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©April/May 2013

Country Water Resource Profile M

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Country Water Resource Profile M

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AfDB African Development Bank

AMCOST African Ministers Council on Science and Technology

AMCOW African Ministers Council on Water

AU African Union

COMESA Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa

CSIR Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, South Africa

CWRP Country Water Resources Profile

DA District Assembly

DANIDA Danish International Development Agency

DSIP District Strategy and Implementation Plan

EC European Commission

FAO Food and Agricultural Organisation

GoM Government of Malawi

GWP-SA Global Water Partnership, Southern Africa

ICP International Cooperation Partners

IUCN International Union for the Conservation of Nature

JPCC Joint Permanent Commission of Cooperation (Malawi and United

Republic of Tanzania)

JRC Joint Research Centre

ITCZ Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone

IWMI International Water Management Institute

IWRM Integrated Water Resources Management

MDGs Millennium Development Goals

MoIWD Ministry of Irrigation and Water Development

NEPAD New Partnership for Africa‟s Development

NGO Non-governmental organisation

NORAD Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation

NSO National Statistics Office (Malawi)

ODA Official Development Agency (Japan)

PRSP Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper

List of Acronyms

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PS Principle Secretary

RBO River Basin Organisation

RSAP III Regional Strategic Action Plan (2012-2015)

SANWATCE Southern African Water Centres of Excellence

SADC Southern African Development Community

R&D Research and Development

S&T Science and Technology

UB University of Botswana, Botswana

UEM University of Eduardo Montlane, Mozambique

UN United Nations

UNDP United Nations Development Programme

UNESCO United Nations Education, Science and Cultural Organisation

USAID United Stated Agency for International Development

VWC Village Water Committee

SU Stellenbosch University, South Africa

TAC Technical Advisory Committee

UKZN University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

UNCHS United Nations Centre for Human Settlements

UNIMA University of Malawi, Malawi

UNZA University of Zambia, Zambia

UWC University of Western Cape, South Africa

WASH Water, sanitation and hygiene

WIN-SA Water Information Network - South Africa

WISA Water Institute of Southern Africa

WPT Water Project Toolkit

WRA Water Resources Areas

WRC Water Research Commission (South Africa)

WRU Water Resources Units

WUA Water Users Association

ZAMCOM Zambezi Watercourse Commission

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MAP OF MALAWI

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Acknowledgements The AU/NEPAD SANWATCE would like to thank the European Commission (EC)

Joint Research Centre (JRC) for making the Country Water Resources Profiles

possible. This profile was put together by Dr. Samson Sajidu, Dr. Maurice

Monjerezi, Dr, Cosmo Ngongoro, Dr. Jimmy Namangale at the University of

Malawi (UNIMA) in April 2013.

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Table of Contents Our Origins: Network for Water Centres of

Excellence………………………………………………..

Importance of the Country Water Resources

Profile………………………………………………………

Executive Summary…………………………………..

Malawi: Water Profile………………………………..

Geographic Profile…………………………….

Socio-Economic Setting…………………….

Hydrology/Hydrogeology of Malawi……

Major Water Management Issues………

Main Policy and Strategy Documents, Communication Channels and Media Links to Water Issues……………………….

Water Services and Resources Management Institutional Settings…….

Existing and Planned Water Infrastructure…………………………………..

Water Resources R & D & Science and Technology Institutions- (Staffing, Facilities & Funding)…………………………

Documented Water Sector Capacity Development Needs Assessment……….

Capacity Development Needs in the Nation…………………………………………….

Relation of the Country Situation to the SADC RSAP III Processes & Any Specific Actions Being Undertaken……..

References……………………………………………….

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In September 2000, African countries and the international community adopted the

Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) at the United Nations (UN) Millennium

Summit. African leaders identified water scarcity and related insecurity due to water

stress as one of the sources of the continent‟s underdevelopment and increasing

social and economic decline.

To combat these developments and “ensure sustainable access to safe and adequate

clean water supply and sanitation, especially for the poor”, the African Ministerial

Council on Science and Technology (AMCOST), a body of the African Union (AU),

decided in 2003 that science and technology (S&T) is to constitute one of the

flagship programmes of its implanting agency, the New Partnership for African

Development (NEPAD).

AMCOST decided that S&T will play an important role in water development, supply

and management and that S&T is crucial for assessing, monitoring and ensuring

water quality. The flagship programme should strengthen the continent‟s capabilities

to harness and apply S&T to address challenges of securing adequate clean water as

well as managing the continent‟s resources to become a basis for national and

regional cooperation and development.

Three years later, in 2006, the AMCOST and the African Ministerial Conference on

Water (AMCOW) met in Cairo, Egypt to reiterate the importance of S&T. By

resolution, the delegates committed themselves to establishing an African Network

of Excellence in Water Sciences and Technology Development. Along AU/NEPAD

policy, the water centres of excellence are to be established on a regional level, as of

2013, the Southern African Network of Water Centres of Excellence (SANWATCE) is

constituted of eight institutions across Southern Africa:

University of Botswana (UB),

University of Zambia (UNZA),

University of Malawi (UNIMA),

Our Origins: Network for Water Centres of

Excellence

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University of Eduardo Mondlane (UEM) in Mozambique, as well as

In South Africa: Stellenbosch University (SU) which also serves as the

network Hub, University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), University of the Western

Cape (UWC), and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).

The Ministerial Mandate, as instituted in Cairo (2006), provides the AU/NEPAD

SANWATCE with the following executive mandate:

1. Facilitate, and where applicable, conduct selective research on water issues;

2. Serve as a Higher Education (PhD; postdoctoral; staff exchange) soundboard

to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region on regional

water matters;

3. Collaborate with other networks and institutions in specialised areas;

4. Set the SADC water research agenda;

5. Establish a continental water research agenda which is based on / derived

from the SADC regional water agenda.

