In the Mountain Kingdom of Lesotho, a renowned Motswana lawyer, Ms Joy Norman is seized with all important matters of promoting regional integration on water issues as Deputy Commissioner of Lesotho Highlands Water Commission since January 2021.
In a conversation with sustainability and diaspora commentator, Masego Ramakgathi, Ms Norman shares her thoughts, insights and ideals on a wide range of issues on the nexus between water diplomacy, regional integration and sustainability.
At the time when the SADC region, especially land-linked Botswana looks at water as one of the strategic imperatives, alongside energy security to unlock economic opportunities and sustainable development, Ms Norman seems content with the daunting mission at the Commission, an assignment, which in her view, requires and teaches patience, precision and perspective.
“It is about more than water, it is about power, equity and sustainability,” she quips.
She intimates that hydro-diplomacy, as a specialized field in the world of international relations, provides useful insights, saying one of the lessons drawn is that process matters as much as outcome.
Ms Norman believes consensus across borders requires not just legal expertise, but emotional intelligence and cultural sensitivity.
“I have also learnt that institutions must remain adaptable without compromising their core mandates, especially in an environment shaped by politics, climate change and competing national interests.
On regional integration
Her views on promoting regional integration through water diplomacy are quite interesting and bring some measure of optimism, particularly in a region beset with challenges such as drought and acute shortage of potable water.
“Water knows no borders, and neither should our development aspirations” she notes, adding that water issues have become an even more central pillar of regional integration within SADC.
How are we going to do all this?
She is adamant that shared watercourses, when governed equitably, become tools for peace, trade and resilience, adding that the future lies in institutional frameworks that promote cooperation, while recognizing asymmetries in capacity and need.
In essence, she believes integration through water is not only possible, it is essential for collective climate adaptation and sustainability.
Water as a source of conflict and cooperation?
Her experience strongly affirms the held view that water can be a force for cooperation, if managed wisely, citing the Lesotho Highlands Water Project as a powerful case study.
She says despite its complexity, the Project has endured because of a strong legal foundation and continuous dialogue.
“That said, cooperation doesn’t mean the absence of tension. It means commitment to resolving differences through structured, principled engagement.”
Ms Norman believes it is in this delicate balance that the real work and value of hydro diplomacy is found.
As the SADC region looks up to the likes of this highly resourceful and intelligent global worker to secure the future, she shares the sentiment that water is not just a resource, but a human right, a development enabler and a mirror of our governance systems.
She says serving in the water sector has taught her that the future of our region will, in many ways, be shaped by how we manage our shared water, adding that there is nascent urgency in deploying more women and young professionals to provide ethical leadership in this space.
On sustainability
In her own words, when you work with water, you are not just building infrastructure, you are shaping futures.
She believes the Commission presents a great future. In her view, the future is bold and purpose-driven, saying the Commission is not just the custodian of water infrastructure, it is also a steward of trans-boundary cooperation, environmental sustainability and socio-economic transformation, adding that the Commission is evolving to meet the challenges of our time, guided by governance, anchored in law and inspired by impact.
