The SA Initiative on the World Commission on Dams

An overview of the SA Initiative on the World Commission on Dams

Large-scale infrastructure projects like dams have often been promoted for political rather than social ends. While the public are persuaded that these are in the "greater common good", the devastating impact on the environment and on the lives of families and communities that make way for them, is hidden from view. Also hidden from view are the multiple ways in which large dams have consistently failed to meet expectations for irrigation, power and development in general. Dam-building in South Africa has its own legacy of forced-removals to deal with, and future dams will need to be looked at much more carefully.

The recommendations of the World Commission on Dams (WCD) represented a major advance in the thinking about how such large-scale projects should be planned, built and managed.... with as little social and environmental impact as possible.

Since the recommendations of the WCD are not binding on governments or financiers, finding ways of incorporating the best and most appropriate of the WCD recommendations in National policy and practice was a key challenge for civil society. In this respect, EMG has helped initiate a multistakeholder forum, the SA Initiative on the WCD which includes government, industry and civil society representatives. Members of the Initiative have met regularly and have jointly completed a process of research into the each of the WCD's strategic priorities -- their relevance for South Africa; how they relate to current legislation and policy; and what steps are needed to align future policy and practice with the WCD findings. The SA Initiative is probably the most advanced post-WCD process in the world, and has been monitored with interest by NGOs and governments in many other countries.

A useful overview can be gained from an article (134KB PDF) written by EMG staffer, Liane Greeff, for the Journal on River Basin Management.

Full public-domain documentation on the SA Initiative can be downloaded from the links below.

Working with the WCD report in Southern Africa

A report on the SA Initiatives work entitled Applying the WCD Report in South Africa is available in hard copy and CD from EMG or you can download files from the links below.

1. Advertising Flyer (280 Kb PDF)
2. Summary Report (4.4 Mb PDF)
3. Substantive Report (9.8 Mb PDF) or (8.6 Mb MSWord)
4. Slide presentation on the SA Initiative process (1.2 Mb PowerPoint)

The final reports published by the World Commission on Dams entitled Dams and Development: A new framework for decision-making are also available from EMG in hard copy or can be downloaded here:

1. Full Report (11.7 Mb PDF)
2. Overview Report (1.8 Mb PDF)
3. Presentation (2.4 Mb PowerPoint)