Lesotho Highlands: Water Woes or Win–Wins?

This case study examines the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP), a large-scale transboundary water transfer scheme between Lesotho and South Africa. While praised for its engineering, the project has faced significant challenges regarding corruption, social displacement, and the long-term impact of climate change on water security.

• The Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) is a massive engineering effort designed to divert water from Lesotho's highlands to South Africa's Gauteng province via gravity tunnels and dams, with a maximum capacity of 70 cubic metres per second (70 m3/s).
• A primary benefit for Lesotho is the generation of hydroelectric power at the Muela station, which reduces the country's total dependence on South Africa's Eskom for energy. The hydroelectric component is estimated to represent about 5% of project costs.
• The project has caused significant social and environmental disruption, including the displacement of 27,000 people during Phase 1A and 325 households in Phase 1B. Ecological impacts include the endangerment of the Maloti minnow fish species and the loss of up to 10% of arable land due to construction accidents or sabotage.
• The LHWP has been plagued by governance failures and corruption, including bribery charges dating back to 1994, allegations of embezzlement against a former minister of natural resources, and the World Bank sanctioning companies like Lahmeyer International GmbH and Acres International for fraud.
• Climate change and recurrent droughts have complicated the project's viability, leading to concerns that Lesotho may be 'exporting itself into water scarcity' and disrupting the livelihoods of communities reliant on the river.
• Phase II of the project, involving the Polihali dam, additional tunnels, and a pumping plant, was agreed in principle on 16 May 2013 with an estimated cost to the South African government of ZAR 9.2 billion and a target completion date of August 2020.

APA

Wentworth, L. (2013). Lesotho Highlands: Water Woes or Win–Wins? South African Institute of International Affairs. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/REV_SAIIA_perisa_infr_wentworth_20131213.pdf

Chicago

Wentworth, Lesley. Lesotho Highlands: Water Woes or Win–Wins? South African Institute of International Affairs, 2013. https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/REV_SAIIA_perisa_infr_wentworth_20131213.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Wentworth |first1=Lesley |title=Lesotho Highlands: Water Woes or Win–Wins? |publisher=South African Institute of International Affairs |date=August 2013 |url=https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/REV_SAIIA_perisa_infr_wentworth_20131213.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{wentworth2013lesotho, author = {Wentworth, Lesley}, title = {{Lesotho Highlands: Water Woes or Win–Wins?}}, institution = {South African Institute of International Affairs}, year = {2013}, month = aug, url = {https://saiia.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/REV_SAIIA_perisa_infr_wentworth_20131213.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }