Basin lacks long-term, sustainable financing
The World Bank Group has approved a $10 million (approximately P142.05 million) grant from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Trust Fund to support the Cubango-Okavango River Basin project, which focuses on financing innovation in transboundary water management.
According to the international group, the grant will help capitalise and operationalise an endowment fund aimed at protecting one of Africa’s most ecologically significant transboundary river systems, shared by Angola, Botswana and Namibia.
The Cubango-Okavango River Basin (CORB) is home to the Okavango Delta, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA). In addition, the basin supports the livelihoods of more than one million people who rely on its water, biodiversity and ecosystem services. Despite its ecological and economic importance, the basin has faced a persistent lack of long-term, sustainable financing for coordinated natural resource management and resilient development across the three riparian countries.
The new project directly addresses this gap by supporting the capitalisation of the CORB Fund, an innovative financing mechanism established under the Permanent Okavango River Basin Water Commission (OKACOM). The GEF grant provides $4 million (approximately P56.82 million) in seed capital towards an endowment fund with a total capitalisation goal of $20 million (approximately P284.09 million), to be achieved through matching contributions from the riparian states and international partners. “Transboundary water basins require long-term, cooperative solutions that go beyond individual country boundaries,” said World Bank Regional Director for the Planet Department for Eastern and Southern Africa, Anna Wellenstein.
“By supporting the establishment of a self-sustaining fund, the World Bank is creating the conditions for long-term environmental resilience, the foundation for jobs and economic prosperity for communities that depend on this extraordinary river basin.” The project will develop a pipeline of potential investments through pre-feasibility and feasibility studies in areas such as nature-based tourism, renewable energy and wetland restoration. It will also strengthen the governance, operational systems and monitoring capacity of the CORB Fund Secretariat, while supporting capacity building on the economics of biodiversity to inform future investments.
“Delivered through the World Bank, this GEF support to operationalise and capitalise the CORB Fund marks a critical step towards securing sustainable financing for the globally significant Okavango Delta,” said Executive Secretary of OKACOM, Phera Ramoeli. “This investment will help strengthen the basin’s long-term resilience while improving livelihoods for communities across the shared waters of Angola, Botswana and Namibia.” The project will be implemented by OKACOM through the CORB Fund Secretariat, in full alignment with parallel support from the European Union and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
According to the international group, the grant will help capitalise and operationalise an endowment fund aimed at protecting one of Africa’s most ecologically significant transboundary river systems, shared by Angola, Botswana and Namibia.
The Cubango-Okavango River Basin (CORB) is home to the Okavango Delta, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA). In addition, the basin supports the livelihoods of more than one million people who rely on its water, biodiversity and ecosystem services. Despite its ecological and economic importance, the basin has faced a persistent lack of long-term, sustainable financing for coordinated natural resource management and resilient development across the three riparian countries.
The new project directly addresses this gap by supporting the capitalisation of the CORB Fund, an innovative financing mechanism established under the Permanent Okavango River Basin Water Commission (OKACOM). The GEF grant provides $4 million (approximately P56.82 million) in seed capital towards an endowment fund with a total capitalisation goal of $20 million (approximately P284.09 million), to be achieved through matching contributions from the riparian states and international partners. “Transboundary water basins require long-term, cooperative solutions that go beyond individual country boundaries,” said World Bank Regional Director for the Planet Department for Eastern and Southern Africa, Anna Wellenstein.
“By supporting the establishment of a self-sustaining fund, the World Bank is creating the conditions for long-term environmental resilience, the foundation for jobs and economic prosperity for communities that depend on this extraordinary river basin.” The project will develop a pipeline of potential investments through pre-feasibility and feasibility studies in areas such as nature-based tourism, renewable energy and wetland restoration. It will also strengthen the governance, operational systems and monitoring capacity of the CORB Fund Secretariat, while supporting capacity building on the economics of biodiversity to inform future investments.
“Delivered through the World Bank, this GEF support to operationalise and capitalise the CORB Fund marks a critical step towards securing sustainable financing for the globally significant Okavango Delta,” said Executive Secretary of OKACOM, Phera Ramoeli. “This investment will help strengthen the basin’s long-term resilience while improving livelihoods for communities across the shared waters of Angola, Botswana and Namibia.” The project will be implemented by OKACOM through the CORB Fund Secretariat, in full alignment with parallel support from the European Union and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
