Towards a common flow
Water law harmonization in Sadc member states
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21697076 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Hans Jurie MOOLMAN (0000-0003-4848-5871, a Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Hoffman Street, Potchefstroom 2520, South Africa, corresponding author), Willem Daniel Lubbe (0000-0001-8960-3956, North-West University), Dirk Cilliers (0000-0001-9777-0463, a Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Hoffman Street, Potchefstroom 2520, South Africa), Reece Alberts (0000-0001-6840-4405, a Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management, North-West University, Hoffman Street, Potchefstroom 2520, South Africa) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 28 |
| Issue | 5 |
| Pages | 744-764 |
| Publication date | 2026-05-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Water Policy (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1366-7017 • E-ISSN: 1996-9759 |
| Publisher | IWA Publishing (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.2166/wp.2026.058 |
| OpenAlex | W7162146628 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 42 |
Southern African Development Community (SADC) member states often rely on shared water resources to meet socio-economic objectives. To ensure sustainable management of these shared watercourses, governments have committed to the obligations set out in the Revised SADC Protocol on Shared Watercourses. The Protocol calls for closer cooperation in the pursuit of sustainable utilization of these watercourses through the harmonization of legislation. To this end, the paper evaluated the extent to which the selected water laws of four SADC member states align with the objectives and provisions of the Protocol. The selected SADC member states are South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana, and Namibia. The member states were evaluated against 6 key performance areas and 30 key performance indicators based on the principles and obligations outlined in the Protocol. Results revealed substantial harmonization in provisions for the sustainable, equitable, and reasonable utilization of shared watercourses, as well as for the protection and preservation of aquatic ecosystems. Conversely, weak harmonization for measures to promote harmonization of legislation and communication between member states was observed. Inadequate harmonization of national water laws across SADC states undermines effective transboundary governance, leading to fragmented management and constraining the region's ability to achieve sustainable, cooperative use of shared watercourses
Harmonization · Legislation · Member states · Sustainable development · Water resources · Aquatic Ecosystems and Biodiversity · Coastal and Marine Management · Transboundary Water Resource Management
Three decades of EIA streamlining
Environmental impact assessment (EIA) effectiveness in protected areas
Management of Transboundary Rivers and Lakes
International waters
Governing Trade-Offs and Building Coherence in Policy-Making for the 2030 Agenda
The History of Water as an Economic or Social Good in Post-Colonial Botswana, 1966–2020
Theorising complex water governance in Africa
A community in the Orange
Does enhanced regulation improve EIA report quality? Lessons from South Africa
Water governance research in Africa
Moral equality and success of common-pool water governance in Namibia
The role of international law in promoting transboundary freshwater governance
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |