The 21^st century has witnessed the unfolding of multiple water challenges which require a substantial shift in the way water resources are governed. A multiplicity of factors which include climatic and hydrological conditions, population growth, rural–urban migration, increased per-capita water use, pollution and over-abstraction of groundwater have created a global water crisis which has made efficient and effective water governance a challenge in Africa in general and Eastern and Southern Africa in particular. The global water crisis has thus been defined as a crisis of governance, that is, the failure of water institutions to manage the resource for the well-being of humans and ecosystems. 

Countries in the Eastern and Southern Africa regions are at different stages in putting in place policies and legal frameworks that promote integrated water resources management. Some countries started implementing legal water reforms underpinned by IWRM provisions more than 20 years ago while others started the process later while others have not yet reformed their water sectors. These different stages need a closer analyse in terms of how the policies and legal frameworks of those countries which have been implementing water reforms related to IWRM have impacted on sustainable water resources management viz-a-vis those which have not started the process. The question which need to be answered in this regard relates to IWRM related reforms and sustainable water resources management. 

The SADC region has made great strides in transboundary water governance as the Revised Protocol on Shared Watercourses is in place, as well as a number of transboundary water agreements which have resulted in the setting up of commissions such as those for the Zambezi, Limpopo, Orange-Senque, Okavango and Cunene basins. It is vital to analyse the extent to which these River Basin Organisations are enhancing the management of shared watercourses and how they are implementing the different provisions of their agreements. The challenges which they are facing need to be identified and discussed, including institutional strengthening, creation of services that add value to stakeholders in riparian states and sustainable financing of their programmes to reduce dependence on donor financing. 

Good water governance is intended to enhance the human right to water and sanitation. This emphasises the principle that all people have the right to safe drinking water, sanitation, shelter and basic services. The human right to water is indispensable for leading a life in human dignity. This right is a prerequisite for the realisation of other human rights. Corruption and lack of accountability take away essential financial resources and have become key factors in the high cost, poor quality and even lack of water and sanitation services. In this and other ways they infringe on these human rights and contribute to poor performance against sustainable development goals.

This sub-theme address issues related to appropriate water governance arrangements at different levels, (regional, national and local), stakeholder participation in water management at various scales, legal and policy frameworks for water management and their effectiveness and water service delivery models as well, differentiated pricing/subsidisation/incentives and the human right to water.