CREATING WATER AND SANITATION SKILLS FROM AN EARLY AGE

During 2007, the Water Research Commission (WRC) – in partnership with Afrosearch and Hlati Development Services – developed and published a report, The assessment of training programmes and capacity needs for the water sector. It highlighted the responsibilities of the water sector to develop skills that would fulfil the overarching imperatives that covered economic development, stakeholder participation, gender mainstreaming, cooperative governance and the Batho Pele principles.

It became evident from the publication that the capacity needs for the water sector warranted a wide range of skills and qualifications. The WRC strategy has since aimed to close existing gaps of the skills and qualifications through its research and development as well and innovation and impact programmes. A disparity of skills and human capacity in the water sector was further mentioned in the critical skills gazette released by the Department of Home Affairs in February 2022. The gazette confirmed that there is a huge gap in the technical skills required to contribute effectively to economic stability in South Africa, which also includes water and sanitation.

In juxtaposition, while the country grapples with a high unemployment rate, having peaked at 33.9% in Q2 2022 as reported by Stats SA, there is an opportunity to absorb graduates within the water sector to close the existing skills gap. With high-level conversations being held to figure out the possible causes for critical skills gaps and high unemployment rates, there is also the need to critically look at the creation of linkages for human capacity development from the elementary level upwards until postdoctoral level in all public sectors, most critically in this case the water and sanitation space.

Schoolgoing children

The WRC has been instrumental in bringing schoolgoing children on board when it comes to understanding basic knowledge affecting communities in relation to water and sanitation.

An array of interesting products are continually developed to assist children in understanding the water value chain through age-appropriate documents and water and sanitation tools. Children indulge in WRC resources such as career guides, Water Kidz articles, comic books and many other products that introduce them to understanding the plethora of opportunities that exist within the water and sanitation space and beyond.

As part of skills development, teachers requiring content related to water and sanitation for building lesson plans can also utilise custommade lesson plans to bring water conversation into the classrooms at all grades. In addition to learner support materials, the WRC develops posters that can be further utilised to conscientise learners on water and sanitation as additional resources for classroom-based material. The demonstration of citizen science tools further helps in providing practical activities on water quality analysis, using scientific products developed through WRC funding. This helps to stimulate learners’ thinking about water and sanitation.

Capacity building

The WRC also supports postgraduate students and professionals with key technical skills that respond to water and sanitation needs through the existing programmes embedded within research projects and focused human capacity development programmes. As part of one of the WRC key performance indicators, projects are given the opportunity to incorporate student support. In 2021, for example, the WRC student funded over 362 postgraduate students, which included doctorate, master’s, honours and other qualifications linked to research and development projects. This was achieved through partnership with government entities such as the Department of Science and Innovation, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, and the EWSETA. These efforts have allowed the development of skills and practical exposure to work related to the water and sanitation sector, thus addressing the challenges on the ground.

Youth have the potential to bring innovative solutions that can change the status quo relating to water services. The Young Engineers Changemakers Programme capacitates 30 young municipal engineers annually.

This programme exposes the young engineers in municipalities to a set of innovative solutions needed to turn their municipalities around with regard to water and sanitation. This aims to influence decision-making for better service delivery within their respective municipalities. In the same vein, the WRC – in partnership with the Presidential Stimulus Programme – initiated a Water Graduate Employment Programme (WaterGEP), with over 900 students supported over the past two years. The WaterGEP students are paired with 80 water-related institutions that provide them with mentorship and training. With this programme in place, students have contributed to a number of areas, such as water treatment, quality, sanitation, innovation, ecological infrastructure, data science, climate change, agriculture, green markets, ICT, water finance and economics. Furthermore, the WRC is involved in other capacity-building initiatives for young water professionals such as the WetSkills Programme (in partnership with the Netherlands Embassy and the Department of Water and Sanitation). From this partnership, the WRC has supported the programme by sending young professionals each year to participate in a challenge and sponsor case studies for the youth challenge. The WRC-sponsored case studies have inspired the youth to think deeply and suggest possible ways to solve current water and sanitation challenges. These programmes and many more similar human capacity development efforts continue to be run within the WRC to solve real-life problems affecting water users.

This emphasis of the WRC’s capacitybuilding initiatives is to synergise efforts through working with partners and contribute to the critical skills development for the water and sanitation sector in South Africa. The WRC strives to align its overall organisational strategy to the country’s National Development Plan, as well as the imperatives of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

As emphasised by President Cyril Ramaphosa in his State of the Nation Address delivered on 9 February 2023: “It is, therefore, significant that the number of children who receive the Early Childhood Development Subsidy has more than doubled between 2019 and 2022, reaching one and a half million children.”

We need to reflect on the efforts that the public and private sector entities play in connecting the dots for building capacity among the youth to a more purposeful and intentional pathway. Youth need to be empowered from an elementary level up to advanced stages, where they can close the gaps and fulfil the call for providing sustainable water and sanitation services.