Water is a scarce and precious commodity in Southern Africa. Southern Africa faces many challenges in the water sector, especially as most of the national economies in the region depend on agriculture or other water related activities such as fisheries and mariculture. Rainfall is the dominant source of water in the region and it may vary dramatically within the region. Average precipitation ranges from 4000 mm to less than 50 mm.  Only 19%of the region receives more than 1500 mm of rain annually and 24%receives less than 500 mm each year. In order to create political and civil support for implementation of coping strategies, there is a need to relate the issue to socio-economic development including land use, access to natural resources and poverty alleviation.

This collection of resources highlights some of the water issues faced with in southern Africa. Providing a look at current news articles, water initiatives, various documents on water and issues surrounding problem and solutions, several case studies, water related links, discussions on management of water and the impact of a water crisis, including water related maps for the region.