including water for hydropower and for agriculture and the environment. This book provides a thorough review of water and sustainable development in the Zambezi, in order to identify critical issues and propose constructive ways forward.
The book first reviews the availability and use of water resources in the basin, outlines the basin’s economic potential and highlights key concerns related to climate vulnerability and risk. Focus is then devoted to hydropower and the water-energy-food (WEF) nexus, sustainable agricultural water management, and threats and opportunities related to provision of ecosystem services. The impact of urbanisation and water quality is also examined, as well as ways to enhance transboundary water cooperation. Last, the book assesses the level of water security in the basin, and provides suggestions for achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6. Throughout, emphasis is placed on entry points for basin-level management to foster improved paths forward.
"There is no analogue to this book to date in how comprehensively the basin’s water resources issues are examined. And for the first time ever, the book explores ways to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 at a basin-level, rather than doing this by individual country. Overall, the book examines a set of very pertinent topics for policy and development in the basin.
This book directly contributes to the attainment of the Africa Water Vision 2025 of 'An Africa where there is an equitable and sustainable use and management of water resources for poverty alleviation, socio-economic development, regional cooperation, and the environment'."
From the Foreword by Dr Canisius Kanangire, African Ministers' Council on Water (AMCOW), Nigeria
Zebediah Phiri, Jonathan Lautze, Vladimir Smakhtin and Davison Saruchera
Xueliang Cai, Yvan Altchenko and Geoffrey Chavula
Amaury Tilmant and Regassa Namara
Richard D. Beilfuss and Charles Nhemachena
Amaury Tilmant
Emmanuel Manzungu, Aidan Senzanje and Justin Mutiro
Matthew McCartney and Imasiku A. Nyambe
Munir A. Hanjra, Pay Drechsel and Hillary M. Masundire
Davison Saruchera, Jonathan Lautze, Juliet Mwale, Claudious Chikozho and Osborne N. Shela
Charlotte de Bruyne, Jonathan Lautze and Jusipbek Kazbekov
Davison Saruchera, Jonathan Lautze, Luxon Nhamo and Bunyod Holmatov
Lisa Guppy, Manzoor Qadir and Jonathan Lautze
Large river basins are dynamic and complex entities. Defined by hydrological boundaries, they are nearly always shared by more than one country. Encompassing a diverse range of landscapes with often huge temporal and spatial variability of resources, they are put to different and often conflicting uses, and managed by a range of institutions and organisations. While an intrinsic part of Nature, many have been extensively engineered and used by people, often with adverse consequences. Each major river basin has its own development trajectory and often fascinating history. Bringing together multidisciplinary teams of experts, this series explores these complex issues, identifies knowledge gaps and examines potential development pathways towards greater sustainability.
