On Thursday 22 June 2023, the Lesotho Ministry of Natural Resources through the office of the Commissioner of Water and the Department of Water Affairs in partnership with ReNOKA will launch the first-ever “Resilient Catchments” exhibition at Metolong Dam Visitor Centre.
The exhibition celebrates the importance of natural resources in Lesotho and seeks to create public awareness on the main challenges threatening their sustainability. The event highlights Integrated Catchment Management (ICM) approach as a solution to protecting Lesotho’s natural resources.
The three-month exhibition will be open to the public from 22 June to 30 September 2023 to showcase the importance of water and the role of Lesotho’s catchments in environment conservation.
Speaking ahead of the launch, the Integrated Catchment Management (ICM) programme Coordinator, Makomoreng Fanana says: “Water resources and land security in Lesotho are being threatened by catchment degradation. This, in turn, affects the food security and economic growth of the Basotho Nation. The exhibition will be a platform to raise awareness with different audiences on issues such as climate change and unsustainable land management practices, which lead to catchment degradation, thereby threatening our water supply.”
The exhibition also
- Highlights ReNOKA’s Integrated Catchment Management approaches.
- Explains rehabilitation methods and tools for the restoration of catchments.
- Showcases the importance of the Metolong Dam Systems and the lowlands water schemes for water security in Lesotho.
- Presents challenges affecting the Metolong Dam and associated systems.
- Spotlights climate risk assessments and adaptation measures to enhance climate resilience of public infrastructure investment through the implementation of the Public Infrastructure Engineering Vulnerability Committee (PIEVC) protocol.
The exhibition will be held in three main rooms at the Metolong Dam Visitor Centre. Room One can accommodate about 50 people and visitors can watch a series of videos that highlight the issues Lesotho is facing.
Room Two includes a poster display with images highlighting catchment degradation and ecosystem-based and climate-resilient responses.
The third room contains booths allowing visitors to engage with various publications and educational resources containing information on resilient catchments and their importance.
The European Union will also host a photographic exhibition of its own titled ‘New Horizons, a Showcase of Lesotho through the Lens of Human Experience’ featuring the work of local photographers. It will run side by side with the one by ReNOKA.
The Exhibition gives audiences the opportunity to appreciate the beauty of Lesotho and will showcase the natural assets of the Kingdom that ought to be conserved and preserved.
