This peaceful resolut ion of a boundary conflict was an important step toward reducing tensions between the two countries and it served as a model for the. Transboundary freshwater resources are prone to international conflict, especially if not managed properly 76. Apart from namibia, the governments of botswana, lesotho, malawi, swaziland and zimbabwe have declared national emergencies due to drought this year, as have eight of nine provinces in south africa. Have rental car papers in order with the company letter of authorisation and yes there is a fee if you have a non namibian registered rental vehicle coming back in. During his visit to namibia this year, masisi said, as a country, they have exhausted all possible options to increase water supply and they are now only left with the option of looking at the ocean. Water has been one of the mostly disputed issues in the region, with specific focus mainly on the relations between namibia and botswana. Namibia wants to divert water from the okavango river, which runs along part of its border with angola, and pump it uphill through a pipeline. The ongoing marathon high treason trial against the more than alleged caprivi secessionists is alone unlikely to bring about a sustainable resolution of the dispute. Namibias etosha national park and the moremi game reserve in botswana are two of the worlds finest game viewing locations. After breakfast the men mooched about taking their time over preparations for the patrol.
From conflict to dialogue the okavango river unites. Water, ecosystem dynamics and human livelihoods in the. Border crossing from namibia to botswana and vice versa is not a major hassle. This is a report on a trip to namibia and northern botswana by richard rae and emer callanan.
Windhoek faces water crisis leave a reply windhoek the poor rainy season has serious water shortage implications for the entire city of windhoek that could face water rationing for the first time in many years. Particularly namibia, botswana and zimbabwe are only sparsely populated and there are only a limited number of accommodations available at touristy places. Its diverse landscapes offer a wide variety of attractions that offer unforgettable memories of africa. The current water shortage could be declared a water crisis early next year if the capacity of the main dams supplying windhoek with water reaches 15 percent and if by that time there is no.
Namibia, botswana and zimbabwe fascinating southern africa. Namibia referred its 10yearold territorial dispute with botswana over kasikili a 3. Namibia has built a water canal, measuring about 300 km long, and has proposed a project to build a 250 km pipeline to divert water from the river into namibia to help relieve the drought. In the dying years of the previous ethiopian government, tensions with egypt increased rapidly when the rulers in addis ababa pondered the construction of dams on the nile. Namibia water crisis escalates africa research online. It rises in the lesotho highlands, where it is known as the senqu river, and then flows 2,300. The kunene transboundary water supply project is a good model of transboundary cooperation in the southern africa development community sadc. Livelihoods at risk as ongoing drought puts excessive strain on the water supply system across the country. Namibia and botswana, africa 1 common birds of namibia. Namibia copes with drought news gondwana collection. The south african border war, also known as the namibian war of independence, and sometimes denoted in south africa as the angolan bush war, was a largely asymmetric conflict that occurred in namibia then south west africa, zambia, and angola from 26 august 1966 to 21 march 1990. The three countries agree on a roadmap to explore the boundary extension of the okavango delta world heritage site to protect the river basin. Transboundary water disagreements between south africa and. The quantity and quality of sightings was overwhelming.
A problem in the future between botswana and namibia will be water. On the other hand, botswana gains economic benefits from tourism and industrial use of okavangos water. There is also another potential water war in southern africa involving botswana, namibia and angola. The utilization of the okavango river basin orb water resources, which falls within the countries of angola, namibia, and botswana, is subject to conflict since the ways in which the resource is. We leave namibia for the western border of the okavango delta in botswana. Both namibia and botswana experience drought, and as a result, concerns have been expressed about possible. Both namibia and botswana experience drought, and as a result, concerns have been expressed about.
Botswana claims o botswana claimed that sedudu island is its own territory unless it could be proven that the main channel passes through the south region of the island, and therefore falls within the sovereignty of namibia. Water knows no border between angola and namibia inter. In december 1999, the icj ruled in favor of botswana, and namibia accepted. The trip was based around the best birding sites, and most time was spent on birding, although some time was also spent doing other activities, which resulted in some species being missed that would probably have been seen on a hardcore birding trip. The orange river is a vast and complex river system located within the southern african development community sadc. Botswana is a landlocked country, in the centre of southern africa, bordered by zimbabwe in the east, south africa in the south and southeast, namibia in the west and north, as well as zambia in the north. It is the fourthlongest river system in southern africa, running southeastward for 1,600 km 990 mi. Watch the wildlife gather in etosha national park, feel the soft sand of the sossusvlei red dunes, or drift through the waters of okavango. Botswana and namibia over sedudu kasikili island in the chobe river, which was decided by the international court of justice on december, 1999 in botswanas favor murphy 1999.
Botswana and namibia had a longrunning dispute about ownership of the kasikili sedudu island in the chobe river, which forms part of the border between the two countries. The morning started as any other, except that two of our men had prominent hangovers. The municipal sector including tourism and industry used 73 million m 3 24 percent, while the bulk of water use is for agriculture and livestock. The basin has a size of 964,000 square kilometers, and is inhabited by 19 million people. Angola, botswana and namibia comanage shared river system of. Rome2rio makes travelling from namibia to botswana easy.
Column god took time to create namibia, with all its contrasting beauty, but i think he forgot to endow it with abundance of water. Poor rainfall and high temperatures have put excessive strain on the bulk water supply system and. Only million m 3 4 percent was used in mining at the time, although this amount has increased due to the development of mining in particular uranium mining after 2000. The temperatures usually range from 23 to 28 degrees celsius. Unlike other deltas, the okavango flows into the kalahari desert without reaching the coast, which makes it unique. Windhoek, jun 7 2012 ips a transboundary initiative aimed at providing clean drinking water and proper sanitation between angola and namibia is making steady progress. It was fought between the south african defence force sadf and the peoples liberation army of namibia plan. Total water use in namibia was estimated at 300 million m 3 in 2000. Botswana and namibia thirst international the economist.
