An example of an effective grass roots approach to peaceful hydropolitics

When we speak of transboundary waters we tend to focus at the large top-down scale, partly because of the enormous scale of international basins. However, in my opinion work at the grass roots must go hand in hand with top down efforts in order to lead to successful hydropolitics. As part of ORASECOM the OSR Awareness Kit was created which provides a knowledge base aimed at stakeholders from ordinary people to government departments. It aims to integrate and share knowledge across the basin, a positive step in connecting scales.

However, this post focuses on a more practical initiative outside the basin called ‘Excellent Development’. It works solely at the grassroots building sand dams in Kenya that provide a year round supply of water in seasonal environments storing only 1% of downstream flow. The dams capture and store water from seasonal riverbeds beneath the sand (video and fig.1) storing 2-20 million litres of water[1].

Figure 1: Sand Dam Diagram.

Figure 2: Aljazeera video on sand dam construction in rural Kenya. 

Source: [2]

The water is protected under the sand from waterborne disease and evapotranspiration (average ET loss for Africa = 70-90% of precipitation)[3]. The dams create a microclimate in the hottest and driest parts of Kenya (video and fig.1) by replenishing groundwater aquifers allowing for vegetation to grow and for farmers to plant trees[4].

Figure 2: Picture showing dam, terraces and trees growing in new microclimate.

Source: [5]

The new trees avert erosion of topsoils, preventing loss of fertile soils and up to 50% of water to runoff. Excellent Development see the main aims of sand dams as to ‘alleviate conflicts’ that arise from unpredictable or reduced volumes (or increased pressures) on water supplies in arid regions[6]. Such a scheme could work with similar success in the Orange riparians rural populations producing firm resilience to and prevention against climate change in the basin where effects will be particularly harsh.

Top-down management is also necessary because of the scale of transboundary waters themselves, such as through basin level and regional treaties. However the power of the people at the grass roots to find cheap, ingenious and effective solutions to the water stress that leads to unstable hydropolitics, should never be underestimated.