New water governance bodies to be established

The Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform is establishing three water governance institutions under the Water Resources Management Act to improve water management in Namibia.

This was revealed at a workshop on the Water Resources Management Act at Oshakati in the Oshana region last Thursday.

The workshop was one of several the ministry is currently conducting to create public awareness on key provisions of the act.

Giving a presentation on the act, Sakeus Ihemba, a senior official in the ministry, said the three institutions to be established under the act are the Water Advisory Council, the Water Regulator and the Water Tribunal.

He said the Water Advisory Council will be tasked with advising the minister of agriculture, water and land reform on issues related to water resources management, water abstraction, and water use.

The Water Regulator, according to Ihemba, will deal with issues related to tariffs and charges that may be levied by water service providers.

He said the Water Tribunal will hear appeals against matters referred to in terms of Section 120 of the act.

Ihemba said Namibia used to have a water regulator, but it was found to be unconstitutional and the process of having a similar body had to start again.

“The process has started off, and the announcement calling for people to be nominated to the council will be advertised in the media in the coming months,” he said.

As for the Water Tribunal, Ihemba said this would have to wait until the new government is in place.

He said efforts to establish the Water Advisory Council are on, but opinions on some issues of concern raised by the Office of the Attorney General are still sought.

Ihemba said the main objectives of the workshops are to create a public understanding of the act, a comprehensive need for integrated water resources management, and to ensure capacity for implementation.

He said the old act failed to acknowledge water resources as a national asset and did not make provision for equitable water access, adding that it lacked a well-structured pricing system which reflects the economic value of water.

It also failed to deal with the issue of water conservation.

The current Water Resources Management Act, he said, seeks “to ensure that the water resources of Namibia are managed, developed, used, conserved and protected in a manner consistent with the fundamental principles set out in the act”.