Closing Remarks

Hi and welcome back!

Thank you to everyone who has been reading my blog posts over the term. For my final blog post, I will be giving a summary of the blogs I have written, reflecting on what I have learnt and what I believe the key arguments are.

Squeezing our water resources (KCRW)

A Summary of my Blog Posts - What I've Learnt

• The Nile Basin Initiative
• Rivers such as the Nile, which flow across multiple regions, have significant issues with regards to water management. The Nile has an evident history with regards to conflict and disputes over water resources. In a time where climate change is making water more scarce, it is paramount that countries along the Nile recognise that water resources are a shared resource and therefore need to be managed carefully. In this blog post, I recognised that transboundary cooperation is a necessity going forwards.

• NBI Strategies and Implications: A Focus on Burundi, Egypt and Ethiopia
• Delving further into the Nile Basin Initiative, what it has done, and the effects it has had, it becomes apparent that communication between the Nile Basin countries is paramount. Over past decades, many of these countries weren't even on talking terms. Through the NBI, countries are cooperating and working together in order to improve the manner in which water resources are being managed. I've learnt that with a river such as the Nile, the over-consumption and exploitation of water in one country can have negative implications for countries that lie downstream. The NBI has been working with local communities and local people, educating them about the implications of water use for other people. There has to be a recognition amongst all that there are connotations associated with how water is being used.

• The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam
• GERD, in my opinion, is the perfect example of how politics and water are intertwined within the African continent. On the one hand, Ethiopia have a plethora of water resources and wants to tap into its hydro-potential and further the country's economic development. On the other hand, Egypt have greatly opposed the building of the dam as the country believes that the flow of the Nile into Egypt will be hindered. Water is such a powerful resource which is mandatory for livelihoods and at the same time is also a source of conflict between countries such as Ethiopia and Egypt. This further exacerbates the need for a shared vision between Nile Basin countries, as proposed by the NBI, together with cooperation between these nations in order to ensure that there is a win-win scenario for all. 

• Kenya's Water Crisis
• Kenya's current situation represents that accessibility to water in the country and in the African continent is a significant issue. Who is afforded access to water? Which communities are disenfranchised? What factors limit people from having access to water? In the case of Kenya, infrastructure is a key limiting factor with regards to who can access water. In parts of the country, where the infrastructure is not available, water is extremely difficult to access. Mobility is another factor with regards to accessing water. It therefore becomes apparent that governments and organisations play a significant role in terms of who has access to water within a country.

• Integrated Water Resources Management
• IWRM is a concept that has reemerged in recent times. The definition of the concept is vague and contested amongst various authors. Nevertheless, I believe the key principles behind IWRM represent the considerations that must be taken when addressing water management in the future. The ideas that: freshwater is finite, stakeholders at all levels need to be involved in water management processes, the recognition that women are significantly important in terms of water management.

• The Phenomenon of Water Grabbing
• The concept of water grabbing, the idea that powerful actors are able to 'grab' water and take it away from marginalised groups for their own benefits, is a phenomenon that has been ever present in the African continent. I've learnt about the power dynamics that are at play, and the implications it has on the disenfranchised communities who lack a say. Water scarcity is a massive concern within Africa, and accessibility to water is, for many, extremely difficult. Water grabbing that takes place by powerful actors occurs without any concern about the potential negative implications it can have on local communities.

Final Thoughts

I started writing my blogs not knowing exactly where to start or the topics to discuss. Over time, I got more and more engaged within the topic of water politics in Africa to the point where I feel there's still so much more I want to talk about and discuss. Through these series of blogs, I've recognised that both water and politics are intertwined and have connotations on one another. Drawing back on my first blog where I mentioned Hardin's (1968) theory of the 'Tragedy of the Commons', there are ideas which hold true in cases regarding the Nile Basin. The selfish use of water without the consideration of the effects it can have for other people is one reason as to why there has been dispute and conflict over water resources. It is inevitable that such conflict over water will continue as the years pass, with water scarcity being an ever-present concern. Thank you for taking your time to read my blogs, I hope you enjoyed it!

To end, I will leave you with this quote from Grey and Sadoff (2007: 570)

'In this increasingly inter-connected world, there is a growing realization of the imperative to protect vulnerable people and livelihoods and to provide for basic human needs and broader human opportunities. In order to do this, achieving water security at the global, regional, national and local levels is a challenge that must be recognized and can be met'.