into water resources management at regional, national and community levels. This is particularly vital for rural communities who depend on surface water sources and rain-fed pastures to manage their livestock production. For rural communities, livestock is an important source of livelihood, it is exchanged for cash and it provides animal traction for cultivation and for transport as well as organic manure for fertilizer. Livestock management in rural areas is very vulnerable to the effects of droughts on grazing land, and water for animals. Where this has happened in the past, loss of livestock has exacerbated rural poverty by depriving communities of a source of food, means of animal traction, fertiliser and income from sales. Therefore improved livestock management has a significant contribution to make to the reduction of rural poverty. 4.4 Water for Energy Development 4.4.1. Policy: Member States will optimise the use of hydro-electricity generation potential so as to provide cheaper, more environmentally friendly sources of electrical energy to the region. The SADC water sector is an important resource to be considered in the development of energy throughout the region. The establishment of the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP) and the extension of the interconnected electricity grid, which now covers most of the region, has provided one of the most significant opportunities for regional cooperation in SADC. By trading electricity on SAPP‟s Short-Term Energy Market (STEM), some Member States are already enjoying cost savings and improved reliability of electricity supply. The real potential for regional benefits will be realised, however, from future joint planning of electricity sector capacity expansion, to take advantage of the significant economies of scale which exist in electricity generation. This is where the water sector has a significant role to play, in facilitating and encouraging the development of major hydroelectricity generation schemes, mainly in the north of the region (e.g. on the Congo and Zambezi Rivers), with electricity being exported to the areas of high demand in the south. The exporting countries will secure an important source of revenue from electricity exports, much of which will be spent on imports from within the region, thereby further expanding regional trade. The hydro-electricity importers will avoid the adverse environmental consequences of developing domestic hydrocarbon or nuclear-based sources of power in their own countries. For the region as a whole, the cost savings made in the provision of hydroelectricity will allow investment resources to be channelled into productive activities, raising the pace of economic growth. 4.4.2. Policy: Member States will encourage the use of technologies that are more efficient in terms of water use, for the cooling industrial processes and electric power generation stations. Dry cooling technology for coal-fired power stations has been successfully developed in the region. Where water resources are scarce, old and new thermal power stations should take advantage of technological developments and be - 28 -