This can be achieved, amongst other means, through one-on-one engagement with

AMCOW and AMCOST through the SADC Technical Advisory Committee (TAC), in

order to observe political direction and engage so as to provide evidence-based

research.

Various research and capacity development initiatives, institutions and networks can

be found within the SADC-region, most notably the SADC Water Division; WaterNet;

Global Water Partnership-Southern Africa (GWP-SA); the International Water

Management Institute (IWMI); the Water Research Commission (WRC); Cap-Net;

Water Institute of Southern Africa (WISA); the Water Information Network-South

Africa (WIN-SA); Africa Portal; United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural

Organization‟s (UNESCO) Framework Programme for Research, Education and

Training in Water (FETWater) and the UNESCO initiatives, including Chairs, as well

as Category I and II centres.

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It has been established, through the assessment of the Research and Development

(R&D) value-chain, that the AU/NEPAD SANWATCE has an important role to play

within the high-end scientific research and capacity sphere (M.Sc.; PhD; postdoctoral

and Staff Exchange taking into consideration current Masters Programmes being

offered by partners, such as WaterNet).

The AU/NEPAD SANWATCE is one of the African regional networks. The regional

Hub and Secretariat is currently being hosted by SU in South Africa. Membership to

the Network is open to all countries in the Southern African sub-region and current

members are: Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa and Zambia.

AU/NEPAD SANWATCE‟s vision statement:

The AU/NEPAD SANWATCE will contribute to the improved

human and environmental well-being through research and

development in water and sanitation.

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The five Country Water Resources Profiles (CWRPs) have been prepared by the

respective AU/NEPAD SANWATCE country teams in 2013 as part of a regional

workshop series.

Each CWRP combines physical hydrology [water resource and its exploitation] with a

look at water service delivery [infrastructure], the social setting of the country and

the management of water, in terms of allocation and distribution. To some extent it

also investigates international obligations and relationships related to shared

transboundary water resources. It tries to get the base of water information in place,

so that there can be a realistic assessment of what gaps there are in S&T and R&D.

With the country‟s educational resources and institutions also identified, the

AU/NEPAD SANWATCE country team and other national stakeholders can use these

profiles as a starting point to assess and characterize: i) Where the meaningful

applied knowledge in the country‟s water sector exists and ii) what needs there are

beyond that for future cross-sectoral social developments and economic growth.

As this approach cross cuts the essential six Policy Principal Areas outlined in the EC

JRC‟s Water Project Toolkit (WPT) [Social, Economic, Technical,

Information/Education/Communication, Environmental and

Institutional/management], it should stimulate a more integrative and sustainable

approach towards exploitation and management practices resulting in increased

efficiency and more equitable water use strategies, as well as more

pertinent infrastructure development choices.

Importance of the Country Water Resources Profile

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Malawi is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa between latitudes 9°22‟S

and 17°03‟S and longitudes 33°40‟E and 35°55‟E. The climate of Malawi is tropical

continental wet and dries (Savannah) and is largely influenced by the huge water

mass of Lake Malawi, which covers almost two-thirds of Malawi‟s eastern border.

The main rain bearing systems are the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and

the Congo Air Boundary. Annual rainfall ranges from 700 to 2 400 mm with mean

annual rainfall being 1 180 mm. Droughts and floods are among the frequent top

disasters affecting the population and have become more severe since 1900. Malawi

is relatively well endowed with water resources with 20 per cent of its total area

covered by surface water bodies.

Despite having abundant water resources, Malawi is categorised among water

stressed countries with less than 1,700 m3 of freshwater per capita. The country‟s

economy is largely dependent on agriculture and water resources are therefore

central to socio-economic development. Water consumption in the country has

undergone considerable increase for both rural and urban areas due to demand for

domestic (3%), industrial (10%) and agricultural use (85%). Over 60% of the rural

population derive their domestic water requirements from groundwater. The

stressed water resources are further challenged by high population growth, climate

change and variability, increased sedimentation in rivers, lakes and reservoirs due to

catchment degradation. As of 2006, access to sanitation stood at 65 per cent of the

population had access to improved water and sanitation.

Executive Summary

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Geographic Profile

Malawi is a land-locked country in southern

Africa that lies along the southern sector of

the great East African Rift Valley system

between latitudes 9o 22‟ and 17o 03‟ south of

the Equator and longitudes 33o 40‟ and 35o

55‟ east of the Greenwich. It is bordered by

Tanzania in the north and north-east,

Mozambique in the south, south west and the

east; and Zambia in the west. It is 910 km

long and varies in width from 60 to 161 km

(Figure 1).

The climate of Malawi can be generally

categorized as tropical savanna (tropical wet

and dry) characterized by two distinct

seasons: (i) a single rainy season lasting from

November to April, and (ii) a dry season

extending from May to October. Many parts of the country experiences cool and dry

weather conditions from May to August, warm and dry weather conditions from

September to November, and warm and wet weather conditions from November to

April. In some High Altitude Plateaus, such as the Shire Highlands, drizzles, locally

known as Chiperoni, are quite common during the months of May, June and July,

which are the coldest months in Malawi. Fig 1b shows the rainfall regime of Malawi

showing the highest rainfall areas to the south east and along the west coast of Lake

Malawi.

The climate is greatly influenced by altitude and proximity to Lake Malawi, a huge

water body that covers nearly two thirds of its length which can be sub divided as

follows: (i) semi-arid (Shire Valley and some parts along the Lakeshore Plain), (ii)

Malawi: Water Profile

Figure 1. Rainfall regime of

Malawi Source: Moriniere &

Chimwaza (1996)

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semi-arid to sub-humid (Medium Altitude Plateaus), and (iii) sub-humid (High

Altitude Plateaus and hilly areas). The most important climatic variables that are

affected, or influenced, by climate are rainfall, air temperature and solar radiation.

