by Egline Tauya – SANF 15 no 23
The process that led to the formation of the Zambezi Watercourse Commission (ZAMCOM) is unique and the first of its kind for river basin organisations and for the SADC region.
Though the process took more than a decade for ZAMCOM to be established, the journey was worthwhile as it had major developments which took place along the way.
The developments included negotiations on the management of water resources resulting in the signing, ratification and entering into force of the regional legal and institutional tool, the SADC Revised Protocol on Shared Watercourses in 2003; formulation of the SADC Regional Strategic Action Plan (RSAP) for Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM); the Regional Water Policy and Strategy of 2005; and establishment of other river basin organisations.
The negotiations to establish ZAMCOM date back to the late 1980s. These were suspended in the early 1990s to allow for discussions on the establishment of the regional framework, the SADC Protocol on Shared Watercourses that was initially signed in 1995.
The Protocol was revised in 2000 and came into force in 2003 upon ratification by the required two-thirds majority. This instrument was renamed the Revised Protocol on Shared Watercourses.
The need for such a protocol, came about during the developmental discussions of the Zambezi River Basin when it was realized that the regional instrument would guide the establishment of various river basin organizations, including that of the Zambezi and serve as a “modus operandi” for the management of shared watercourses in southern Africa.
Fresh negotiations related to ZAMCOM resumed in 2002. An agreement was later concluded and signed in Kasane, Botswana on 13 July 2004 by the majority of the Member States.
The ZAMCOM Agreement came into force seven years later, in June 2011, after six of the eight Riparian States successfully ratified the Agreement and deposited instruments of ratification at the SADC Secretariat.
The long time it took to finalise the ZAMCOM Agreement has resulted in a powerful, comprehensive and much more complex pact than other agreements signed earlier.
The ZAMCOM negotiation process projected transboundary water issues to the top of the political agenda in the SADC region.
Following the original Protocol on Shared Watercourses, a specialised regional water sector unit was established in SADC while the first Regional Strategic Action Plan on Integrated Water Resources Management was approved by SADC Summit in 1998.
This action plan facilitated the establishment of other river basin institutions in the SADC region including the Orange- Senqu River Commission and the Limpopo Watercourse Commission.
Associated key influencing factors behind the ZAMCOM Agreement include the recognition and consciousness by the Member States of the scarcity and the value of water resources in southern African and the need to provide people in the region with access to sufficient and safe water supplies.
The significance of the Zambezi watercourse as a major water source in the region has been realised, as well as the need to conserve, protect and sustainably utilize its resources.
ZAMCOM is expected to play a critical role in ensuring balanced and harmonious development of the Zambezi basin water resources.
The ZAMCOM Agreement is a testimony to SADC’s commitment to regional integration and promotion of effective cooperation in the management and development of water resources. The Zambezi
