Khotsong Bo-'Mé le Bo-Ntate,

It is with great pleasure that I welcome you this afternoon to the official launch of Metsi a Lesotho.

Metsi has been, from the very beginning, at the centre of the almost 50-year-long partnership between the Kingdom of Lesotho and the European Union.

In my hands, I am holding in my hand a piece of the history of Lesotho-EU water cooperation: the final report of the identification study of the Lesotho Highlands Water project dated September 1985.

This document is a testimony to our long-standing and unbroken cooperation in this sector.

After this ceremony the report will be transferred to the Central Library of the National University of Lesotho and consigned to history, but the contributions of EU water sector cooperation produced results tangible until today:

• The construction of the Muela hydro-power plant, which to date provides significant revenue generation and around half of Lesotho’s electricity needs as well as other investments under  the first phase of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project.
• The rehabilitation of the wastewater treatment plants in Maseru, providing improved sanitation coverage for over 100,000 people, and the construction of water supply networks for Maputsoe, Teyateyaneng, and Roma.
• The Metolong Dam providing clean water for over 400,000 people, including right here in Maseru.
• In 2027 the Lowlands Water Development Programme - Phase II of which Team Europe is a key partner, is expected to provide safe drinking water for 280,000 people in Hlotse, Maputsoe, Mohale’s Hoek, and Mafeteng.

Last year, Right Hon. Prime Minister Matekane, Hon. Minister Matlanyane, we launched new programmes to support Lesotho’s renewable energy and social protection sectors. This year, our teams have worked together to formulate a new action in the water sector.

Today’s launch of Metsi a Lesotho represents a further step in our unbroken partnership of nearly 50 years, a partnership based on long-term sustainability and shared prosperity, a partnership that stands for quality investments.

Inspired by Global Gateway, the European strategy to boost smart, clean, and secure links in digital, climate, energy, and transport sectors and to strengthen health, education, and research systems across the world – Metsi a Lesotho aims to ensure communities have access to clean water and sanitation services, while preserving water and land resources for present and future generations.

Lesotho is often described as the “Water Tower of Southern Africa” and portrayed as a country rich in water, providing around one-third of the water in Gauteng and contributing 40% of the Senqu-Orange river basin.

At the same time, this image of abundance is still in contrast with the lived reality of many people in Lesotho who have to walk long distances to access water, who experience malfunctioning water service delivery, or who are faced with polluted water sources [1].

For this reason, the number one priority in the European Union’s cooperation with Lesotho, through this new programme we launch today, is to ensure that everyone enjoys the right to safe drinking water and that no one is left behind.

For instance, as Hon Minister Moleko knows well, the European Investment Bank is supporting as part of the Lesotho Lowlands Water Development Project – Phase 2, the construction of a tunnel extension to increase the provision of water to Maseru, Peka, Maputsoe and Hlotse towns and the adjacent communities.

Back to Metsi a Lesotho, its first pillar will focus on the construction and rehabilitation of water and sanitation facilities in 250 rural communities, 125 schools, and 15 clinics, benefiting around 120,000 people.

These activities will be implemented from this year in partnership with UNICEF – and I seize this opportunity to acknowledge the presence of Deepak Bhaskaran, UNICEF Representative, and thank him and his team for the extensive work to develop this joint intervention, which will also be co-funded by UNICEF.

Besides ensuring that more people in Lesotho have access to water, Metsi a Lesotho wants to preserve this precious resource – upon which our own health, food systems, infrastructure, and livelihoods crucially depend – for present and future generations.

Water is not an endless resource, even less so as we battle with the ongoing climate crisis, in a region – Southern Africa – which is bound to become more water-scarce as a result.

Climate change causes extreme and unpredictable weather events which lead, as a result, to crop failure, more frequent droughts, or roads and bridges being washed away by torrential rains and storms.

Climate action is therefore crucial at global, regional, and local levels. In Lesotho, this means ensuring water resources are managed sustainably for future generations and that we work together to preserve the quality of water and land.

For this reason, Metsi a Lesotho will also provide an additional contribution to ReNoka, Lesotho’s flagship initiative to protect and conserve the water and land resources of the Mountain Kingdom and the Orange-Senqu River Basin.

ReNOKA currently implements rehabilitation measures in 18 priority areas. The aim is to extend the coverage to additional 19 areas, covering 50% of total catchments.

Working with the communities and for the communities, ReNOKA has already successfully realised soil rehabilitation measures in the country, reclaiming 565 hectares of watersheds, through a combination of measures such as: the mounting of terraces, drifts and gabions, silt traps, erosion blankets and stone bunds. Wetlands are replenishing, grasslands are regenerating, and native flora and fauna are thriving.ReNOKA is also working with the communities to provide livelihoods support, for instance through community saving groups, and help bring their  products such as potatoes, honey, rosehip, to markets.

Allow me to thank all those who work tirelessly to make ReNOKA a success – I recognise in particular the Minister of Natural Resources, Hon. Mohlomi Moleko; Principal Secretary Rethabile Lebeta; as well as the entire ReNOKA and GIZ teams.

We count on your leadership to ensure ReNOKA’s integrated approach to land and water conservation is enshrined in a solid institutional and legal framework, through the adoption of the reviewed Water Act.In the spirit of Team Europe, ReNOKA is currently also co-funded by Germany, and I sincerely hope – Ambassador Peschke – that we can count on the continued support of your Government also for the new phase.

In closing, I would like to reiterate that Metsi a Lesotho is based on the conviction that land and water conservation is crucial to sustain health, food, energy systems, livelihoods, jobs, and skills. Preserving the environment and socio-economic prosperity are not contradictory objectives, but one and the same.

Prime Minister, Your Excellences, Bo-'Mé le Bo-Ntate, as we celebrate 200 years of the Basotho nation, let live and act by the motto “kopano ke matla” “Unity is strength”. Metsi a Lesotho brings together government, development partners, and civil society towards the goal of a better Lesotho.

In closing, allow me to extend my heartfelt gratitude to the government of Lesotho for a continued fruitful partnership. May our joint efforts continue to bring improvements to the lives of the people of Lesotho.

Thank you. Khotso. Pula. Nala.

[1] 26 percent of Basotho nationally lack access to safe water access, this is worse for rural areas as only 57 percent of people have access to basic water service