There are two main synoptic systems, or rain bearing systems, which bring rainfall

to the country: (i) the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), and (ii) the Congo

Air Mass or Zaire Air Boundary. The other factors that equally influence the climate

of Malawi include: anti-cyclones, easterly waves, and occasionally tropical cyclones.

The deficiency in rainfall may occur if these systems are not active in a season

(Kundel 2008).

The mean annual rainfall in Malawi ranges between 500 mm in low-lying marginal

rainfall areas, such as the Shire Valley and some areas along the Lakeshore Plain, to

well over 3,000 mm on High Altitude Plateaus, such as Nyika plateau. The mean

annual minimum and maximum temperatures range from 12oC to 32oC. The highest

temperatures occur at the end of October or early November, and the lowest in June

or July. The highest mean air temperatures are recorded in the Lower Shire Valley

(25-26 oC) and some areas along the Lakeshore Plain (23-25 oC). The lowest mean

temperatures (13-15 oC) are recorded over the Nyika, Viphya, Dedza, Mulanje and

Zomba plateaus, Misuku Hills and the Kirk Range. Relative humidity ranges from

50% to 87% for the drier months of September and October and for the wetter

months of January and February.

Climate change studies in the 20th century (Mc Sweeny, 2008; Ngongondo et al,

2011, Ngongondo et al, 2013) show slight decreases in rainfall and actual

evapotranspiration and increases in temperature. Projections show that these trends

are likely to continue through the 21st Century.

Socio-Economic Setting

Agriculture is by far the most important sector of Malawi‟s economy. In 2003, it

contributed 37.6 percent to the country‟s GDP of USD1.700 million. Agriculture

accounts for about 90 percent of the country‟s export earnings, with tobacco alone

accounting for 60 percent, and provides employment for 81 percent of the

economically active population.

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Malawi‟s agricultural sector is characterized by a dualistic structure: A low input/low

productivity smallholder sector and high input/high productivity estate sector. The

smallholder sub-sector comprises a very large number of small-scale farmers

growing mainly food crops for their own consumption but they also grow some cash

crops such as coffee, tobacco, macadamia and cotton. The estate sector comprises a

much smaller number of large-scale farmers, producing almost entirely for the

export market. In 2001, the cultivated area was about 2.34 million ha (25 percent of

the land area) with just over half occupied by agricultural estates.

The main food crop is maize, which accounts for nearly 90 percent of the cultivated

land, supplemented by sorghum, millet, pulses, rice, root crops, vegetables and

fruits. Industrial export crops grown by smallholders include cotton, rice,

groundnuts, coffee, macadamia and tobacco. The main estate-grown crops are

tobacco, coffee, tea and sugar. Malawi is the second largest producer of tobacco in

Africa after Zimbabwe.

Food demand in Malawi has been increasing steadily because of the absolute

increase in population. In addition, droughts like the one of 1991/92, partially of

1996/97 and 2001/02 cause low yields and countrywide crop failures. The country is

currently not able to meet its food requirements, particularly in cereals. The reasons

for the food deficits are:

The failure of food production to keep pace with increases in the human

population;

Lack of water (droughts) and inability to use it for agricultural production;

Declining soil fertility, combined with shrinking average farm holdings;

Inappropriate and outdated agricultural technologies;

The perception by many that maize is the only food when other types of

cereals that are more adapted to drought are available.

Past food production increases were achieved through expansion of the cultivated

area. However, because of the increasing shortage of land and the small size of the

family holding, this is no longer a viable option. Given the relatively low rainfall in

parts of the country and its monomodal pattern, the potential for increased

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production through higher cropping intensities is severely limited without some form

of irrigation. Increased irrigation, particularly in the smallholder sub-sector, is

therefore essential for increased crop production.

According to the National Statistics Office (2008), Malawi‟s current population is

approximately 13,066,320 people, up from 9.9 million in 1998, representing an

overall population increase of 32% that is growing at the rate of 2.8% per annum,

up from 2.0% in 1998. Malawi is regarded among the most densely populated

countries in the world with a population density of 139 person‟s km-2 in 2008, up

from 105 km-2 in 1998. The spatial population distribution in the country indicates

that 45%, 42% and 13% of the people live in the country‟s administrative regions of

south, centre and north respectively. Women and men comprise 51% and 49% of

the population, respectively which is the same as reported for the 1998 Population

and Housing Census Report (NSO, 2002; 2008). The population of the 18 years and

above age-group is 6,216,432, of whom 3,200,000 are females. The overall average

life expectancy is 37 years, which is very low even by African standards.

It is estimated that by end-2001, 15 percent of adults (15-49 years old) in Malawi

were living with HIV/AIDS. The high prevalence of HIV/AIDS has resulted in

increased infant mortality and death rates and in changes in the distribution pattern

of population in terms of age and sex. The 1998 population census revealed a

noticeable drop in the population growth rate, as compared to the projections made

on the basis of the 1987 population census.

Malawi is among the most rapidly urbanising countries in the world. According to a

study released by the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (UNCHS) in

2004, Malawi was in fact first among the most rapidly urbanising countries in the

world, with an urban population growth rate of 6.3%. Statistics published by UN

Habitat estimate that there were 1,101,000 people living in urban areas in Malawi in

1990. This figure is projected to grow to 2,691,000 people by 2010, representing a

144.4% increase in just 20 years. An unprecedented 25.1% of the national

population (i.e. 4,188,000 people) is projected to live in urban areas by 2020 (UN-

Habitat 2008).

