It is increasingly understood that integrated water resource management (IWRM) is required, not only to balance water for food and nature, but also to unlock paths to sustainable development. A global hotspot area in terms of water for food and improved livelihoods is in the poverty stricken rural areas of water scarce semi-arid tropics, such as in the Limpopo basin. Here, translating IWRM from concept to action still remains largely undone. Water policy and institutions are embedded in a conventional blue water framework, mainly concerned with (runoff) water supply for irrigation, domestic use and industry. This water resource strategy has limitations. Blue water resources for irrigation are over-committed in the Limpopo basin, while the bulk of agricultural produce sustaining lives of resource poor farmers originates from green water flows in rainfed crop and livestock production.

Rainfed agriculture is a risky business, due to recurrent droughts and dryspells. Despite these risks there is a large untapped yield potential even in the semi-arid rainfed areas. Water productivity, yields and thereby livelihoods can be improved, through integrated soil and water management for dryspell and drought mitigation. Management practices are largely known. The challenge is to enable an adaptive process of participatory farm development, which is supported by institutions and policies based on an IWRM framework that incorporates all facets of managing green and blue water resource.

This proposal takes on the challenge of developing a framework for a new IWRM based water governance from village to basin scale in the Limpopo Basin, which integrates green and blue water management for improved rural livelihoods, while at the same time addressing water resource management at the catchment and basin scales. Participatory on-farm research from field to watershed will focus on productive use of alluvial aquifers, shallow water tables, and surface runoff, using water harvesting systems. Focus is on adaptive management for risk reduction, yield and water productivity improvements. Trade-offs between upstream-downstream water uses will be studied, as well as options for improved irrigation efficiencies downstream.

The proposal will focus its research in three pilot catchments in Zimbabwe (Mzingwane),
Mo?ambique (Chokwe) and South Africa (Olifants). The proposed 5-year project is coordinated by WaterNet, a SADC and GWP supported network on research and capacity building on IWRM in Southern Africa. The proposal includes 17 partners with long experience in water research and development in the Limpopo basin (13 NARES, 1 ARI, 2 CGIAR Centres, and 1 NGO). The proposal is action oriented and founded on gender sensitive and participatory methodologies, which will enable it to be a real partner in development.

The project will generate a new knowledge base on appropriate agricultural water management. Guidelines for catchment management will be developed and further upscaled to a needs-based IWRM framework for sustainable water for food development at basin scale. The project has a strong focus on human capacity building, from farm to policy level. Knowledge will be integrated with WaterNet human capacity building activities in Southern Africa, contributing to the training of a new generation of IWRM managers.

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• WaterNet
  
• IWMI
• ICRISAT
• Unesco-IHE
• World Vision Zimbabwe
• National University of Science and Technology (NUST), Department of Civil Engineering
• National University of Science and Technology (NUST), Department of Environmental Sciences
• University of Zimbabwe, Department of Civil Engineering
• University of Zimbabwe, Department of Soil Science and Agricultural Engineering
• University of Zimbabwe, Centre for Applied Social Sciences (CASS)
• University of Zimbabwe, Mineral Resources Centre (MRC)
• DAREX
• Agricultural Research Council
• Mzingwane Catchment Council
• Universidade Eduardo Mondlane (UEM), Faculdade de Agronomia e Engenharia Florestal
• Instituto Nacional de Investigacao Agronomica (INIA)
• ARA-SUL Administracao Regional de Aguas do Sul
• University of Natal, School of Bioresources Engineering and Environmental Hydrology (BEEH)
• Department of Water Affairs (DWAF)/ Lapelle Catchment Management Agency