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Local authorities all over the world face many challenges in ensuring effective, equitable and sustainable delivery of water and sanitation. Different approaches have been used to meet these challenges, with the involvement of the private sector perhaps the most controversial, and pitting the "water as a human right" activists against the "water as a commodity" technisists.... with little middle ground. In this context the Water Dialogues process came to life, as an initiative with a uniquely South African flavour, but one that is also part of an international process.
EMG has been active in helping to establish the South African Water Dialogue process and is also represented on the International Working Group. Our particulart interest is in ensuring good civil society engagement in this mulit-stakeholder process, and in ensuring that the research and dialogue includes questions of sustainable natural resource management. In addition, we act as the "acounting agent" (managing the funds and employing personnel) for the process, since the Water Dialogues itself is a self-organising process and has no legal standing.
The work is proceeding apace. The first round of 3 case-studies (Bushbuck Ridge in Mpumalanga; Ugu in southern KZN and Ilembe in northern KZN coast) is complete. The Water Dialogues also recently facilitated a multi-stakeholder dialogue on the City of Johannesburg's recent decision to scrap the 6kl/m Free Basic Water allocation to all but those households who register with the City as indigent.
Another multi-stakeholder process which EMG helped to establish aimed to review the recommendations of the World Commission on Dams and their implications for South African policy and practice. The process has been rather dormant since the "recommendations" phase was completed. An "implementation" conference is tentatively planned. With the Department of Water Affairs & Forestry planning 20 new dams and other large water infrastructure projects in the future, it is critical that this process is revitalised.
While the WCD Recommendations call for adequate compensation to communities displaced by dams, past dam projects in South Africa have left many communities displaced, dislocated and unrecognised. EMG aims to assist these groups to work together, and to participate in the development of future dam building policy and practice. Currently we are assisting these communities to record their stories and to draft their own "social audit".
Large dams tend to introduce as many problems as they try to solve. While it may be theoretically possible to plan and build a "good" dam, it is important to look to smaller, more human-scale alternatives for water supply. This project aims to explore the feasibility of domestic rainwater harvesting.
EMG works with two communities of small-scale rooibos tea farmers (Wupperthal & Heiveld) in addressing soil and land conservation and rehabilitation using appropriate technologies. In both communities, "mentor-farmers" have been appointed to assist others in taking steps to rehabilitate or conserve land using low-input techniques such as wind-breaks, buffer zones, mulching, etc. This GEF-funded project will soon drawing to a close with the publication of a "farmer's manual" based on the experiences. More...
Wild rooibos stands are currently found exclusively in land worked by small-scale farmers of Heiveld and Wupperthal. Not only is this genetic stock valuable in its own right, it is also a lucrative crop, hence the need for a coherent sustainable management plan.
Using basic GIS methods, populations of wild rooibos have been mapped. Farmers knowledge about wild rooibos ecology has been captured in a publication, "Die Volhoubare oes van rooibos-veldtee" and now available in English as a PDF only (The Sustainable harvest of Wild Rooibos). More...
EMG acts as Secretariat and organiser to the Association for Fairness in Trade, a network of small-farmer and farm-worker organisations involved in the fair trade system. The aim is to build their capacity to engage in the technical and political aspects of the fair trade system of which they are the ultimate beneficiaries. Plans for the year include training sessions, exchange vists, research and advocacy. More...
The global fair trade system in agricultural products has traditionally been focussed on small-farmers. In South Africa however, years of colonialism and apartheid have effectively destroyed this farmer class and only a few isolated pockets remain. EMG is currently assisting 3 farmer communities (Wupperthal, Heiveld and Eksteenskuil Co-operatives) with capacity and infrastructural development which will allow them improved access to fair trade opportunities.
In addition to appropriate training and support at all 3 sites, EMG is assisting the Heiveld Co-op to upgrade their rooibos tea storage and processing facility while at Eksteenskuil (small-scale farmers producing raisins near to Upington) there are plans to increase the area under vineyards. More...
Predictions are that Africa and particularly southern Africa will be hard hit by climate change effects. The western part of southern Africa will become drier, reducing the availability of water resources and putting pressure on its management and allocation -- which in turn will affect access to water, food security, health, settlement patterns and disaster (crisis) management. At the same time, water demand is growing due to population and economic growth. Are we prepared? Do we understand how these pressures will inpact service delivery and sustainable resource management? With no intervention, this will have a disproportional impact on fragile ecosystems and people who are already vulnerable, for example rural and peri-urban communities, women and children.
Already there are initiatives by national, provincial and local government to consider climate change in their water management strategies, but these tend to be narrowly focused on balancing supply and demand with little thought to issues of equity and public acceptability. Unless these debates happen in the public domain with capacitated members of civil society, vulnerable people will be further marginalised and ecological considerations will be seen as ‘nice-to-have’ rather than an intrinsic part of protecting water for all forever. Adaptation to climate change can thus be ‘progressive’ and contribute to building a fair democratic society and functioning ecosystems, or it can exacerbate existing social, economic, and environmental problems.
It is our intention to help make it more progressive, and we aim to do this through a structured process of research and conversation. Our initial activities are to:
We would love to hear from you if you are involved in related initiatives, or think this project could be useful to your work.
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