platform for exchange of ideas and networking.
From time‐to‐time, the SADC Water Division engages project implementing agents or institutions to
supervise or carry out SADC Water Division projects on behalf of the SADC Member States. While the
SADC Water Division is the project manager and is responsible for sourcing the financial and human
resources required to implement the projects, the actual day‐to‐day implementation and execution
of the projects is undertaken by the project implementing agent or institution, which inevitably,
accounts to the SADC Water Division. Examples of such project implementing agents or institutions
are ZRA for the Zambezi Action Programme 6 and WaterNet for the regional Masters Degree course
in IWRM. Such arrangements have been cost‐effective and have produced tangible results. Some of
the RIDMP Water Sector projects will be executed using such arrangements.
Private sector investors will play a key role in the execution of the Water Sector��RIDMP projects by
directly investing in these projects, or through partnerships with the relevant SADC Member States.
An enabling environment, conducive to private sector participation in infrastructure development in
the SADC region, has to be built.
When making policies and strategies, there is need for strong beneficiary participation so that there
is beneficiary buy‐in when implementing such policies and strategies. The same principle of
beneficiary participation should apply in the selection of projects. Projects should be selected and
prioritised with strong beneficiary participation at national level to ensure the acceptance and
sustainability of the implemented projects.
The investors usually want bankable and profit‐making projects, which will give them a return on
their investments. However, due to the current level of poverty in the SADC region, the poor
members of society will never afford the cost reflective tariffs and their living standards will never
improve, unless governments subsidise the cost reflective electricity, water and sanitation tariffs.
3.1.4
Prioritised Projects and Interventions
The RSWIDP Phase 1 (2005‐2015) has two priority intervention targets from the RISDP being:
Halve the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water and sanitation services
by 2015; and
Develop water resources infrastructure needed to double land under irrigation for food
security by 2015.
At the SADC Water Sector Infrastructure Investment Conference held in September 2011 in Maseru,
Lesotho, 23 projects were identified out of a total of 66 SADC Member States' priority projects (SADC
2011). Of the 23 adopted projects for implementation (Table 3.1 and Figure 3.2), four were classified
as regional projects that impacts on several SADC Member States, five were classified as cross‐border
projects shared between two or more SADC Member States and 14 were SADC Member States' first
priority projects. The 23 projects cut across and serve other sectors as well: three are primarily for
the agricultural sector, two are for hydropower, nine are for the water supply and sanitation sector,
three are for river basin development and four relate to industry, while the remaining two are
specifically related to demand management and climate change resilience. Table 3.1 and Figure 3.2
give the details of these projects, which were identified through extensive consultations with the
SADC Member States. These projects form the basis and portfolio of the RIDMP Water Sector
projects for the short and medium terms.
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