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Malawi still remains one of the poorest countries in the world. Malawi ranks 160th out

of 182 countries in the Human Development Index and in 2009, almost half the

population lived in poverty. According to the UN Human Development Report for

2009, about 75% of the population still lives below the income poverty line of

US$1.25 a day and 90% below US$2 a day threshold.

The proportion of the poor is highest in rural areas of the southern and northern

parts of the country. Access to assets, services and economic opportunities is

unequal across the population. Larger households are likely to be poor most

especially those with many children. Access to education is highly inequitable as

well. Almost 30% of poor children do not start primary school even though it is free.

Access to markets and financial services is also restricted especially for smallholder

farmers. Only 12% of the households have got access to credit. Poor diversification

of economic activities results into underemployment. The rural poor are unable to

diversify out of agriculture which is the major economic activity with more than a

third of the rural households depending on it.

A key challenge is rural versus urban per capita spending on water, sanitation and

hygiene (WASH) activities, which reflects a less than equitable share being spent in

rural areas where more than 80% of the population lives. This is particularly the

case for sanitation, which has been neglected in terms of political leadership and in

financing. A 2005 WaterAid report notes that only 3% of the 2005/06 budget was

spent on water and sanitation, and of this only 2.5% was spent on sanitation, with

the remaining 97.5% spent on water. Even with this focus on water, the

Government of Malawi (GoM) has not dedicated funds for operations and

maintenance of the many village based water facilities. The rural subsector also

suffers lack of coordination of investment funds. In 2008, a National Sanitation

Policy was approved, however it is unclear whether this will attract much needed

funding, since limited funds and lack of political interest are the likely causes for

neglecting sanitation.

While policies and legislation surrounding urban water exist, a lack of enforcement

has led to critical gaps for urban populations. The cities of Lilongwe and Blantyre

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each have their own Water Boards responsible for water supply however the Water

Boards in these cities are unable to recover operating costs from user fees. Efforts to

enhance revenue collection are being made, for example through extensive metering

and Water Boards have received increased capacity strengthening over recent years,

in part to boost cost recovery. A new model tested by Lilongwe‟s Water Board for

water kiosks is proving promising and may be tested in other urban areas. The

challenge, however, is that the urban poor cannot afford the prices and as such seek

alternative means such as shallow wells or rivers that are contaminated from point

and non-point sources of pollution. The Water Users Association (WUA) ensures

water availability in urban areas and has been successful in revenue collection, in

addition to engaging service contractors for Water Boards in the bigger cities. WUAs

have also resulted in improved maintenance of community water infrastructure.

Hydrology/Hydrogeology of Malawi

Malawi is generally considered

to be relatively rich in water

resources, which are stored in

the form of lakes, rivers and

aquifers. The country is

divided into 17 Water

Resources Areas (WRAs),

which are subdivided into 78

WRUs (Figure 2). The Lake

Malawi and Chilwa basins are

the two major drainage

systems in the country. The

Lake Malawi system, which is

part of the Zambezi River

basin, dominates the

hydrology of the country. This

system represents 91 percent

of the country and fully Figure 2. WRA’s of Malawi Source: Kumambala (2010)

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located in the Zambezi River basin. The Shire River is the only outlet of Lake Malawi

and has an average flow of 400 m3/s. The Lake experiences mean annual rainfall of

1549 mm. Total annual inflows into the lake amount to 920 m3/s of which 400 m3/s

are from Malawi; 486 m3/s from Tanzania and 41 m3/s from Mozambique (42.6%,

52.9%, 4.5% respectively). The Shire River is Lake Malawi‟s only outlet and has

mean outflow of 395 m3/s. The highest annual outflow was 825 m3/s recorded in

1979/80 whereas the highest monthly outflow of 963 m3/s was recorded in May

1980., with lake levels above a high of 477.2 m above sea level resulting in

widespread flooding a along the lake shore (Parry and Burton 2009). A prolonged

period of drought between 1915 and 1937 resulted in no outflow for the 22 years.

Lake levels are controlled at Kamuzu barrage, located 72 km downstream, mainly to

ensure hydropower generation supply, whose minimum is set at 100 m3/s (Shela

2000).

The Lake Chilwa system, which is shared

with Mozambique, is an endorheic basin

occupying the low lying Phalombe-Chilwa

plain. The lake drains rivers originating

from the eastern slopes of the Shire

Highlands, the Zomba Plateau and the

northern slopes of the Mulanje Massif.

The Lake is shallow with levels not

exceeding 6 meters at peak water level

(Njaya 2001). The lake is very prone to

drying up in years with low rainfall, the

recent being in 1995.

Malawi‟s hydrogeology is characterized by

two main types of aquifers (Figure 3):

The Precambrian weathered

basement complex, which is extensive

but low yielding (up to 2 l/s);

The quaternary alluvial aquifers of the

Figure 3. Malawi’s Hydrolithological

Units Source: Chimphamba et al (2009)

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lakeshore plains and the Lower Shire valley, which are high yielding (up to 20

l/s).

Malawi‟s total renewable water resources are estimated at 17.28 km3/yr (Table 2).

From this, 16.14 km3/yr are produced internally, while about 1 km3/yr comes from

Mozambique via the Ruo River and 0.14 km3/yr is from a lake shared with

Mozambique along the course of the Shire River. Almost all of the internal

groundwater resources of 1.4 km3/yr are thought to be drained by the rivers, as

Malawi is a humid, enclosed country. Water resource distribution is highly variable

both seasonally and geographically, as nearly 90 percent of the runoff in major

rivers occurs between December and June.

Malawi is rich in wetlands, which include lakes, rivers, many reservoirs spread over

the country, and marshes. The most important marshes are the Elephant and Ndindi

marshes in the Lower Shire Valley, the Vwaza Marsh in the Rumphi district, and the

Chia Lagoon in Nkhotakota. The major wetlands of Lake Malawi and Lake Chilwa are

closely monitored under the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance,

especially as Waterfowl Habitat (commonly referred to as RAMSAR Convention) and

UN biodiversity conventions.

