Miriam Mannak, IPS

Southern Africa: The Indispensable Role of Mud Flats, Marshes and Swamps

CAPETOWN - The need for greater urgency in addressing loss of wetlands in the Zambezi River Basin has been highlighted at a recent meeting in northern Zimbabwe.

"Wetlands are crucial to all forms of life in the Zambezi Basin, yet they are not appreciated the way they should be," said Tabeth Chiuta, the water program coordinator of the World Conservation Union (IUCN).

"Today, only 7.6 percent of the entire Zambezi Basin is covered with wetlands. This percentage is on the decrease because people are unaware of the importance of having and protecting wetlands," she added.

Chiuta was speaking at the third Zambezi Basin-wide Stakeholders Forum, held Nov. 27-29 in Victoria Falls, and organized by the 'Zambezi Action Plan Project 6, Phase 2' (ZACPRO 6.2). This initiative was set up by the Southern African Development Community to push for sustainable use of the basin's resources -- and, in turn, greater socio-economic development in the eight states that encompass the area: Angola, Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The Zambezi Basin is the fourth largest river basin in Africa. It measures 1.3 million square kilometers, and is home to some 40 million people from 30 ethnic groups.

Wetlands encompass a variety of landscapes, including reef and mud flats, mangroves, estuaries, fresh and salt water marshes, and swamps.

Of the states that share the Zambezi Basin, Zambia has the largest number of wetlands. Various factors contribute to the disappearance of these areas, including agricultural encroachment.

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