What is the Okavango River Basin?

The Cubango - Okavango River flows from the highlands of Angola, through Namibia and into Botswana, where it forms the Okavango Delta. The basin consists of the areas drained by the Cubango, Cutato, Cuchi, Cuvelei, Cuebe, Cueio, Cuatir, Luassinga, Longa, Cuiriri and Cuito Rivers in Angola, the Kavango River in Namibia and the Okavango Delta in Botswana. The river plays an important role not only in the lives of local populations residing along the river, but also at national level. Water-based tourism is the second largest foreign currency earner for Botswana, and most tourism activities are centered on the delta system, which forms part of the larger Okavango River system.
The river sustains over half a million people who use the plant and animal resources found in the river to support livelihoods. For Namibia, the "Kavango River" as it is known in that region, drains along the town of Rundu and provides support to riparian communities' livelihoods through a diverse set of ecosystem goods and services. The Okavango Delta has rich biological diversity and is internationally recognized as a site of ecological importance. It has, as a result, been declared a RAMSAR Site (a wetland of international importance).