Renewable Water Resources Total Units

Precipitation 140 109m3/yr

Total actual internal renewable water resources 17.28 109m3/yr

Total actual renewable water resources per inhabitant

1,401 m3/yr

Total dam capacity 43 106m3

Total water withdrawal 1,005 106m3/yr

Major water users in the country are the municipal sector, irrigation, hydropower,

industry, navigation, recreation and tourism, fisheries and biodiversity. Water

withdrawal for agricultural and municipal purposes has increased over the last

decade as a result of socio-economic development and population growth.

Agriculture/irrigation is still by far the major water-withdrawing sector, accounting

Table 2. Water Sources and Use Source: Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) (2005)

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for over 81% of the total withdrawals, and is followed by the municipal water supply

with 15% and industry with about 5% (FAO, 2005). However, an updated and

comprehensive water resources and water use information database is not available

in the country.

Major Water Management Issues

Malawi has made significant progress on water supply with over 74% of the people

having over two and half million people remain without safe drinking water. The key

challenges and threats facing the water and sanitation sector include the

degradation of water resources, flood management, water demand management,

hydropower generation, drought management, catchment management, stakeholder

coordination, water resources management systems, unharmonised policies,

inadequate service coverage, inadequate financing, increasing water demand as a

result of increasing population, HIV and AIDS prevalence, insufficient capacity, lack

of integrated approach to water resources management and development, climate

change and climate variability, lack of mitigation measures for water related

disasters and inadequate promotion of hygiene and sanitation (National Water Policy

2008; Laisi 2008). According to Laisi (2008), principal of these challenges are

unharmonised policies and laws, inadequate stakeholder coordination, poor

catchment management, inadequate water supply and sanitation and capacity

building.

Water is critical, but often overlooked element in sustainable development of Malawi.

According to Mkandawire et al (2008), water management in Malawi has been the

responsibility of various institutions (Public, Private, NGOs etc). Effective, long lasting

solutions to water problems require a new water governance and management

paradigm using the Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) concept,

which was fully embraced by Malawi as stated in the National Water Policy (2008).

IWRM explicitly challenges conventional, fractional water development and

management systems and places emphasis on integrated approach with more

coordinated decision making across sectors and scales. Recognising that exclusively

top-down, supply led, technically based and sectoral approaches to water

management are imposing unsustainably high economic, social and ecological costs

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on human societies and on the natural environment. The development of the

national IWRM in Malawi, as outlined by Mkandawire et al (2008), was a very

consultative process involving various stakeholders and started in 2004. Key

stakeholders consulted include cross-section of stakeholders such as the GoM, non-

governmental organisations (NGOs), private sector, civil society, community

representatives, the media, academics and research communities.

According to Laisi (2008), presentation indicated plans on mainstreaming of the

IWRM into the development of the nation. The plans stated that strategies should:

Recognize the role and importance of stakeholders

Solicit buy-in from institution and organisations

Build commitment to the reform process

Arrange for an implementation framework

Put in place a monitoring and evaluation framework

Ownership of the government

Various NGOs are involved in water resources management and related projects in

Malawi. WaterAid began work in Malawi in November 1999 and projects are now

under way in four rural areas: Salima, Machinga, Mzimba, and Nkhotakota, with one

urban project in Lilongwe to improve level of sanitation and hygiene. WaterAid works

in partnership with district governments, local NGOs, churches and a public water

utility company. An ongoing national water point mapping project, in which WaterAid

has been involved, indicates that only 57% of the rural population have access to

safe water in comparison to 90% of the urban population. Access to sanitation is

considerably lower with only 15% to 30% of the rural population having access to a

latrine.

On the other hand, UNDP, FAO and WASH initiatives are involved in the water

management issues of the whole country. Considerable progress has been made

across the WASH sector in Malawi, establishing the required policies, strategies and

plans to move forward. However, prioritisation of water over sanitation has led to

the sanitation subsector being neglected and lagging behind MDG targets. Strategic

sanitation planning is still needed. Barriers to progress in the WASH sector include

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financial, managerial and technical capacity limitations at all levels. With regard to

urban areas, Malawi is making excellent progress in access to basic sanitation

(compared to other sub-Saharan countries) which is reported to meet the needs of

98% of the urban population. In practice, Malawi‟s urban areas suffer a chronic lack

of proper disposal of sanitary waste, with only 10% of Blantyre‟s population and 8%

of Lilongwe‟s population connected to sewers, while as of 2009, Mzuzu (another

large town) had no sewers at all.

Main Policy and Strategy Documents, Communication Channels

and Media Links to Water Issues

In recent years, Malawi has undertaken a number of reforms in the water sector.

These reforms are driven by the desire to meet changing national and international

needs and priorities. The reforms include new water policies and legislation,

decentralisation of government functions and efforts to harmonise policies in the

natural resources area. These reforms have not only exerted pressure on the already

understaffed government departments but they have also called for a re-orientation

of staff in order to make them conversant with emerging issues and trends.

The vision of Malawi‟s new national water policy is “water and sanitation for all,

always” and seeks to provide every Malawian with “equitable access to water and

sanitation services for sustainable socio-economic development of the country”

(GOM, 2004). This is a big challenge for Malawi given the country‟s economic

problems and the uneven distribution of water resources. In 2003, the Ministry of

Water Development came up with a strategy paper which outlines plans for the

implementation of its policies and programmes between 2003-2006 (GOM, 2003).

The Government has established a National Water Development Policy, and there is

an ongoing water development project to get good and clean water to the rural

community, upgrading management of water resources and the provision of water

related services.

