A Behind the Front Page teleconference exchange on the politics of water scarcity in Africa, from the Nile to the Zambezi. 

According to the United Nations, About 66 percent of the African contintent is arid or semi-arid, and more than 300 of the 800 million people in sub-Saharan Africa live in a water-scarce environment. Africa’s population is also set to double within a generation to over 2 billion people by 2045. What is the current state of the continent's water resources? Can international cooperation mitigate the risk of armed conflict over the management of major river systems? 

Featuring:

Dr. Kenneth Strzepek, Research Scientist, Joint Program and CGCS, MIT; Professor Emeritus of Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Engineering, University of Boulder at Colorado

Kenneth Strzepek has spent 30 years as a researcher and practitioner at the nexus of engineering, environmental and economics systems, primarily related to water resource planning and management, river basin planning, and modeling of agricultural, environmental, and water resources systems. Read more.

Dr. Anthony Turton, Professor at University of Free State, Centre for Environmental Management & Trustee, Water Stewardship Council of Southern Africa

Dr. Anthony Turton is a trained scientist specializing in water resource management as a strategic issue with a robust publication record. Read more.

Moderator:

Dr. Sylvia Macauley, Professor & Chair, Department of Africana Studies, California State University Northridge

Dr. Sylvia Macauley is the chair of California State University, Northridge’s Department of Africana Studies. She attained a bachelors’ degree from Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, and a doctorate in history from Howard University. Read more.