Zambia to host the 6th SADC Multi-Stakeholder Water Dialogue

Report By DOREEN NAWA

Its the 6th SADC Multi-Stakeholder Water Dialogue under the theme, "Watering Development in SADC: Exploring the Water, Energy and Food Nexus," next week Monday and Tuesday 1- 2 October 2013 in Lusaka, Zambia.

The SADC Secretariat with support from the Government of Denmark (Danida), the Governments of Germany in delegated cooperation with the Governments of Australia (AUSaid) and the United Kingdom (UKaid) managed by GIZ, in collaboration with the Global Water Partnership Southern Africa (GWP-SA), will be holding the 6th SADC Multi-Stakeholder Water Dialogue to be held on 1st and 2nd October 2013 in Lusaka, Zambia.

The SADC Multi-stakeholder Water Dialogue is a region-wide initiative that brings together decision and policy makers across economic and development sectors (as well as from different levels of governance), to engage on the region’s development challenges. The 6th SADC Multi-Stakeholder Water Dialogue will be held under the theme: “Watering Development in SADC: Exploring the water, energy and food nexus”.

The dialogue will facilitate a multi-stakeholder discussion on how to address the interconnections within the Water, Energy and Food nexus. Water, Energy and Food are connected in important ways and each sector has the potential to help or harm the other, hence the dialogue will serve as a mechanism for raising awareness of the Water, Energy and Food nexus on the policy making level and for promoting greater collaboration across ministries and policy design implementation.

The prime target audience for the planned dialogue are Directors in Government Departments of Energy, Agriculture and Water. Other selected ministry representation in include Finance & Economic Planning, Health, and Environment. The Dialogue will also be attended by representatives from civil society, private sector and International Cooperation Partners (ICPs).

The Dialogue is aimed at creating awareness and understanding of the “Water, Energy and Food Nexus” and why it is important to focus on it and establishing the role the private sector can play in the improvement of water, energy and food security.

The dialogue is also aiming at discussing concrete project examples from the region with a wide range of stakeholders from the three sectors, thus facilitating future collaboration and motivating political uptake of the nexus concept in Southern Africa and ensuring that the nexus approach finds consideration at the highest level, in the countries and the region as well as ensuring that the regional perspective and cooperation are taken heed of when planning at national level.