Water is at the center of human development. It is a renewable resource unlike any other, being, among other things, essential and non-substitutable, fugitive and bulky, abundant but also scarce (Swatuk, 2021). It exists as a liquid, gas and solid and functions in a complex system (Savenije, 2002). Its presence and its absence, seasonal and permanent, have shaped the world's societies and cultures. The ability to capture it and turn it toward particular ends laid the foundation for the rise and fall of civilizations (Solomon, 2010; Swatuk, 2019; Wittfogel, 1957; Worster, 1985). This has been no less the case in Sub-Saharan Africa, where changing socio-political and socio-economic relations through time create the mosaic of developmental opportunities and challenges seen today.

Colonial and imperial practices, which often overlaid indigenous socio-ecological systems without completely displacing them, bequeathed to the continent a series of dualisms: the cohabitation of “foreign”—e.g., Dutch-Roman Law—and Indigenous legal and institutional arrangements; commercial plantation-style agriculture set alongside smallholder, livelihood-oriented, farm practices; the use of rivers and other natural landforms, including parks and protected areas, as political borders, often ignored by local custom and social practice; a built environment designed to extract wealth from the continent (including mines, railways, ports and coastal cities) and intra-African “informal” trade and systems of production. The continuing presence of all these practices places particular stress on water and related resources. Complicating matters are the impacts of climate change and population growth and movement in Sub-Saharan Africa.

According to the World Meteorological Organization (World Meteorological Organization, 2024, p. 3), “the African continent continued to observe a warming trend 0.3 °C per decade slightly higher than the global average warming trend 0.20 °C per decade for the 1991–2023 period,” resulting in more extreme climate events (droughts/floods; heatwaves/wildfires), as well as significant climate-related impacts to agriculture and food security (Ripple et al., 2023). Sub-Saharan African states and people are particularly vulnerable due to a combination of high rates of poverty and relatively flat economic growth (Bridgewater Associates, 2024).

In terms of population, Sub-Saharan Africa is predicted to increase from 1.4 billion to 2.4 billion people by 2050 and to 4 billion by 2100 (United Nations, 2022). Population growth is a two-sided phenomenon: positive in the sense that the “youth bulge” means the presence of tens of millions of dynamic and creative young people; negative in the sense that the lack of opportunity in rural and urban areas may lead to increased socio-ecological instability.

The adaptation to climate change by the people and countries in Africa hinges on managing shifting rainfall in the short, medium and long-term amidst escalating disputes related to water rights. Water governance has not to only coordinate supply and demand, but also manage competing claims across sectors and scales to manage conflicts and ensure sustainability. The knowledge we value is critical: do our conceptual lenses recognize legal and customary rights and historical inequities as well as the related land use issues? How do we collect the necessary information to guide our decisions? And who are “we”—remembering that questions of water access, use and management bring together people with highly varying needs and interests.

In this Research Topic we draw together a set of five papers that interrogate issues and questions of water rights and conflicts in Sub-Saharan Africa, with a focus on both surface and groundwater. The papers deploy different conceptual lenses and methodologies to better understand some of the key challenges of sustainable water resources management in Sub-Saharan Africa: two systematic literature reviews, one (Mutanda and Nhamo) focused on gender and water security, and a second (Damasco et al.) on the utility of the eco-profile approach to act as a guide for watershed management and planning. A third paper (Mndzebele) assesses the performance of institutional design in the transboundary context with a focus on the Southern African Development Community (SADC). A fourth (Mgala et al.) undertakes a ground-level case study to examine the possibility of improved groundwater access, use and management for livelihood security in the Kagera Sub-Basin in Tanzania; and a fifth paper (Phali et al.) deploys a PLS-SEM approach to examine the interrelationship among water security, conflict, participation and governance in smallholder irrigation schemes in the Kwa Zulu Natal region of South Africa.

Four of the five papers highlight the importance of good governance and effective institutional arrangements for sustainable, equitable, economically efficient water access, use and management. Whether this be at the level of the irrigation scheme, the sub-basin, a regional organization such as SADC, or concerning a cross-cutting issue such as gender, evidence shows that good governance correlates negatively with the likelihood of conflict in water resources. Put differently, and as shown in this Research Topic, the effective, inclusive and transparent management of water resources helps prevent disputes, foster cooperation, and improve water security (see also Döring and Kim, 2025).

All five papers show that data collection, knowledge creation, and mobilization are key to effective policy and practice. Where multi-dimensional analyses combine with continuous assessment (monitoring and evaluation) in a context of effective governance and management (e.g. River Basin Organizations, irrigation cooperatives) and sufficient human, finance and technical capacity, the likelihood of avoiding conflict and achieving positive outcomes through collaboration is enhanced (see also, McIlwain et al., 2024; Pahl-Wostl, 2007).

Access to safe water and sanitation is a human right (United Nations General Assembly, 2010), but for many across Sub-Saharan Africa it is a right that is unrealized. Water needs vary dramatically across users and regions of Sub-Saharan Africa. Data and knowledge gaps must be bridged in the context of anthropogenic and climate changes. Institutional arrangements must be revised to ensure that all voices are heard, that all forms of knowledge are valued, that decision-making is transparent, and that conflict resolution mechanisms are in place.