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Zimbabwe reviews Draft TDA Report for the Limpopo River Basin

Summary

Stakeholders in Zimbabwe met in Bulawayo on 12-14 November 2024 to review and validate the Draft Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) Report for the Limpopo River Basin (LRB). The TDA Report aims to identify and prioritize transboundary water-related environmental problems in the basin.

Stakeholders in Zimbabwe met in Bulawayo on 12-14 November 2024 to review and validate the Draft Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) Report for the Limpopo River Basin (LRB).

 

The TDA Report aims to identify and prioritize transboundary water-related environmental problems in the basin.

 

Speaking at the national TDA workshop, LIMCOM Chairperson, Engineer Gilbert Mawere from the Republic of Zimbabwe said reviewing the report was critical to ensure that the final document adequately reflects the realities of water-related environmental transboundary issues in the basin.

 

Engineer Mawere said similar national validation workshops would be held in the other three countries – Botswana, Mozambique and South Africa – that share the Limpopo River with Zimbabwe before a basin-wide validation workshop is convened to approve the TDA report.

 

The development of the draft TDA Report for the Limpopo River Basin followed two distinct but complementary pathways namely the participatory consultation of basin stakeholders, and the scientific and evidence-based factual analysis.

 

The participatory consultation of basin stakeholders consisted of a series of country-specific workshops involving critically selected representatives from relevant socio-economic sectors and representatives from academia and transdisciplinary research and development fields relevant to the specific context of the basin.

 

On the other hand, the scientific analysis contributed to the evidence-based transboundary diagnostic analysis, using standard scientific approaches that included the selection of critical thematic areas requiring in-depth analysis and production of associated thematic and synthesis reports.

 

Once the TDA Report is approved by the riparian countries, the formulation of a Strategic Action Programme (SAP) will commence. This will be supported by an effective identification of key leveraging points that establish the logical transition from the TDA to the SAP.

 

The formulation of the TDA/SAP process is being under the project “Integrated Transboundary River Basin Management for the Sustainable Development of the Limpopo River Basin,” which is being implemented by LIMCOM in partnership with the Global Water Partnership Southern Africa (GWPSA), with support from the UNDP South Africa (UNDP) through funding from the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

 

The project aims to uplift the living standards of the basin’s population and conserve the basin’s resources and ecosystem services