Concluding Thoughts

Over the course of this blogging series, I have shown how global environmental change will affect water resources across Africa. As we have seen, climate change is likely to have a significant influence on groundwater and surface water supplies into the future. In particular, there are likely to be many adverse effects of longer droughts on urban and rural water supplies with vulnerabilities to drought varying across different sectors of society. However, there are also numerous socio-economic stressors which will interact with climate change to influence water resources. As a developing country, rapid population growth and urbanisation in Africa are likely to increase the demand for water. However, given the uncertainties related to hydro-climatic modelling, it is important to continue investing in up-to-date research and tools in Africa to develop a clearer understanding of the relationship between water use, demand and availability. 

One of the main things I have taken away from this blog is the idea that global warming will force humanity to rethink its relationship with water. In the future, current levels of water consumption and traditional management techniques are unlikely to be sustainable under projected environmental changes. Therefore, we need to work on developing new strategies that are embedded in resilience and flexibility to ensure we can meet the water challenges of the future.