The ASB and LCB basins share their exposure to severe environmental crises: both basins experience a dramatic decrease in their water levels and volume with huge environmental and socio-economic impacts on the population living in the adjacent areas and are dependent on water resources for their livelihoods. In both regions, the most exposed population are marginalized groups (e.g. single mothers, women, migrants and people with lower socio-economic status), indigenous groups that lives in remote areas far away from political centers and attention, while the impacts are felt in the whole basin. The pathways for mitigation of these crises and more sustainable water governance need to be developed for the whole basins.
In LCB, the droughts, flooding and shrinking of this basin caused by climate change, drive tensions among local communities as well as displacement to other regions. This region is a plural region with mixed identities and different migrant categories (e.g. Shuwa, Kanuri, Kanembu, Hausa, Mandara, Higi, Igbo, etc.). Furthermore, the local inhabitants speak different local languages and dialects. The region has also various ethnicities and indigenous groups. All are in a way depending on the access to LCB for their livelihoods, different economic activities and cross-border trading as the LCB is traversing through four countries, incl. Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon and Chad. The organised crime groups and the herder-farmer conflicts that are active in the region further challenge the already problematic management of LCB. Although there are government attempts to stop the drying up of the lake water surface, using the local institutions, and sub-groups engaged in decision-making processes, there is still a lot to be solved in the upcoming years, as to strengthen also the management of water resources in the region.
The environmental disaster from ASB is well-known globally (excessive use of water for irrigation, abandoned irrigation canals, presence of ancient settlements and water use, high population concentration in the ASB, etc.) and now this water body is practically on the verge of complete disappearance, affecting not only the large population living there but also the ecosystem and biodiversity of the basin. Moreover, taking into account the construction of the Qosh Tepa Channel by Afghanistan raise even more the importance of water diplomacy and cooperation that need to be fostered among states in the ASB.
In this context, the proposed project aims to enhance the quality of interdisciplinary education and knowledge sharing, strengthen existing capacities and promote innovative research through mobility within master programs (MPs), innovative teaching module, ToT courses and research activities, as to achieve sustainable governance and management of ASB and LCB.