Project-Level Friction: Critical Success Factors for Sustainable Water Governance in Botswana

In many semi-arid and developing countries like Botswana, sustainable delivery of water infrastructure projects remains a persistent challenge exacerbated by climate change, recurrent project delays, cost overruns, and operational failures despite many countries having established policy frameworks. This study analyses the systemic factors influencing water sector project performance in Botswana, concentrating on practitioners’ understanding of national water and environmental frameworks, critical success factors (CSFs), and sustainability-related implementation gaps influencing project delivery. Conceptualising these challenges as manifestations of "project-level friction", the misalignment between policy intent and execution capacity, the study examines where and why such friction emerges. A mixed methods research design was adopted, integrating a structured questionnaire survey sent via email to water sector professionals. The study’s quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics, ranking techniques (RII), and correlation analysis, while qualitative data were subjected to thematic analysis utilising NVivo. The study results indicate that there is a considerable level of knowledge among practitioners about regulatory frameworks, and they also underscore insufficient integration of sustainability principles into day-to-day project management practices. The study reveals key challenges that impact water sector project completion through institutional fragmentation, insufficient technical expertise, and inconsistent regulatory enforcement. The study results indicate a strong positive correlation between policy literacy, stakeholder engagement, and perceived project effectiveness (𠜌>0.70). In addition, the study findings indicate that underperformance in project delivery is a result of shortcomings in governance, leadership, and execution, rather than technical inadequacy. The study offers valuable insights to guide policy development, institutional strengthening, and capacity-building efforts. It emphasizes the need for proportional investment in governance and human capital alongside physical infrastructure to achieve water sustainability in Botswana and similar semi-arid contexts.