HIDROPOLÍTICA, ESCASSEZ HÍDRICA E SEGURANÇA ALIMENTAR NO SUL DE ANGOLA: UMA ABORDAGEM TEÓRICA SOBRE A VULNERABILIDADE SOCIOECOLÓGICA NAS BACIAS HIDROGRÁFICAS ÁRIDAS

Jerónimo Tchipepe Adriano Lofa

doi:10.69807/2966-0785.2026.438

Authors

Jerónimo Tchipepe Adriano Lofa

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.69807/2966-0785.2026.438

Keywords:

Hydropolitics, Water scarcity, Food security, Socio-ecological vulnerability, Angola

Abstract

This theoretical essay examines the relationship between hydropolitics, water scarcity and food security in southern Angola, emphasising the socio-ecological vulnerability of the arid and semi-arid Cuvelai and Cunene river basins. It is based on a narrative review of scientific literature and technical reports from international organisations, combining the frameworks of water security, hydro-hegemony, social-ecological systems, vulnerability and resilience. The paper argues that the food insecurity recorded during the 2020-2022 drought did not result from rainfall deficit alone, but from the interaction of climate variability, insufficient water infrastructure, asymmetries in transboundary governance, restricted access to common-pool resources and dependence on rainfed agriculture and pastoralism. Four conceptual maps, six tables supported by verifiable sources and an indicator matrix for monitoring water resilience are proposed. The study concludes that food security in the arid basins of southern Angola requires integrated approaches that combine transboundary management, adaptation grounded in local knowledge and environmental education aimed at water literacy.

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