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Latest Update (March 22nd 2005):
CLICK HERE to see results from Yonge Nawe World Water Day Poster Competition, and to view the winning posters.

Yonge Nawe recognizes water as a basic human right to be accessed by everyone irrespective of race, economic and social status, or whatsoever. It also identifies it as a key to sustainable development. This is in support of the African ministers’ resolve of removing water from the margins to the center of sustainable development agenda in Africa. 
Thus at Yonge Nawe we seek to defend the uses of the water resources in the public interest. We strive for equitable distribution and use of the water resource to make sure every citizen as per his/her basic right has access to adequate supply of good quality water. 

We therefore structure our activities to fulfill the program objectives as stated below: 

• Seek ways of efficiently distributing water among its many uses and users, giving priority to the basic needs. 
• Ensure that development around the water base have minimal impact on the natural environment in order not to disturb its capability of regenerating fresh water. 

1. Socio-economic and environmental impact of the Maguga Dam Project. 

Construction of large dams has resulted in very adverse socio-economic and environmental impacts. People have been displaced and not compensated adequately; there has also been adverse effect on biodiversity. A lack of equity in the distribution of benefits has also been observed. A research will be carried out on the Maguga dam project to determine its socio-economic and environmental impacts. The research serves to determine the effectiveness of large water infrastructures in their efforts to offer developmental benefits such as provision of adequate water, agricultural and industrial expansion and whether these benefits are sustainable. 

2. Survey on extent of Demand-side Management in Swaziland 

We have close to enough water in store and flowing that can serve the different purposes such that we would afford not to or rather postpone building more storage. Demand management is important to avail the water to all. Agriculture and the municipalities are demanding more than they require. We have always approached the issue of water provision on the supply angle, which is mostly the construction of dams for the different water uses. Yet we never bothered to consider the demand side. We will have to deal with the demand issue. Leak detection and repair is said to reduce demand by 50%. Strict-pollution measures in industries, modified agricultural practices are some of the means we can adopt to reduce demand of water. Studies show that just 35-50% of water withdrawn for irrigated agriculture actually reaches the crops. The rest of 50-65% is lost, owing to the use of inefficient systems.