Politics threaten viability of Rufiji Basin

Iringa. The Rufiji Basin Water Board officials have said interference from local politicians is among challenges that hinder its ability to carry out and accomplish some of its objectives.

The board thinks that the obstacles could make it more difficult to carry out President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s orders to safeguard the basin’s water supplies.

President Hassan issued roughly eight orders to the Board on December 22, 2022, when she presided over the filling up of the Julius Nyerere Hydroelectric Dam. The orders were to make sure that the nation and its citizens benefited from the Rufiji basin and its agricultural potential.

But her directives also required the Board to make concerted efforts to safeguard the river basin’s environment in order to guarantee a steady supply of water for the dam and the neighbouring agricultural and fishing activities.

But the Rufiji Basin Water Board’s (RBWB) director, Mr Florence Mahay, said the carrying out of directives would require solving some of the most pressing challenges that the Board faces. He mentioned these challenges as including the scarcity of human and financial resources and the low efficiency in the use of water caused by poor irrigation infrastructure.

Another challenge is political interference in water resources management activities that leads to delays in achieving the board’s objectives.

Mr Mahay said low revenue collection is also a problem. This year, the Basin has a collection target of Sh2.56 billion, but last year it only collected Sh1.7 billion, up from Sh923.5 million in 2021.

“This hinders the board’s efforts in the implementation of some of our goals, including fighting invaders who are behind the destruction of water sources,” he said.

Furthermore, he told journalists who visited the basin that a lot of funds are required in order to cover basin operations.

However, Mr Mahay, who was speaking in Iringa, said the much-needed funds have not been available, thus forcing the board to devise alternative ways to protect water sources.

According to him, close monitoring of the river basin is a costly affair, and the board has neither enough funds nor enough manpower for such an endeavour.

“We have a serious shortage of workers, especially experts. The board needs a total of 276 hands in order to operate properly and efficiently, but we only have about 70 employees,” he explained.

They are not enough to monitor and protect water sources in each area and assess the amount of water available, he noted.

It should be noted that the Rufiji Water Basin is the largest of the nine basins in the country with 183,775 km2, which is more than six times the size of Burundi.

Mr David Mginya, the acting director of corporate services at the Rufiji basin’s board, said that every election year, politicians have been the source of disruption in the sustainability plans for the water sources.

“A politician tells people to build or use water sources illegally in order to get votes. This hampers our conservation efforts greatly,” he said.

The absence of a competitive water balance between the agriculture and energy sectors is also a challenge that needs to be addressed so that all important sectors benefit and that water sources are protected. And to address it, all stakeholders must be fully involved.

Mr Mginya cites the experience of Mbarali District, where farmers violate with wanton impunity the beacons erected to prevent farming activities 60 metres from the Mbarali River.

Showing journalists the extent of destruction when they visited the site, Mbarali Chini River Users Association secretary Idrisa Nyahove blamed politicians for abetting the destruction.

“Removing someone from the area isn’t a small task. Politicians have been causing trouble because they are the ones who encourage and defend invaders for their political gains,” said Mr Nyahove.

According to him, over 30 farmers have been arrested and brought before the law; he notes, however, that legal action has not thwarted trespassing, as others still defiantly continue their activities in the prohibited area.

For his part, the Board’s hydrologist, Mr Ally Diwani, said management of water resources requires a broad-based approach that includes all stakeholders, from the grassroots to the national level.

“The management requires financial resources and undertakes different functions. So, it is very important for the government and stakeholders to dig deeper in their pockets to provide enough funds that will cover the needed activities as the board strives to find ways of achieving the goals,” he noted.