Abstract
Water management is often overlooked or taken for granted in many studies and we are only just beginning to appreciate the complexity of prehistoric water management systems on the continent. However, sophisticated water management, both for domestic purposes and the growing of crops, was widespread across the African continent, with evidence dating back several millennia. Many major works of water engineering are confined to North Africa and the Nile Valley, but major systems of irrigation can also be found across eastern and southern Africa where they are often combined with terracing and other forms of intensive cultivation.