Page 44 - CIWA Water Data Revolution Overview Report

scope, experience large latency in data reporting and require extensive maintenance attention
in order to remain reliably in operation, reducing their practicality for real‐time decision making.
Where the need for information is arguably greatest, the data collection infrastructure and
human capacity to monitor and forecast hazards is generally low because of a decline in hydro‐
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meteorological monitoring networks over the past 30 years and an ongoing lack of investment
in infrastructure and training. A key limitation at the national, sub-regional, and continental levels
is the paucity of data on water resources. This limitation is linked to inadequate human skills for
the collection, assessment, and dissemination of data on water resources.

Information on quantity and quality of water resources is essential for equitable, efficient usage
of transboundary water. This in turn is imperative for addressing other major development
challenges in the region including agricultural production, enhancing food security and reducing
conflict and displacements. 90 percent of water in Africa falls within 63 international river basin
catchments crossed by multiple borders. As a result of this, water management in the region is
inherently an international and cooperative endeavor. Management of water resources directly
impacts various sectors, such as agriculture, energy, environment, and urban planning, all of
which require sustainable and efficient transboundary water usage, practices, and policies to
function optimally. However, data and observations on water resource dynamics are imperative
for improving transboundary water resource management (WRM) and resiliency to hydrological
extremes. Data provides a foundation for efficient and environmentally sound management of
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water with proper consideration for upstream and downstream users . RBOs and water
institutors are formed to collaborate on addressing these shared issues but often lack the tools
with which to understand the complete situation. To face these challenges adequately,
governments and regional organizations need data-driven decisions to inform cooperative
transboundary water management. That is, sustainable transboundary water management
requires timely, pragmatic decisions based on adequate information on the current status of
resources, historical trends in their use, and future availability of the resource. This information
includes measurements on rainfall and stocks and flows of surface and groundwater which are
key to making decisions to improve water quality and water use, to ensure long-term
environmental protection of these resources and to ensure local and regional economies are
protected and their use of the resource.

Recent innovations in data collection and management create an opportunity for improved cross-
border data and information sharing, enabling a near future where cooperative data-driven
decision making can become standard practice in trans-boundary WRM. Most countries in Africa
currently use data systems based in older technology and are therefore somewhat ‘locked-in’ to
such outdated approaches. Data collection was historically, primarily, a physical activity which
took place locally, installing hydro-meteorological meters, rain gauges and the like. However,
there are challenges in the use of in-situ data, namely that it can be sparse due to inadequate

7 Lorenz, C., & Kunstmann, H. (2012). The hydrological cycle in three state‐of‐the‐art reanalyses: Intercomparison and performance
analysis. Journal of Hydrometeorology, 13 (5), 1397-1420.
8 García, L.E, Rodríguez, D. J. , Wijnen, M., & Pakulski, I. (Eds.). (2016). Earth observation for water resources management: Current use and
future opportunities for the water sector. Washington, DC: World Bank Group.
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