Areas receiving attention in policy and strategy formulation are

23 | P a g e

Integrated Water Resources Development and Management which will involve

integrated catchment management, thus developing water resources and

managing water taking into account the interactions among water and social

and economic development;

Protection of water resources, water resources and aquatic resources;

Drinking water supply and sanitation,

Water and sustainable urban development;

Water for sustainable food production and rural development and

Impacts of climate change on water resources.

Within the National Water Development Policy, the Malawi Government is keen on

bringing on board communities, water boards, local authorities, the private sector,

NGOs and government line agencies in the areas of forestry, agriculture, national

parks and local governments to address the issue of integrated management of

water resources and drinking water supply and sanitation in the country with full

community participation.

Looking at water allocation according to WASH (2011), urban water supply has only

increased from 90% to 95% since 1990, despite receiving significant infrastructure

investments. This is primarily due to service providers‟ inability to keep up with the

rapid urbanisation, together with inadequate maintenance. Of the 2% of the total

population with access to piped water inside their dwelling, most (70%) live in urban

areas. Rural access to water supply has increased considerably from 33% in 1990 to

77% in 2008. Inequities in service provision of both water and sanitation are openly

acknowledged by GoM and particularly relate to improved sanitation, with coverage

ranging between 12% and 90% in different districts.

Other inequities relate to gender and education levels. Female headed households,

of which there are many due to the prevalence of HIV/AIDS, report a lower level of

access, as do households where the household head has a low level of education.

From 2006-2009, the SADC Regional Water Sector Programme, supported by Danish

International Development agency (DANIDA), has piloted a new approach to water

services through IWRM Demonstration Projects in five countries, including Malawi.

Through „learning by doing‟, a new scalable integrated water services approach was

24 | P a g e

developed, called Local-Level IWRM (or community-based IWRM, or community-

based multiple-use water services). This approach focuses on water resource

management at the lowest appropriate levels, users‟ participation, the inclusion of

women, and financial and environmental sustainability. In these areas, poor people‟s

agrarian livelihoods depend in many ways upon water, but water services levels are

still very low. The participatory approach invariably identified improved access to

water to better meet multiple domestic and productive water needs as highest

priority. Hence, Local-level IWRM was defined as

a water services approach that takes poor people‟s multiple water needs

and their priorities as starting point of the planning and design of new

infrastructure or rehabilitation and sustainable management institutions.

The bottom-up approach has resulted into the communities being more active and

aware on the usage and protection of water resources. It gives them a sense of

ownership which is a single most important aspect of sustainability. By recognizing

and building upon all existing technical and institutional capital in a community both

ownership and sustainability are enhanced at lesser costs than if parallel processes

for infrastructure development for single uses were undertaken.

The media is responsible for the education and awareness of issues of water in the

country. Most notable are on-air programmes on the radio which is far reaching

compared to all other mediums like television, reading materials and the internet. In

recent years, the media has portrayed water issues to be the responsibility of every

citizen in Malawi. However, the government is still seen to be the key player in the

sector followed by NGOs.

25 | P a g e

Water Services and Resources Management Institutional

Settings

The Ministry of Irrigation and Water Development (MoIWD) has the overall

responsibility of managing the water resources. The institutional set up of Ministry is

shown in Figure 4.

The Ministry is headed by the Principal Secretary (PS). The four technical

departments are headed by Directors. The Water Resources Department is

subdivided into Surface Water, Ground Water and Water Quality Sections which are

headed by Deputy Directors. The Water Supply Department is further subdivided

into Operation and Maintenance and Planning and Construction Divisions.

Water supply is decentralized and achieved through five water boards: Blantyre and

Lilongwe Water Boards are responsible for the two large cities with the rest of the

country being supplied by Northern, Central and Southern Region Water Boards.

These Water Boards primarily report to the Water Supply Department. There are

however plans to split the Southern Water Board into two thereby forming the

Eastern Region Water Board. The Water Boards are however poorly capacitated and

Figure 4.

26 | P a g e

reported to be in dire need of restructuring, investment planning and improvements

to achieve efficiency. Local governments also hold some responsibility for water

planning and coordination and some confusion exists regarding conflicting roles of

Water Boards and local governments.

Malawi‟s experience with infrastructure provision gives rise to questions of private

sector participation in infrastructure development. In this regard with funding from

the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has conducted a

study examining the possibilities of allowing private sector participation in

infrastructure development through various modes like Build-Own-Operate or Build-

Operate-Transfer.

The water tariff structure as in 2000 for two of the water boards are shown in table

3.

According to the Ministry of Finance, in the years 2005 to 2010, USAID was the

largest donor, accounting for 43% of all donor funds committed for water and

sanitation projects in Malawi. The multilateral institutions such as African

development Bank and the World Bank, have also committed considerable resources

to water and sanitation. In the period 2007-2010 donor disbursement were 30% of

the total commitments. There was considerable variation amongst the donors with

some of the smaller donors such as Canada, Finland, Iceland and Germany

disbursing as much if not more than their commitments. On the other hand the USA,

the major donor to the WASH sector, had the lowest ratio of disbursements to

commitments at 18% over the four year period. The EU and OPEC, did not disburse

funds despite making commitments to do so. In the case of EU, the main reason for

Consumption charges Quantity Rates

LILONGWE First 100 cubic metres US $ 0.64 per cu. metre

In excess of 100 cubic metres US $ 0.82 per cu. metre

First 10 cubic metres US $ 3.78 per cu. metre

BLANTYRE Up to 30 cubic metres US $ 0.75 per cu. metre

Over 30 cubic Metres US $ 0.88 per cu. metre

Table 3. Water Tariffs as of April, 2000

27 | P a g e

the delay in disbursements was the delay by the government in appointments of

directors of water boards, a condition for release of the funds.

