The Seinoli Legal Centre, a grantee of the SRT, has produced a film that outlines the potential impact of a large-scale water-transfer project on local communities in Lesotho. The Lesotho-Botswana Water Transfer Scheme is being conducted under an agreement between the governments of Lesotho, Botswana, and South Africa. The project involves the construction of a dam along the Makhaleng river in the southern lowlands of Lesotho, which will supply Botswana with water through a conveyance water pipeline passing through South Africa. The project will also provide electricity to complement the system power needs of the local towns in the countries.
The Seinoli Legal Centre has consulted with the 21 communities along the river to determine their awareness of the project and its potential impact. They have produced a film based on their conversations with the locals, which provides a stark look at their rural way of life and what is at stake for them.
The Seinoli Legal Centre has reported two key findings. Firstly, no official communication has been made to the communities regarding the project, indicating that the principle of Free, Prior and Informed Consent has not been applied. Secondly, the standards of living and livelihoods of communities living along the river will be greatly affected, as they will be forced to resettle to make way for the dam, losing their land and the surrounding natural resources. The residents have voiced concerns on many aspects, from what would happen to their animals to what would happen to their graves. However, the main concern for most of the residents interviewed is that, being so heavily reliant on agriculture, animal rearing, and a rural way of life, many were not formally educated and did not feel equipped to live elsewhere.
After making this film, the Seinoli Legal Centre has called on the project authorities to ensure that members of communities to be affected are put at the center of this project and that their rights and interests are respected. The Seinoli Legal Centre is a public interest legal organization that protects the rights of communities affected by the construction of dams and large infrastructure in Lesotho. The film can be viewed in full below.
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