MUNITY SOUTHERN M CO AF T VE N DE LOPM EN CA RI RE REGIONAL STRATEGIC ACTION PLAN IV (2016 - 2020) T U W TO AR D SA C O M MO N FU ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The SADC Secretariat would like to express its gratitude and thanks to all the stakeholders who contributed to the processes of developing this fourth phase of the SADC Water Programme, commonly known as the Regional Strategic Action Plan (RSAP IV) on Integrated Water Resources Development and Management (2016-2020). The Secretariat is thankful to all SADC Member States for demonstrating their interest and commitment in supporting RSAP IV formulation process by dedicating three days to their respective SADC national workshops (SADC Water Weeks). SADC National Water Weeks were conducted to gather input towards the formulation of the RSAP IV between March and September 2015 in all the 15 Member States. In all the Member States, the SADC Water Weeks were officially opened by very senior officials in the governments at the level of Minister or Deputy Minister responsible for water, and by the Deputy Prime and Prime Minister in the case of Mauritius and Madagascar respectively. The support from Waternet who convened a Regional Consultative Meeting on the Water Research Agenda as an input to the RSAP IV, and Water Aid who financed preparatory Youth Water Forums in some Member States and other national Private Sector institutions which supported the National consultation processes is greatly appreciated. The same goes to the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) who supported the Regional Water Youth Workshop which provided vital input to the RSAP IV on youth involvement, through the SADC Youth Desk under the Directorate of Social and Human Development, and Special Programme of SADC Secretariat. The Secretariat would like to thank the International Cooperating Partners (ICPs) who guided the process through the Water Strategy Reference Group based on the outcomes of the mid-term review of the RSAP III; and the regional experts who participated in the think-tank and drafting sessions of the RSAP IV including those who participated in the validation sessions during the 6th SADC Multistakeholder Dialogue in Windhoek, Namibia which was attended by more than 200 participants are equally appreciated. Gratitude and appreciation go to the main sponsor for the SADC Multi-stakeholder Dialogue, the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA), and other sponsors including the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through the Resilience in the Limpopo River Basin Program (RESILIM) and the UK Department for International Development (DFID) through the Climate Resilient Infrastructure Development Facility (CRIDF). In a special way, the SADC Secretariat would like to express its sincere appreciation and gratitude to the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) in delegated cooperation with the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, acting through the Department for International Development (DFID), and the Government of the Commonwealth of Australia, through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) for providing financial and technical support to the SADC National Water Weeks as well as the development and publication of this document. Special thanks also go to the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) who managed the tri-laterally funded programme and provided technical support to the to the SADC Water Programme. The process of developing the RSAP IV was made possible through collaborative efforts of the SADC Secretariat staff in the Water Sector of the Directorate of Infrastructure and Services, and the Global Water Partnership Southern Africa (GWP-SA). The SADC secretariat would like to thank the teams from the SADC Water Sector and GWP-SA who tirelessly worked on all processes leading to the production of the RSAP IV. SADC Secretariat Gaborone, Botswana April 2016 iv A Vehicle to implement the Water Component of the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP)