The National Biodiversity Assessment (NBA) 2025 webinar series continues with its third session, focusing on South Africa’s rivers and wetlands. This webinar will summarise the ecological condition, threat status, and protection levels of these freshwater ecosystems, highlighting their critical role in water supply, livelihoods, and ecosystem health.
While conversations about water security often focus on taps running dry or ageing infrastructure, the NBA 2025 reminds us that the real foundation lies in our rivers, wetlands, and catchments. Healthy freshwater ecosystems filter pollutants, regulate flows during floods and droughts, recharge groundwater, and reduce water treatment costs. Strategic Water Source Areas—just 10% of the land in South Africa, Lesotho, and Eswatini—provide roughly half of the water for these countries, making their protection essential.
Pic: Jeremy Shelton
The NBA 2025 paints a sobering picture: around 65% of river length and 86% of wetland extent are threatened, and only a quarter of rivers remain in natural or near-natural condition. Pollution, unsustainable water use, habitat degradation, and invasive species continue to compromise the ability of these systems to function, posing growing risks to households, agriculture, and industry.
Investing in ecological infrastructure—restoring wetlands, reducing pollution, managing invasive species, and securing natural flow regimes—is as crucial as investing in dams, pipelines, and treatment works. Across South Africa, partnerships between government, scientists, landowners, and communities are demonstrating that such actions can improve water quality, reduce flood risks, and create jobs, showing that safeguarding nature underpins development rather than hindering it.
Pic: Jeremy Shelton
The NBA 2025 findings are brought to life in the short film Flow for Life (watch here), which traces the journey of water through our landscapes and highlights the quiet but vital work rivers and wetlands perform daily. Protecting and restoring these ecosystems is an investment in resilience, equity, and long-term water security for both people and nature.
Join the third webinar
Date: 24 April 2026
Time: 13:00–13:45
Join the webinar: Here
Learn more about the NBA at SANBI’s NBA portal.