The Role Of Sub- Regional Organizations In Preventing Water-Related Conflicts In The Eastern African Region.

Abstract

The main purpose of this paper is twofold: First, i t examines the preventive efforts taken by IGAD, EAC and ICGLR to prevent and manage water-rel ated conflicts in the Eastern African Region, and second, it analyzes the extent to which these sub regional organizations have been able and are willing to mainstream prevention and m anagement of water related conflicts in their institutional culture and work. Section one discuss es the debates for and against water wars. In doing so, it demonstrators why cooperation is impor tant while managing shared water resources. Section two offers regional perspectives on specific examples, causes, and impacts of the water- related conflicts in the Eastern African Region. S ection three examines how the prevention of water related conflicts within the sub regional org anisations: East African Community (EAC), Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) a nd International Conference on Great Lakes Region (ICGLR). S ections Four shows the successes and challenges faced by these organizations and what needs to be enhanced to make the sub regional organisations more effective. This examination shows that great stride s have been made by individual sub regional organizations to include the frameworks on the prev ention of water related conflicts in their organizations. But what is lacking is the co-ordina tion across these sub regional organizations them. The concluding section tries to highlight the fact that, while each sub regiona l organization is characterized by its own constraints and opportu nities, some key challenges are similar to all – among them, the necessity for local, national, regi onal and international stakeholders' coordination and cooperation when dealing with wate r –related conflicts. Key to this paper is the argument that prevention of water related conflicts in this region must produce results. Therefore, the sub-regional organizations have to b e proactively engaged in the prevention of these conflicts. There is much that these organizations can learn fr om each other’s experiences in making the prevention of water-related conflicts in this regio n work. It is this exchange of experiences – of successes and failures –that will help determine if the prevention of these conflicts will indeed emerge as a core principal of regional interaction in the years to come