Limpopo Basin Climate Strategy

The Lower Limpopo basin in Mozambique suffers from hydrological variability. Floods and droughts impact on the poor population of the basin, jeopardizing livelihoods, health and human safety. This is projected to continue due to climate change. Access to water is also limited, and poverty is prevalent. The Government of Mozambique (GoM) identified the need for resilient solutions to minimize the impacts of hydrological variability within the Limpopo basin, and provide sustainable access to water for the population. We were appointed to strengthen the ability of the lower Limpopo basin in Mozambique to cope with current and future hydrological variability.

Our approach to building resilience in the Limpopo Basin was to identify water resources-related risks faced by key economic sectors as a result of climate related impacts. This included an overview of population, as well as the socio-economic characteristics of the basin. By conducting a vulnerability assessment of the different regions of the basin, and also evaluating the existing capacity to cope with (or adapt to) hydrological variability and climate related risks, we identified the vulnerable sectors along the different regions. Subsequently, we developed a set of interventions that build resilience in each of the different regions of the basin. The priority interventions, which were housed in a climate strategy, were deemed as optimal and resilient solutions to building socio-economic resilience, in the context of future climate projections.