Introductions; East African politics

 Introductions to this blog series on East African water politics:

My name is Mary Habtes and over the course of several weeks, I will explore the dynamics of water politics, riparian rights, development in conjunction with the growing political unsettlement within the region. I have chosen to focus on East African political issues relating to water for various reasons; firstly I have a emotional tie to the region coming from an East African background, I have seen and heard first hand the numerous economic, social and political issues that have resulted from poor governance, climate issues and stagnant economies and in many occasions water is the common denominator. In addition to this, East Africa has been a key region for water scarcity and heavily publicised since the late 90s due to the level of extreme poverty faced in the region. Much of this has been attributed to inadequate rainfall, extreme climate variabilities exacerbated by climate change, a lack of funding and investment into industries and technologies that alleviate these issues (World Bank, 2019). And what of politics? It would be premature to assume that these issues co-exist without some key sources and one, I believe, is politics in the form of governance, diplomacy and international riparian law. Much of these aforementioned issues are inextricably linked to politics which I am to explore in greater depth over the coming weeks. It is at a key time that I have chosen to explore East African water politics, with an impending war, a raging global pandemic and locust infestations depleting crops, the projections for international relations are tense and the effect on the people may be lethal.

Figure 1: Map of East Africa

East Africa is home to approximately 4450 million people based on the latest United Nation estimates, accounting for 5.7% of the population and an average growth rate of 6.7% between 2013-2017, making it one of the fastest growing regions in the continent (Worldometer, 2020; Tralac, 2018). With a steady growing population and rapid social and urban developments, water issues are inevitable. Some of the key water issues pertaining to rapid urban expansion particularly in Kenya and Tanzania has been the ability to accommodate the expansion of high-quality water supplies for all in an urban setting as well as a host of political public-private water management disputes (K’Akumu, 2004). However, upstream the geopolitical issues pertain to the securitization of water resources of the Nile Basin, notably the feud between Ethiopia and Egypt, dubbed ‘water war’ in which the Nile resources are often used as a political weapon (Cascao et al. 2019). This not only threatens economic development but more imperatively the peace within the region (Deconinck, 2009).  The impacts of urbanisation on a nation’s internal political dynamics and the political turmoil that has resulted from disagreements over the management of water resources are without doubt across a wide array of literature. However, throughout this blog, I will also explore the nexus between climate change, water resources and politics as another subtheme of ‘water and politics’. This theme has not yet been explored widely and there is certainly isn’t any consensus in academic literature of climate-driven political conflict (The conversation), despite this, I aim to also explore how the shift in East African climate can result in water related political issues backed by theory and the tumultuous historical riparian disputes.  

References:

Cascão, A., Rawia, T. and Zeitoun, M., 2019. Routledge handbook on Middle East security: Routledge.

CENTRE, T., 2018. East Africa The Fastest Growing Region In Africa, With People Leading Longer And Healthier Lives. tralac. Available at: https://www.tralac.org/news/article/13721-east-africa-the-fastest-growing-region-in-africa-with-people-leading-longer-and-healthier-lives

Deconinck, S., 2009. Security As A Threat To Development: The Geopolitics Of Water Scarcity In The Nile River Basin. Focus Paper. Available at: https://www.waternet.be/documents/Security_as_a_threat_to_development_Deconinck.pdf

Kakumu, O., 2004. Privatization of the urban water supply in Kenya: policy options for the poor. Environment and Urbanization, 16(2), pp.213-222.

The Conversation. 2020. Politics And Poverty Caused Past Conflicts In East Africa -- Not Climate Change. Available at: https://theconversation.com/politics-and-poverty-caused-past-conflicts-in-east-africa-not-climate-change-96372.

World Bank. 2019. Accelerating Poverty Reduction In Africa: In Five Charts.  Available at: https://www.worldbank.org/en/region/afr/publication/accelerating-poverty-reduction-in-africa-in-five-charts.

Worldometers.info. 2020. Population Of Eastern Africa (2020) - Worldometer. Available at: <https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/eastern-africa-population/.