Find all the transport options for your trip from namibia to botswana right here. Namibia to botswana 3 ways to travel via plane, bus, car. Nam keeps bots waiting over desalination project the. The bank of namibia will release a new banknote in commemoration of namibias 30th anniversary in march this year, the central bank director of communication emma haiyambo said last week. The ktwsp will improve the water supply for around 700,000. Mammals after a lifetime of seeing lions, elephants and giraffes in books and on television, the trip finally offered the chance to see them in the wild. In december 1999, judges at the world court ruled that the island belongs to botswana. It begins in angola, where it is known by the portuguese name rio cubango. The okavango river is a potential water source for the development of the semiarid nation states of botswana and namibia.
Namibias national society for human rights nshr has called upon the namibian government to opt for a comprehensive negotiated settlement of the caprivi conflict. Water supply and sanitation coordination dwssc get their water, that is equally transported 24 hours and seven days a week, from the kombat mine and from berg aukas, through the eastern water carrier or canal ewc. Accentuating river border conflicts and water privatization. Mozambique activated a red alert to mobilise resources and speed up the drought response. Botswana and namibia over sedudu kasikili island in the chobe river, which was. The okavango river is a potential water source for the development of the semi arid nation states of botswana and namibia. An annual water availability analysis compiled by namwater together with the city of windhoek and other stakeholders in the central areas of namibia, to guide the institutions on the water supply situation for the next two years requires that water consumption be reduced by 10% in order to ensure water availability for this period. Botswana high commissioner to namibia, tshenolo modise, did not respond to questions sent to her. Both namibia and botswana experience drought and as a result of this, there have been concerns about possible conflict over use of the rivers water. The okavango river formerly spelled okovango or okovanggo is a river in southwest africa.
Windhoek drinking water not contaminated leave a reply an sms doing the rounds, stating that windhoeks drinking water is contaminated, is not true, a. Last month namibia granted its northern neighbour angola the right to use its territory to launch attacks against the last southern strongholds. Namibia and botswana are countries that often experience drought during dry seasons. The river is shared between lesotho, south africa, botswana, and namibia. Windhoek residents might face a deeper water crisis after the municipality complained that its underground water reservoir is in danger of pollution because of mining activities in the vicinity. The okavango river basin in southern africa colorado law. One promising solution, a pipeline to draw water from the okavango river, will affect the. Namibia and botswana, africa common birds of namibia and botswana josh engel 1. Namibia in stalemate with botswana sports namibian sun. Both namibia and botswana are in severe drought and as a result of this there is a large conflict concerning the use of the rivers water. The okavango drainage basin is from a broad perspective a water poor region that straddles three countries. In the caprivi strip, the unhcr reported that between october 1998 and february 1999 more than 2,400 namibians crossed south into botswana. To safeguard their water supply, namibia plans to divert the waters of river okavango into the country to ease the unpleasant effects of drought.
The winner of the namibiabotswana tie will proceed to the second round to face congo in may, with the winner of that encounter advancing to the third and final round of. Crossing the border to botswana namibia message board. Water supplies in namibia have reached a critical level forcing the authorities in windhoek municipality to declare a water crisis on december 3rd. The hydrological services of namibia has warned communities in the northern and northeastern parts of the country to be on high alert for possible flooding as water levels there continue to rise.
Farther south, it forms part of the border between angola and namibia, and then flows into botswana, draining into the moremi. Perhaps in his infinite wisdom, he wanted us to display. The teams played in the first leg of their afcon 2019 qualifier, with the return leg slated for namibia. After independence, namibias government began rolling out expanded water infrastructure, installing boreholes, communal taps and shared animal water troughs in. Namibia botswana this 15 day semiparticipatory camping safari is an excellent introduction to botswana and namibia, including the pristine waterways of the okavango delta, bushmanland, the namib desert and etosha. The effect of the okavango river on angolas economic stability and.
Indeed water is already a catalyst for regional conflict. Rome2rio is a doortodoor travel information and booking engine, helping you get to and from any location in the world. Republic of botswana and the republic of namibia shall enjoy equal national treatment. The okavango delta is a 15,000squarekilometer rich and varied habitat for thousands of mammals, birds, fish and other animals. Causes and possible solutions to water resource conflicts. Botswana held the view that the north and west channels of the. Description the otjivero dam has a main dam and a silt trap dam. I crossed at ngoma up near caprivi and total time was about 40 mins for both countries formalities i did have to photograph our vehicles registration. It describes a number of common arguments regarding possibilities for the emergence of violent conflict in and among basin states, particularly those states party to the okavango river basin commission okacomangola, botswana and namibia. It sustains tens of thousands of delta residents and a growing ecotourism industry. Birdwatching trip report from namibia and northern botswana. The okavango river rises in the angolan highlands and flows over 1,000 miles, passing through namibia before entering botswana and forming the okavango delta. Water thickknee 37 vanellus armatusrhinoptilus africanus 38 charadrius pallidus 39 vanellus senegallus 40 glareolidae doublebanded courser charadridae blacksmith. The river runs down from angolas mountain terrain, through namibias desert areas, to the animalrich okavango delta in botswana.
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