International Corporation Partners (ICPs) is supporting 15 countries in the SADC

region despite the level of their intervention (e.g. one river basin) according to the

SADC RSAP III. The partnership between SADC and its ICPs is guided by the

Windhoek Declaration adopted in April 2006, in which areas of cooperation identified

were HIV/AIDS; water; capacity building; agriculture and food security; trade;

industry; finance and investment; energy; and transport. The EC is the lead donor in

the Joint SADC-ICPs Task Force, whose primary objective is to improve coordination

between ICPs and the SADC Secretariat. The European Investment Bank, the World

Bank, USAID, the UK, the EC and the African Development Bank (AfDB) are major

donors to SADC and COMESA programmes. The Bank closely coordinates with other

ICPs and specialized agencies when implementing its activities.

Existing and Planned Water Infrastructure

Water supply in Malawi is governed by the Water Resources Act, the Blantyre Water

Works Act and the Lilongwe Water Works Act. The overall authority on national

water resources management is the Ministry of Irrigation and Water Development.

Water supply constraints largely stem from huge debts accumulated by the water

providers while at the same time having uncollected funds. The water sector

therefore needs comprehensive and speedy reforms of the water providers to ensure

effective debt collection and hence availability of investment funds. The sector also

may ensure the availability of adequate quantities of water through the construction

of adequate dams and water reservoirs.

There are nine major dams with a height of more than 12 m and with a total storage

of slightly over 43 million m3 (Table 4). They have been constructed mainly for

municipal water supply, except for two that were constructed in the 1950s near

Blantyre for hydroelectric purposes. In addition there are 700,750 small dams with a

storage capacity of approximately 64 million m3, most of which were built during the

colonial period and are in various states of disrepair. Due to lack of maintenance

28 | P a g e

over a long period, most of these small dams require major rehabilitation. Currently

the government has embarked on the rehabilitation of some of these small dams

through various programs as part of the national water conservation strategy.

According to the Water Resources Board, any dam with a dam height of 4.5 m and

above is classified as a large dam; for that reason, dam design reports and drawings

have to be available for technical consideration when a water right application is

processed.

A great part of Malawi‟s water resources, such as Lake Malawi, Lake Chilwa, Lake

Chiuta, and Shire, Ruo and Songwe Rivers are shared with the neighboring countries

of Mozambiqueand the United Republic of Tanzania as trans-boundary and cross-

boundary waters. So far, no major conflicts have arisen over the utilization of these

resources. However, in order to avoid potential conflicts, Malawi is signatory to a

number of international treaties and conventions, including the SADC Protocol on

Shared Watercourses and the 1997 UN Convention of Non-navigational Uses of

International Waters.

On a bilateral level, Malawi is implementing a project for the stabilization of the

Songwe River course jointly with the United Republic of Tanzania, through the

Malawi/United Republic of Tanzania Joint Permanent Commission of Cooperation

Table 4. Existing Large Dams in Malawi Source: Kumambala (2010)

29 | P a g e

(JPCC). The agreement on the establishment of a Joint Water Commission between

Malawi and Mozambique was signed in November, 2003. With Lake Malawi and the

Shire River system being a sub-basin of the Zambezi watercourse, Malawi actively

participates in the Zambezi Watercourse Commission (ZAMCOM), which was signed

by the eight riparian member states of the Zambezi River Basin in July 2004 in

Kasanne, Botswana. Within the SADC region, Malawi is part of other initiatives such

as the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) initiative and the FAO-

supported Convention on the Management of Lake Malawi/Nyasa for Sustainable

Development. This indicates that the Malawi government is taking an initiative in the

protection of the ecosystem.

Even though Malawi has taken steps to support the function of its shared water

resources, the SADC RSAP III states much needs to be done to consolidate the role

of River Basin Organisations (RBOs) and strengthen their capacity to carry out that

role. The SADC Water Division in RBO development will diminish as RBOs get

established and strengthened. RBOs are not only accountable to their respective

states and funding agencies but also to the entire region. Every year RBOs have to

report their progress and performance to the SADC Ministers of Water. This provides

for accountability and responsibility in the basin management.

Water Resources R & D & Science and Technology Institutions-

(Staffing, Facilities & Funding)

INSTITUTION COURSES STUDENT LEVELS

Chancellor College

Hydrology, Geology, Land

& Water Resource Use,

EIA, Environmental

Sciences, Biomonitoring,

Wastewater Management

Expertise to teach

specialized

Courses over 1000

students

List of Institutions Related To Water R&D

30 | P a g e

Mzuzu University

Climatology, Hydrology,

Geology, Meteorology,

Hydrogeology

Expertise to teach

specialized

Courses over 1000

students

Natural Resources

College

Irrigation,Water

Management,

Urban Environmental

Management, CBNRM, Soil

&Water Conservation

Expertise to teach water

related courses, over

1000 students

Malawi

Polytechnic

Geology, Hydrology, Water

and

Waste Water Engineering,

Environmental

Engineering,

Public Health Engineering

Environmental, Chemistry

Laboratory Technicians

Expertise to teach

specialized

Courses over 1000

students

Bunda College of

Agriculture

Agriculture

Soil and Water

Conservation,Irrigation

Engineering

Expertise to teach water

related course, over 1500

students

Ministry of Irrigation and

Water Development

Plumbing, Water Pollution,

Water

Blantyre and Lilongwe

Water Board; Southern ,

Central and

Northern Region Water

Boards

Water supply to piped

areas

According to Mulwafu & Mkandawire (2008), it has long been recognised that

Malawi, like most countries in the southern African region, lacks capacity in various

aspects of the water sector. The situation has recently been exacerbated by a

combination of several factors. First, the enactment of the decentralisation policy in

1999 requires a lot of personnel at the lower levels of government. Many of the

functions that used to be handled at central government will now be dealt with at

district level (GoM, 1998). However, a major constraint to the effective performance

of district assemblies is the lack of human and financial capacity. In the water sector

there is lack of adequately trained personnel to effectively manage water resources

in the newly established district assemblies.

