The drainage basin for the Umzimvubu River is located along the northern boundary of the Eastern Cape and includes ten local municipalities. Northern uplands and central areas are mostly covered with grasslands (~70% of the area), whereas transitions to savanna occur in the southeast. It represents a key biodiversity hotspot for its terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems.
The Matatiele Municipality in the Umzimvubu catchment is largely rural, and livestock rearing, and small-scale agricultural activities are key sectors. However, low levels of economic activity take place there, as small-scale/subsistence agriculture is not quantified in the formal economy. Livelihoods are supported by a complex combination of income and resources from social grants, intermittent employment and remittances, with high levels of poverty and unemployment.
Regarding climate-related threats, the most common challenges are long-term droughts, affecting water availability; livestock raising, and wildfires, as well as flooding and resulting soil erosion. The groups most affected by these challenges are remote and rural communities.
Climate services current use, gaps and ideas for improving
Regional climate services are available in the municipality, but participants report limited access to them. Local communities rely on indigenous knowledge to predict local weather, particularly rainfall cycles and planting seasons, but this is not integrated into regional and local climate services. In addition, changing climate patterns are making both official and indigenous forecasts increasingly unreliable.
Ideas being explored to improve climate services in this region include the co-design of accessible and community-relevant climate data tools, aimed at better supporting rural farmers and local stakeholders. Another area of focus involves linking early warning systems with localized disaster risk management activities, particularly around fire and flood events, to enable more proactive response measures. Additionally, enhancing communication channels between climate service providers and local communities is seen as important, with the goal of strengthening the technical capacity of local disaster management committees and ensuring a smoother flow of critical climate information.
Existing and proposed Nature-based Solution activities linked to Climate Services
Many local nature-based solution projects have been implemented in the last 20 years, e.g., spring and land rehabilitation, invasive plant clearing, and rangeland and water management.
In this regard, activities that are implemented and managed by established agencies in the catchment, namely restoration of degraded rangelands by planting of indigenous grass/shrubs, sustainable grazing and restoration practices; smart agriculture initiatives (integrate indigenous species, enhance wind protection) are ongoing in the catchment. However, there is a need for better integration of climate services into these nature-based approaches and scaling existing approaches such as wetland restoration to enhance water filtration and biodiversity, as well as flood mitigation; and fire management activities, including information exchange and training on controlled burning through the co-development of climate service tools within the catchment with the local-level stakeholders.
Umzimvubu Catchment Hub, South Africa
Umzimvubu , South Africa
- Region: East Southern Africa
- Climate: Temperate without dry season cold summer (Cfb)
Umzimvubu Catchment Hub, South Africa
- Region: East Southern Africa
- Climate: Temperate without dry season cold summer (Cfb)