Project to secure 386m litres of water for Swakop River Basin

CHAMWE KAIRA

Namibia Breweries Limited, WWF Namibia and the Global Water Challenge have signed a N$13 million, five-year agreement to strengthen water security in the Swakop River Basin, a critical water source for communities, farms and industry across central Namibia.

This will secure around 386 million litres of annual water benefits by 2030, equal to more than 150 Olympic-sized swimming pools from 153 hectares of land restored or under improved management.

The Swakop Basin Collective Action Project is also known as the NBL Water Balancing Project.

The five-year initiative brings together government, civil society and the private sector to address shared water challenges and strengthen water security and climate resilience in the Swakop River Basin.

Drawing on the City of Windhoek’s recognised expertise in water management and reclamation, the partnership will support efforts to strengthen water security and improve the sustainable management of the Swakop River Basin.

The initiative builds on NBL’s ongoing commitment to responsible water stewardship.

In 2025, the company improved its water efficiency to 3.56 litres of water for every litre of product produced and is working towards reducing this to 2.4 litres by 2030 under its Brew a Better Namibia 2030 strategy.

Waldemar von Lieres, managing director, Namibia Breweries Limited, said: “Our ambition is to lead by example in water stewardship, inside our brewery and beyond. Since 2015, we have invested more than N$35 million in reducing our own water footprint and have increased our water efficiency by 30% since 2024. Our N$13 million commitment over five years to the Water Balancing Project extends that investment into the shared basin on which we all depend. Working with our partners, we aim to strengthen water security for communities, businesses and ecosystems, helping build a water-resilient future for Namibia.”

NBL is part of Heineken company, and water stewardship is a core part of Heineken’s Brew a Better World strategy, which aims to balance the water used in its products in water-stressed areas.

This project supports NBL’s water balancing ambitions and demonstrates the value of collective action in addressing shared water challenges.

The Swakop River Basin is a critical water source for communities, agriculture, industry and towns across central Namibia.

Teofilus Nghitila, executive director, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform, said: “The Government of Namibia remains committed to strengthening water security and climate resilience through sustainable water resource management.”

By 2030, the project is expected to deliver approximately 386 million litres of annual water benefits through interventions in the upper Swakop catchment.

These include managed aquifer recharge and other nature-based solutions to improve groundwater recharge and water quality, the removal of invasive alien plants from riverbeds, and strengthened water governance through the development of a Sub-Basin Water Allocation and Abstraction Plan.

The project will also restore or improve the management of 153 hectares of land. The annual water benefit is equivalent to more than 150 Olympic-sized swimming pools.