20. (1) The Minister, after consultation with institutions and other stakeholders and persons having an interest in water resources in a basin or part of a basin, may recognise a group of representatives of such institutions, stakeholders and persons who are organised or associated for the purpose of organising, planning or dealing with matters relating to the development, management, protection and enhancement of water resources in the basin or part of the basin, to be a basin committee for the purposes of this Act in furtherance of the Government’s objective in achieving an integrated management of water resources. (2) The Minister may recognise a group of representatives and persons as a basin management committee only if the Minister is satisfied - (a) that interests in the use and management of water resources in the basin or part of the basin concerned are broadly represented in the membership of the group, including interested government ministries, regional councils, local authorities, State-owned enterprises or other statutory institutions and organisations, institutions or associations representing interests in the private sector; and (b) that membership of the group will be open for inclusion of further representatives of any other institutions or stakeholders or interested persons as may be directed by the Minister in writing to the group concerned for the purposes of achieving broad representation of interests in their membership. (3) A basin management committee may be recognised for any purpose connected with the use protection, development, conservation, management or control of a water resource in a basin or part of a basin, including purposes connected with - (a) an aquifer; (b) shared water supply infrastructure; (c) an area comprising adjacent geographic entities with joint water resource management features; (d) an area defined for common management of water resources; (e) irrigation activities. (4) If the Minister proposes to recognise a basin management committee, the Minister must, by notice given in the prescribed manner to owners and occupiers of land situated in the area proposed to be defined as the water management area of the committee - (a) notify the owners and occupiers of - (i) the proposed recognition of the basin management committee; (ii) the purpose for which the committee proposed to be recognised; (iii) the proposed boundaries of the area to be established and defined as the water management area of the committee; and (iv) any limitations or prohibitions proposed to be imposed to be applicable in the management area; and
(c) to establish and promote institutional relationships between river basin organisations within Namibia and international river basin organisations; (d) to encourage the participation of Namibian stakeholders in discussions concerning the identification and formulation of the interests of Namibia in the development of internationally shared water resources; (e) to protect the international water resource quality, including discussion with upstream states to reduce or prevent the deterioration of water quality resulting from activities in upstream states; (f) to develop and improve human resource capacity to participate in the management of shared water resources, including negotiations, consultations and conflict resolution; and (g) to establish mechanisms, or negotiate the revision of mechanisms, for the management, prevention and resolution of disputes relating to internationally shared water resources. Giving effect to international agreements 29. (1) For the purpose of ensuring the enforcement and compliance with Namibia’s rights and obligations under any international agreement referred to in subsection (2), or any amendment of such an agreement, the Minister may make such regulations as the Minister may consider necessary or expedient for carrying out and for giving effect to the agreement. (2) The international agreements relating to shared water resources binding on Namibia in relation to which regulations contemplated in subsection (1) may be made, are the following: (a) Establishment of the Orange-Senqu River Commission (Orasecom) agreement entered into on 3 November 2000 between the Kingdom of Lesotho, the Republic of Botswana, the Republic of South Africa and the Republic of Namibia; (b) Establishment of a Permanent Okavango River Basin Water Commission (Okacom) entered into on 15 September 1994 between the Republic of Angola, the Republic of Botswana, and the Republic of Namibia; (c) Zambesi Watercourse Commission (Zamcom) agreement entered into on 13 July 2004 between the Republic of Angola, the Republic of Botswana, the Republic of Malawi, the Republic of Mozambique, the Republic of Namibia, the United Republic of Tanzania, the Republic of Zambia and the Republic of Zimbabwe; (d) Kunene Permanent Joint Technical Commission agreement endorsed and affirmed between the Republic of Angola and the Republic of Namibia; and (e) any other agreement relating to internationally shared water resources binding on Namibia, announced by the Minister by notice in the Gazette for the purposes of this subsection. PART 7 MANAGEMENT OF RURAL WATER SUPPLY Water point committees and local water committees