31 | P a g e

The challenge that is hindering the progress on water resources R&D in Malawi is

due to the fact that most institutions are under-staffed and lack appropriate training

to equip staff with high levels of skill. Student enrolment into water related courses

is also poor. It is a challenge to send students to placements into institutions where

they can gain exposure. This is largely due to a lack of funding to provide allowances

for the student to attend such programmes.

Financing

The GoM obtains funding from a variety of sources such as EU, International Union

for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), World Bank, United Nations Children‟s Rights

and Emergency Relief Organization (UNICEF), Japan‟s Official Development

Assistance (ODA) and Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD) for

water supply and sanitation programmes, water policy and legislation, education,

integrated management and conservation campaigns.

Documented Water Sector Capacity Development Needs

Assessment

According to WASH (2011), one of the outlined statements stated that even though

the levels of investment into infrastructure have improved, the rate of water service

provision is still poor. The supply does not satisfy the need.

Despite efforts of the 2005 Water Policy, the Ministry of Irrigation and Water

Development (MoIWD) is reported to be weak and understaffed ‐ in 2008 the

MoIWD had a core staff vacancy rate of 66%, while for support staff it was 22%.

Decentralisation is underway, with Ministry of Local Government (MoLG) tasked with

following through changes at the District Assembly level. District Assemblies (DAs)

are responsible for water and sanitation services. Relatively soon after the National

Sanitation Policy was developed, some DAs developed District Strategy and

Implementation Plans (DSIPs), indicating some preliminary progress in the sector.

However, District Water Offices (which are a component of DAs) are also severely

32 | P a g e

lacking capacity. At the village level, Village Water Committees (VWCs) are expected

to manage the operation and maintenance of a village‟s pumps, with minor repairs

the financial responsibility of the local community.

Success of policies depends on resources, skills and technical expertise of the

responsible institutions. Hence there is need for institutions to be appropriately

structured and provided with a legislative and administrative framework which

promotes efficiency (Aquaknow, 2013). In Malawi this has been promoted by the

introduction of decentralisation and updating regulatory frameworks.

The capacity of institutions should be enhanced by means of human

resources development training as well as material and financial support.

There is also need to establish mechanisms for intersector liaison and co-

ordination, to equitable allocation of water resources between competing

users.

Foster the establishment of sector programmes by the government through

the sector–wide approach

Monitoring equity and poverty indicators management approaches and

strategies to be equitable, gender sensitive and pro poor.

Capacity Development Needs in the Nation

For maximum input to reach all the developmental goals and to achieve all the

policies put forward, there is a need to improve technology. If the communication of

ideas would be more efficient, it might lead to more efficiency in the service

provision. However, to achieve that, extensive funding is needed to bring all those

departments together that work with water and coordinate their activities.

Water sector reforms have been initiated to achieve government‟s goal to improve

the accessibility of water to every individual in the country, to reduce public

expenditure, and to increase stakeholder participation as well as to conform to

international trends in water resources management. Central to the overall water

reform process is institutional reform, which has seen the creation of various policies

and structures to promote IWRM. But implementation of these institutional reforms

is beset by a number of problems, including the lack of human and financial capacity

33 | P a g e

and the uncoordinated implementation of water reform and decentralisation policies

in the country. While the need for technical personnel is greatly required, it is also

important to compliment that with mid-level to high level managerial training. This is

critical for effective policy formulation and implementation. There is need to acquaint

management staff with knowledge of IWRM and other national and international

goals and objectives such as the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) and the

MDGs (UNDP, 2003; Mulwafu & Msosa, 2005; GoM, 2002).

Relation of the Country Situation to the SADC RSAP III

Processes & Any Specific Actions Being Undertaken

The SADC RSAP III talks about shared water courses. An important vehicle of

implementing this policy is the existence of a well functioning RBO mandated by the

protocol and operating under sound legislation, as well as systems to involve

stakeholders in the planning processes (SADC, 2005).

According to the SADC RSAP III, the individual, organisational and institutional

capacities of RBOs are strengthened to improve the sustainable, equitable and

efficient management of shared water courses.

Key activities include:

a) Facilitation of meetings and negotiations between states that share a water

course,

b) Provision of strategic guidance and sharing of best practices,

c) Facilitation of the establishment and strengthening of basin-wide Secretariats.

A great part of Malawi‟s water resources, such as Lake Malawi, Lake Chilwa, Lake

Chiuta, and Shire, Ruo and Songwe Rivers are shared with the neighbouring

countries of Mozambique and the United Republic of Tanzania as transboundary and

crossboundary waters. So far, no major conflicts have arisen over the utilization of

these resources. However, in order to avoid potential conflicts, Malawi is signatory to

a number of international treaties and conventions, including the SADC Protocol on

Shared Watercourses and the 1997 UN Convention of Non-navigational Uses of

International Waters.

34 | P a g e

At a bilateral level, Malawi is implementing a project for the stabilization of the

Songwe River course jointly with the United Republic of Tanzania, through the

Malawi/the United Republic of Tanzania JPCC, and is negotiating with Mozambique

for the establishment of a Joint Water Commission. With Lake Malawi and the Shire

River system being a sub-basin of the Zambezi watercourse, Malawi is actively

participating in the on-going negotiations for the establishment of the ZAMCOM.

Within the SADC region, Malawi is part of other initiatives such as the SIDA initiative

and the FAO-supported Convention on the Management of Lake Malawi/Nyasa for

Sustainable Development.

35 | P a g e

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