Squeezing Africa Dry - Water Grabbing
Squeezing Africa Dry - Water Grabbing
In the preceding blogs we explored the forms of cooperation and conflict which arise from both surface water and groundwater resources. Within this blog post we'll explore the conflicts which arise from the exploitation of water resources by those actors that exist externally of the continent of Africa itself. The concept of water grabbing refers to 'situations where powerful actors take control of valuable water resources for their own benefit' (Franco et al 2014) often resulting in inequitable distribution of these water resources. Water is life, from sustaining the ecosystems in which we rely to the agriculture which feeds us all. Agriculture is in fact the major driver of water grabbing with large scale land acquisitions (LSLAs) often resulting from the quest for water resources to sustain agricultural production on the acquired land (Dell'Angelo et al 2018). Water grabbing therefore exists as a kin term to land grabbing. Land grabbing was defined at the 2011 Tirana conference of the International Land Coalition as the 'acquisition of land in violation of human rights without prior consent of the preexisting land users and with no consideration of the social or environmental impacts' (Quoted in Rulli et al 2013). Behind every land grab there is a water grab. Rulli et al (2013) estimated that 0.7-1.75% of the world's agricultural land has involved land grabbing as of 2012 - and because 86% of human appropriation of fresh water resources is to sustain agricultural production - water grabbing is the predominant force behind land grabbing.
Source - Oxfam - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYh8NoT3bwQ
Niger River
The 4,180km Niger river snakes it's way across West Africa originating in Guinea and travelling through arid Mali, Niger, Benin and finally emptying out into the Atlantic through Nigeria. Despite millions relying on the river for their livelihoods, nations along the river have been subject to major land grabs putting increased stress on already stressed water resources. Mali for example granted over 544,567 hectares to large investors which increased the amount of water that could be diverted from the Niger for irrigation (Oakland Institute 2011a). The land grabs have mainly occurred within the semi-autonomous region in Mali known as Office du Niger which has the responsibility of building an irrigation system to ensure food security for Mali (Diawara 2011). The Oakland institute estimates that 7.5-12.91km3 of water would be diverted from the Niger river if 1 million hectares of land come under increased cultivation (Oakland Institute 2011a). Water diversions impact those downstream and some locals have already loss their livelihoods such as the loss of valuable market gardens for female farmers in the Office du Niger region due to the construction of a canal for the Malibya project (Oakland Institute 2011b). As more smallholders are displaced as land is leased out to large scale investors it becomes more unlikely that smallholders will be able to find arable land elsewhere. Future conflicts are bound to arise in the future from limitation of water levels, location of new lands and protests by local populations.
Omo River Valley
Contestation around water resources due to water grabbing has also arisen in the Omo River Valley in Ethiopia which is one of the most culturally and ecologically unique areas of Sub-Saharan Africa. The region has become the focus of the Gibe III Hydroelectric project - since 2008 over 350,000 hectares of land have been assigned for commercial agricultural production within the region (Oakland Institute 2011c). The dam will be the tallest in Africa but it's impacts on indigenous groups will also be monumental resulting in displacement of land, loss of floodwaters and considerable impacts downstream. For example, studies show that irrigating 150,000 hectares would lower Lake Turkana by 8m by 2024, if 300,000 hectares are irrigated it could lower the lake level by 17m - threatening the very future of the lake which has an average depth of only 30m (Oakland Institute 2011c). Over 200,000 agro-pastoralists rely on annual flooding within the lower Omo valley. The unique ethnic and diverse ethnic groups which inhabit the lower Omo valley will not only lose their land and their livelihoods but also their identities.
Kara parent with the Omo river behind (Source - https://www.oaklandinstitute.org/guardian-reviews-findings-ethiopia)
The Future
The extent of current water grabbing is huge and unsustainable - the Oakland institute estimated that if land acquisition continued at 2009 levels (40 million hectares of land requiring 300-500 cubic kilometres of water per year), new land investments alone would overtake existing supply of renewable fresh water on the continent by 2019 (Oakland Institute 2011a). Instead of continuing to unsustainably auction land off for large scale investors which puts immense pressure on limited water resources, there is potential to build on Africa's already highly sophisticated indigenous water management systems - though these same systems are the ones being destroyed by land and water grabbing. With the threats/uncertainty of climate change and ever increasing global populations, it is the access to water rather than the actual land which has become of increasing value. Many of these land deals involve vast industrial agricultural operations which are unsustainable in the long run consuming enormous amounts of water - this coupled with the fact they often occupy fertile yet fragile wetlands and river basins already occupied by unique communities. More sustainable local and participative irrigation and water management techniques are needed to sustain the livelihoods of rural populations whilst simultaneously sustaining the ecosystems in which they rely.
Within this blog we have now explored the biopolitical and geopolitical dimensions behind water conflicts within Africa. We have also explored how water resources both above and below ground result in conflict and cooperation. This blog and the preceding blogs have looked at the international dimensions of hydropolitics, within the next blog we will scale down exploring local hydropolitics.
