Menare Royal Mabakeng

SGSP CANDIDATES PROFILING Q&A

17. You were chosen as a beneficiary of this scholarship, out of several applicants across the SADC region. How does this make you feel?

1. I feel blessed and Grateful to God for the opportunity. Gratitude to the selection committee for the confidence in the research concept. I am happy that I had support from my colleagues, family, and friends.

17. What motivated you to take up studies in Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM)?

1. Improved access to water in informal settlements needs urgent solutions. As a land administration researcher merging with Integrated water resource management can help identify community-responsive solutions. Seeing that Water supply and sanitation in peri-urban areas were on the SADC Water Research Agenda gave me additional incentive to pursue the research for IWRM for informal settlements. This, for me, was indicative of a plan for future support within the region by stakeholders towards addressing the water challenges in informal settlements. .

17. What do you see as some of the greatest challenges being experienced in the IWRM sector, particularly in your home country?

1. Investment in Water infrastructure is a challenge that I am observing for Namibia and many countries in Africa. This tends to affect water distribution and general management.

17. When it is all done and dusted, what would you like the impact of your research project to be?

1. I hope my research will bring about a paradigm shift in how water delivery decisions are made for informal communities, where residents are seen as partners that, too, can provide solutions to the current challenges. Most importantly, I would like the research to add to the new knowledge on how to improve water tenure security in informal settlements. I hope that the findings will aid in the drafting and implementation of improved policy and implementation strategies for overall water security in urban areas.