Programme Cooperation Agreement 2012 – 2013

SIGNIFICANT OUTCOME: Zambezi River Basin: Atlas of our Changing Environment Credible scientific information provided in the Zambezi Atlas will inform the institutional and legislative processes that will shape developments in the Zambezi River basin over the next decade. As the first publication to carry their logo, the Zambezi Watercourse Commission (ZAMCOM) is very pleased to be associated with the publication. See http://www.zambezicommission.org/index.php?option=com_content&view= article&id=40:changing-the-environment-in-the-zambezi-river-basin&catid=15&Itemid=18 Publication of the Atlas has renewed interest in basin management issues among the eight riparian countries. After the launch in Angola: • the Angolan government minister requested that the report be translated into Portuguese for the benefit of the two countries in the Zambezi basin whose official language is Portuguese; the Angolan Embassy in Harare has since committed to support the translation; • the University of Copenhagen expressed interest in blending the atlas methodology with their own in mapping the forest resources of Eastern and Southern Africa • interest has been received to use the atlas methodology and visualization from potential partners such as Ger- many’s Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KwF), which have activities in the Kavango-Zambezi trans-frontier conservation area; and • interest has been expressed for similar atlas products for the Limpopo and Okavango river basins, and Lake Vic- toria basin (see below).

Based upon the previous and current GRID-Arendal in- volvement in various transboundary water projects in Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia (EECCA) and in Africa a major planning exercise was undertaken in 2013 to explore the possibilities for a considerable expansion of Transboundary Waters Resource Management (TBWR) activities in Africa: • A plan was developed, together with the Lake Victoria Basin Commission, for an Atlas for the Lake Victoria River Basin and the project is planned to start in 2014. The Commission is also financially committed to At- las development; • The Executive Secretary of the Lake Victoria Basin Commission inquired about a long-term cooperation agreement with GRID-Arendal to strengthen the Com- mission’s capacities on communication and outreach to its main stakeholders;

• Cooperation has been established with the Global Wa- ter Partnership (GWP) to provide technical support to the ‘Water Security and Climate Resilient Develop- ment’ programme. The first plan is to develop an Atlas for the Limpopo River Basin together with GWP and the Limpopo River Basin Commission (LIMCOM). GWP is financially committed to supporting the Atlas development. • Planning is underway for An Assessment of Ecosys- tem Services Status and Possibilities in the Okavango River Basin, together with UNEP, GWP, the Okavango River basin Commission (OKACOM) and the United States Agency for International Development (US- AID); • Discussions are ongoing with UNEP (DEPI and DEWA), regarding cooperation in the development of a transboundary assessment of Lake Turkana in 2014.

Presentation of the Zambezi River Basin Atlas to the Zambia delegation on the occasion of the launch of the Atlas in May 2013 in Angola.

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