In the preceding blogs we explored the forms of cooperation and conflict which arise from both surface water and groundwater resources. Within this blog post we'll explore the conflicts which arise from the exploitation of water resources by those actors that exist externally of the continent of Africa itself. The concept of water grabbing refers to 'situations where powerful actors take control of valuable water resources for their own benefit' (Franco et al 2014) often resulting in inequitable distribution of these water resources. Water is life, from sustaining the ecosystems in which we rely to the agriculture which feeds us all. Agriculture is in fact the major driver of water grabbing with large scale land acquisitions (LSLAs) often resulting from the quest for water resources to sustain agricultural production on the acquired land (Dell'Angelo et al 2018). Water grabbing therefore exists as a kin term to land grabbing. Land grabbing was defined at the 2011 Tirana conference of the International Land Coalition as the 'acquisition of land in violation of human rights without prior consent of the preexisting land users and with no consideration of the social or environmental impacts' (Quoted in Rulli et al 2013). Behind every land grab there is a water grab. Rulli et al (2013) estimated that 0.7-1.75% of the world's agricultural land has involved land grabbing as of 2012 - and because 86% of human appropriation of fresh water resources is to sustain agricultural production - water grabbing is the predominant force behind land grabbing.
Source - Oxfam - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYh8NoT3bwQ
Africa has been a major target of grabbed land and therefore water; Africa accounts for 47% of global grabbed area with the Democratic Republic of Congo accounting for the largest amount of grabbed land globally at 17.15% of total global grabbed land (Rulli et al 2013). The concept of virtual water can be used to help to understand water grabbing. Nations who are water scarce are investing in fertile land to produce food for their own nation e.g. Saudi Arabia which does not lack land for food production but water. Saudi Arabia between 2004-2009 leased 376,000 hectares of land in Sudan to grow wheat and rice whilst simultaneously cutting back on wheat production on home soil within the same period (NewScientist 2011). Saudi Arabia's decision likely resulted from it being cheaper to produce these products in Africa whilst also reducing pressure on their aquifers which are viewed as a finite resource - but the water in Africa is also finite and is relied on by vast numbers of Africans.
Niger River
The 4,180km Niger river snakes it's way across West Africa originating in Guinea and travelling through arid Mali, Niger, Benin and finally emptying out into the Atlantic through Nigeria. Despite millions relying on the river for their livelihoods, nations along the river have been subject to major land grabs putting increased stress on already stressed water resources. Mali for example granted over 544,567 hectares to large investors which increased the amount of water that could be diverted from the Niger for irrigation (Oakland Institute 2011a). The land grabs have mainly occurred within the semi-autonomous region in Mali known as Office du Niger which has the responsibility of building an irrigation system to ensure food security for Mali (Diawara 2011). The Oakland institute estimates that 7.5-12.91km3 of water would be diverted from the Niger river if 1 million hectares of land come under increased cultivation (Oakland Institute 2011a). Water diversions impact those downstream and some locals have already loss their livelihoods such as the loss of valuable market gardens for female farmers in the Office du Niger region due to the construction of a canal for the Malibya project (Oakland Institute 2011b). As more smallholders are displaced as land is leased out to large scale investors it becomes more unlikely that smallholders will be able to find arable land elsewhere. Future conflicts are bound to arise in the future from limitation of water levels, location of new lands and protests by local populations.
Omo River Valley
Contestation around water resources due to water grabbing has also arisen in the Omo River Valley in Ethiopia which is one of the most culturally and ecologically unique areas of Sub-Saharan Africa. The region has become the focus of the Gibe III Hydroelectric project - since 2008 over 350,000 hectares of land have been assigned for commercial agricultural production within the region (Oakland Institute 2011c). The dam will be the tallest in Africa but it's impacts on indigenous groups will also be monumental resulting in displacement of land, loss of floodwaters and considerable impacts downstream. For example, studies show that irrigating 150,000 hectares would lower Lake Turkana by 8m by 2024, if 300,000 hectares are irrigated it could lower the lake level by 17m - threatening the very future of the lake which has an average depth of only 30m (Oakland Institute 2011c). Over 200,000 agro-pastoralists rely on annual flooding within the lower Omo valley. The unique ethnic and diverse ethnic groups which inhabit the lower Omo valley will not only lose their land and their livelihoods but also their identities.
Kara parent with the Omo river behind (Source - https://www.oaklandinstitute.org/guardian-reviews-findings-ethiopia)
The Future
The extent of current water grabbing is huge and unsustainable - the Oakland institute estimated that if land acquisition continued at 2009 levels (40 million hectares of land requiring 300-500 cubic kilometres of water per year), new land investments alone would overtake existing supply of renewable fresh water on the continent by 2019 (Oakland Institute 2011a). Instead of continuing to unsustainably auction land off for large scale investors which puts immense pressure on limited water resources, there is potential to build on Africa's already highly sophisticated indigenous water management systems - though these same systems are the ones being destroyed by land and water grabbing. With the threats/uncertainty of climate change and ever increasing global populations, it is the access to water rather than the actual land which has become of increasing value. Many of these land deals involve vast industrial agricultural operations which are unsustainable in the long run consuming enormous amounts of water - this coupled with the fact they often occupy fertile yet fragile wetlands and river basins already occupied by unique communities. More sustainable local and participative irrigation and water management techniques are needed to sustain the livelihoods of rural populations whilst simultaneously sustaining the ecosystems in which they rely.
Within this blog we have now explored the biopolitical and geopolitical dimensions behind water conflicts within Africa. We have also explored how water resources both above and below ground result in conflict and cooperation. This blog and the preceding blogs have looked at the international dimensions of hydropolitics, within the next blog we will scale down exploring local hydropolitics.
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