Chapter 19
Mainstreaming Climate Change
into Transboundary River Basins:
A SADC Regional Case Study
Motlole Christopher Moseki
Abstract Member States that are signatory to the Revised Protocol on Shared Water
Courses in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) have to collaborate on development, management, use, and conservation of water resources of
the shared river system and to enhance a common and better understanding of the
system. Additionally, international water and sanitation agreements must be robust
and resilient with respect to climate change. This chapter seeks to investigate climate
change considerations in regional water policy formulation and implementation, and
to provide an account of the extent to which climate change has been considered in
transboundary water agreements, SADC regional protocols and frameworks. Recommendations for assessment and subsequent mainstreaming of climate change factors
into regional water policy frameworks, plans, and practice are offered. Case studies
of the Orange-Senqu, Limpopo, and Incomati (Inkomati) River Basins are used to test
the extent to which climate change is considered in transboundary water resources.
The Orange-Senqu River is a water-scarce basin with low rainfall-to-runoff conversion, high aridity, and high climatic variability. Climate models project an increase in
mean annual temperature of over 3 °C in the intermediate future (2046–2065). The
Limpopo Basin is semi-arid, highly variable in climate, and prone to drought, which
is projected to increase in frequency and severity, while rainfall projections are uncertain. The Incomati, a semi-arid basin with an average annual rainfall of 767 mm and
temperature of 17 °C, is projected to become drier in the future. This chapter is based
on climate change research at the Water Research Commission as well as literature
search. The objective of this work is to encourage mainstreaming of climate change
forecasting into water management and planning at the transboundary level. There
is a great need to strengthen institutional capacity for sustainable management of
water under a changing climate and to improve coverage of climate change scenario
projections in southern Africa.
Keywords Transboundary · Mainstreaming · Climate change · Water
M. C. Moseki (B)
Department of Water and Sanitation, Pretoria, South Africa
e-mail: mosekic@dws.gov.za
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
S. Diop et al. (eds.), Climate Change and Water Resources in Africa,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-61225-2_19
433
Mainstreaming Climate Change
into Transboundary River Basins:
A SADC Regional Case Study
Motlole Christopher Moseki
Abstract Member States that are signatory to the Revised Protocol on Shared Water
Courses in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) have to collaborate on development, management, use, and conservation of water resources of
the shared river system and to enhance a common and better understanding of the
system. Additionally, international water and sanitation agreements must be robust
and resilient with respect to climate change. This chapter seeks to investigate climate
change considerations in regional water policy formulation and implementation, and
to provide an account of the extent to which climate change has been considered in
transboundary water agreements, SADC regional protocols and frameworks. Recommendations for assessment and subsequent mainstreaming of climate change factors
into regional water policy frameworks, plans, and practice are offered. Case studies
of the Orange-Senqu, Limpopo, and Incomati (Inkomati) River Basins are used to test
the extent to which climate change is considered in transboundary water resources.
The Orange-Senqu River is a water-scarce basin with low rainfall-to-runoff conversion, high aridity, and high climatic variability. Climate models project an increase in
mean annual temperature of over 3 °C in the intermediate future (2046–2065). The
Limpopo Basin is semi-arid, highly variable in climate, and prone to drought, which
is projected to increase in frequency and severity, while rainfall projections are uncertain. The Incomati, a semi-arid basin with an average annual rainfall of 767 mm and
temperature of 17 °C, is projected to become drier in the future. This chapter is based
on climate change research at the Water Research Commission as well as literature
search. The objective of this work is to encourage mainstreaming of climate change
forecasting into water management and planning at the transboundary level. There
is a great need to strengthen institutional capacity for sustainable management of
water under a changing climate and to improve coverage of climate change scenario
projections in southern Africa.
Keywords Transboundary · Mainstreaming · Climate change · Water
M. C. Moseki (B)
Department of Water and Sanitation, Pretoria, South Africa
e-mail: mosekic@dws.gov.za
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
S. Diop et al. (eds.), Climate Change and Water Resources in Africa,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-61225-2_19
433