GOM SIGNS ZAMBEZI WATER COMMISSION TO STEM WATER

UNCLAS LILONGWE 000678 SIPDIS SENSITIVE DEPT FOR OES/PCI GABORONE FOR REO (TPIERCE) DEPT OF INTERIOR FOR USBR/INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS (MHOOD) E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SENV ENRG EAID ECON MI SUBJECT: GOM SIGNS ZAMBEZI WATER COMMISSION TO STEM WATER WEED PROBLEM REF: A. LILONGWE 585 ¶B. LILONGWE 45 ¶C. 03 LILONGWE 935 ¶1. (U) Upon his return from the July 15 Zambezi Water Commission (ZAMCOM) signing ceremony, Minister of Mining, Natural Resources, and Environment Davis Katsonga said the GOM hoped the Commission would help solve the Shire River's continuing difficulties with water weeds, which are a root cause of the current electricity supply problems. "When the agreement is ratified," Katsonga said, "hopefully in the next session of Parliament, Malawi will ask Tanzania to look at how the weeds problem can be dealt with from their side." ZAMCOM, which aims to promote, support, coordinate, and harmonize the management and development of water resources in the Zambezi watershed, allows signatories "to accuse or call for remedial measures" if there is mismanagement in upstream countries, according to the Minister. COMMENT -------------- ¶2. (SBU) ZAMCOM is the first agreement on water resource management that Tanzania, Mozambique, and Malawi, the three countries that border Lake Malawi/Niassa/Nyasa, have all signed. Although the Commission does not apply specifically to the Lake, it should provide an underlying framework for engagement on water issues. ¶3. (SBU) The decision to join ZAMCOM also marks a change in the GOM's foreign policy regarding the Lake. Due to concerns over territorial and usage rights on the Lake (reftel C),the GOM had previously avoided bi-lateral and multi-lateral agreements that supported Tanzania's claims to actually own (rather than to have usage rights of) parts of the Northern end of the Lake. It appears that although the GOM may not publicly announce a policy change, the pressing need to coordinate on Lake management issues has forced the GOM to relax its position. RASPOLIC