Malawi and Tanzania signed a memorandum of understanding last month at the Bingu International Convention Centre (BICC), in Lilongwe, Malawi, which will see the two African nations work together for the development of the Songwe River Basin Development Programme (SRBDP).

The SRBDP was prepared with the support of the African Water Facility and the African Union’s New Partnership for Africa’s Development Infrastructure Project Preparation Facility (IPPF), both hosted by the African Development Bank (AfDB). The programme is expected to generate economic, social, environmental and livelihood benefits for the people of the Songwe basin. It will also enhance food and energy security and boost economic growth on the border between the Southern African countries.

This $829-million transboundary programme seeks to develop a multipurpose dam, which is expected to supply up to 180 MW of hydroelectric power. It will also provide water for an irrigation scheme covering about 3 000 ha in each of the countries and control floods in the densely populated lower part of the basin.

Two small towns with a population of about 86 000 inhabitants and some 36 neighbouring villages will be provided with water through this programme. Other components of the programme include rural electrification, social infrastructure and institutional capacity building.

“This integrated and transboundary programme is in alignment with current strategic priorities of the AfDB, the High 5s, and builds the resilience of local communities to the effects of climate change,” says AfDB Malawi resident representative Andrew Mwaba.

The AfDB’s High 5s refer to the five priorities to accelerate Africa’s economic transformation, namely to light up and power Africa, feed its people, industrialise, integrate, and improve the quality of life for the people of Africa.

The development of the SRBDP envisages the use of the public–private partnership (PPPs) approach. The IPPF and the African Legal Support Facility, another initiative hosted by the AfDB, are currently exploring the funding of an adviser to the project to handle issues related to PPPs.

Many other donors attended the signing ceremony and donor conference, including the European Investment Bank, the World Bank and the Development Bank of Southern Africa, all of which expressed interest in supporting the project. Private companies in attendance also indicated interest, particularly in the dam and the hydropower plant aspects of the programme.