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TRANSBOUNDARY WATER MANAGEMENTImage: N.H. MpambaImage: N.H. MpambaCommunity dam management meeting in Gwembe DistrictA rural water supply borehole in Gwembe Districtas evidenced by the Water Supply and Sanitation Act of 1997; theestablishment of the National Water Supply and Sanitation Council(NWASCO) as a regulator for service provision under the water supplyand sanitation subsector; the creation of commercial utilities (CUs)owned by local authorities for improved water supply and sanitationservice provision in urban and peri-urban areas; the establishmentof the Devolution Trust Fund (a pro-poor fund currently supportedby cooperating partners to facilitate investment for improved watersupply and sanitation service provision in peri-urban areas by CUs);and the provision of support for the sustainable operation and maintenanceof rural water supply facilities by user communities. Watersector reforms in Zambia have been guided by the following sevensector principles adopted by GRZ in 1994:• separation of water resources managementfrom water supply and sanitation• separation of regulatory and executive functions• devolution of authority to local authorities andprivate enterprises• full cost recovery in the long term• human resources development leading to more effectiveinstitutions• technology appropriate to local conditions• increased GRZ priority and budget spending to the sector.More importantly, Zambia can now state that 61 per cent of therural population have access to improved safe water supply sourcesand 48 per cent have access to adequate sanitation. The statistics forurban areas are 78 per cent and 50 per cent respectively.In order to address shortcomings and enhanceservice provision in the water resources managementsubsector, the 1994 National Water Policywas revised in 2010. The revised policy now hasprovisions for the management of water resources atcatchment level in the country to ensure efficiency,and provisions for the development of a legal andinstitutional framework for management of internationalwaters. It also recognizes that water is a scarceand precious resource, and thereby outlines thebroad principles that govern the management of thecountry’s water resources in a sustainable manner.Most importantly, the policy reinforces integratedwater resources management as the guiding principleto optimally harness water resources for efficientand sustainable utilization for enhanced economicproductivity and poverty reduction. The country isnow subdivided into six catchments: Zambezi, Kafue,Luangwa, Chambeshi, Luapula and Tanganyika.To complete the water sector reforms that started in1994 with the water supply and sanitation subsector,the Zambian parliament enacted the Water ResourcesManagement (WRM) Act, No. 21 of 2011 as a newlegal framework for the water resources managementsubsector. Unlike the 1949 Water Act, the new legalframework specifically includes the regulation ofgroundwater and provides for the establishment ofinstitutions responsible for water resources manage-[ 94 ]