GEF Approves US$9.45m for Zambezi Water Governance
The Global Environment Facility (GEF) has approved a US$9.45 million grant for a regional initiative aimed at strengthening climate resilience, ecosystem protection, and cooperative water governance in the Zambezi River Basin, one of Southern Africa’s most critical shared freshwater systems.
The project, led by the African Development Bank Group, will support improved management of the Zambezi Basin, which spans eight countries—Angola, Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe—and sustains more than 51 million people through hydropower generation, irrigated agriculture, fisheries and globally significant ecosystems such as the Barotse Floodplain and the Zambezi Delta.
Despite its importance, the basin is facing growing pressure from climate variability, deforestation, pollution, unsynchronised dam operations and fragmented governance. Mean annual river flows have declined by nearly 20 per cent over the past two decades, while recurring droughts and floods continue to threaten energy security, food production and ecosystem services.
The GEF-funded project will strengthen the capacity of the Zambezi Watercourse Commission (ZAMCOM) and its riparian states to implement an integrated Water–Energy–Food–Environment (WEFE) nexus approach, aligned with the ZAMCOM Strategic Plan and the SADC Protocol on Shared Watercourses.
Planned interventions include harmonised environmental and social assessment frameworks, basin-wide coordination guidelines, and the deployment of climate-risk-informed decision-support tools such as the Zambezi Water Information System (ZAMWIS).
To address rising hydrological variability, the project will pilot adaptive dam-operation and environmental-flow rules to balance hydropower generation, flood management and ecosystem needs. Innovative financing mechanisms, including Payments for Ecosystem Services and user-fee schemes, will also be introduced to support sustainable water and ecosystem management.
“Working together, Zambezi riparian states are strengthening climate-resilient river basin management to protect ecosystems and secure water, energy and food for millions across Southern Africa,” said Gareth Phillips, Climate and Environment Finance Manager at the African Development Bank.
Women, youth and local communities will play a central role in project implementation and monitoring to ensure inclusive and locally responsive outcomes, while knowledge sharing will be supported through regional peer exchanges and digital platforms.
The grant is expected to mobilise more than US$140 million in co-financing from governments, multilateral climate funds, development partners and the private sector, contributing to improved water quality, restored ecosystem services and enhanced climate resilience across the basin.
