Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi met with his Namibian counterpart Hage Geingob in Windhoek on Thursday to explore the possibility of collaborating on a water project. Namibia has already begun talks with an investor who is offering desalinating water from the Atlantic Ocean. Being a good neighbour and alive to Botswana’s water challenges, Geingob invited his Botswana counterpart to visit Namibia to meet the investor to share thoughts on the project, Masisi announced on his official social media pages.
“We are happy with the prospects because we need the water. However, our ministers and technocrats have to determine what is best for us bearing in mind our governance procedures,” Masisi wrote.
Botswana has faced water shortage problems in the past. The country’s latest and most severe shortage was between 2014 and 2016 when Gaborone Dam, which supplies the city metropolis, dried up completely. Being landlocked, Botswana relies heavily on dam water, with hydrological experts warning it has reached its capacity for major dams. That being the case, Botswana’s only hope of meeting its country’s forecast long-term water demand are cross-border schemes such as the anticipated collaboration with Namibia.
Source: http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/africa/2021-02/25/c_139767363.htm
