NamWater celebrates 20th anniversary
Poor rainfall, increasing urban population, increased economic activities and the economic downturn are but some of the challenges that NamWater has faced over the past 20 years.
Speaking at NamWater's 20th anniversary celebration, agriculture and water minister Alpheus !Naruseb said credit must be given to the NamWater directors and managers who kept the company afloat in the face of these challenges.
!Naruseb further recognised the conservation principles NamWater followed while tapping the national water sources, saying that otherwise Namibia could have been left with environmental disasters due to water over-abstraction.
He said his ministry, together with NamWater, aimed to upgrade existing water infrastructure, construct new bulk water supply infrastructure, improve management of existing water resources and enhance water cooperation.
“Every aspect of life is composed of water. That is how important water is. While many nations of the world have plenty of water at their disposal and within their boundaries, this is not the case with our beautiful country.”
He said Namibia is the driest country in Sub-Saharan Africa. The country's annual rainfall figures range from 600mm in the north to 350mm in central Namibia, 100mm in the south and less than 50mm along the coast.
Of the total rainfall received, 83% is lost through evaporation.
“Given the semi-arid status of Namibia, the water the country receives is inadequate compared to the demand. Therefore, we have to make use of various options to overcome the challenge of water supply scarcity.”
According to !Naruseb Namibia's sources of water are perennial rivers, ephemeral rivers, dams, groundwater, seawater desalination and recycled water.
Namibia has five perennial rivers: the Orange River in the south, the Kunene River in the northwest, and the Okavango, Zambezi and Kwando (Linyanti/Chobe) rivers in the northeast.
All five perennial rivers are shared with neighbouring countries, hence the existence of transboundary water agreements.
The former governments of Portugal and the Union of South Africa entered into a number of agreements on the development of the Kunene River for power generation and irrigation purposes.
After Namibia became a sovereign state on 21 March 1990, Namibia and Angola recognised the need to consolidate transboundary cooperation, hence two new agreements were entered into in 1990 and 1991.
Furthermore, Namibia has signed numerous international protocols and conventions concerning water, notably those designed to protect the environment.
These include the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigable Uses of International Watercourses, the International Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar) and the SADC Protocol on Shared Watercourses.
ELLANIE SMIT
Speaking at NamWater's 20th anniversary celebration, agriculture and water minister Alpheus !Naruseb said credit must be given to the NamWater directors and managers who kept the company afloat in the face of these challenges.
!Naruseb further recognised the conservation principles NamWater followed while tapping the national water sources, saying that otherwise Namibia could have been left with environmental disasters due to water over-abstraction.
He said his ministry, together with NamWater, aimed to upgrade existing water infrastructure, construct new bulk water supply infrastructure, improve management of existing water resources and enhance water cooperation.
“Every aspect of life is composed of water. That is how important water is. While many nations of the world have plenty of water at their disposal and within their boundaries, this is not the case with our beautiful country.”
He said Namibia is the driest country in Sub-Saharan Africa. The country's annual rainfall figures range from 600mm in the north to 350mm in central Namibia, 100mm in the south and less than 50mm along the coast.
Of the total rainfall received, 83% is lost through evaporation.
“Given the semi-arid status of Namibia, the water the country receives is inadequate compared to the demand. Therefore, we have to make use of various options to overcome the challenge of water supply scarcity.”
According to !Naruseb Namibia's sources of water are perennial rivers, ephemeral rivers, dams, groundwater, seawater desalination and recycled water.
Namibia has five perennial rivers: the Orange River in the south, the Kunene River in the northwest, and the Okavango, Zambezi and Kwando (Linyanti/Chobe) rivers in the northeast.
All five perennial rivers are shared with neighbouring countries, hence the existence of transboundary water agreements.
The former governments of Portugal and the Union of South Africa entered into a number of agreements on the development of the Kunene River for power generation and irrigation purposes.
After Namibia became a sovereign state on 21 March 1990, Namibia and Angola recognised the need to consolidate transboundary cooperation, hence two new agreements were entered into in 1990 and 1991.
Furthermore, Namibia has signed numerous international protocols and conventions concerning water, notably those designed to protect the environment.
These include the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigable Uses of International Watercourses, the International Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar) and the SADC Protocol on Shared Watercourses.
ELLANIE SMIT
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