INDUSTRY TALK
How to go gree The equitable and sustainable use and management of water resources can support poverty alleviation, socio-economic development, regional cooperation, and the environment. Currently Africa is not doing well in terms of water conservation but there are opportunities to turn the tide.
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he 2025 vision proposed by the UN, Economic Commission for Africa, African Union and African Development Bank is dubbed the Water Vision for Africa, it’s a framework for helping Africans access potable and other water sources that are reliable, and sustainable. Often summarised as going green, such concepts are about much more than the environment. It’s about survival.
A NEVER-ENDING COMMODITY Africa, particularly the sub-Saharan region, is urbanising faster than any other part of the world. This trend is good for growth, but also creates a hidden problem: urban populations are more likely to treat water as a neverending commodity. Waste levels are very high, and centralised water management systems struggle to
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coordinate and prioritise water issues. Sub-Saharan Africa is one of the most water-scarce regions in the world, worsened by shortfalls in smart water-related practices and development. By 2025, 25 of the estimated water-short countries of the world will be African. Factor in water’s importance for agriculture, industry and many other economically-productive sectors, and it’s one of Africa’s biggest weaknesses. Fortunately, there is much we can do, explains Chetan Mistry, Strategy and Marketing manager at Xylem Inc, “There isn’t a magic wand or silver bullet to fix water problems. But there are many individual actions that, when they combine, will change the picture drastically. These are affordable and often easily deployable interventions. Usually we find people just aren’t aware of what can be done about water situations.”
INDUSTRIAL BUYER JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2021
‘There isn’t a magic wand or silver bullet to fix water problems. But there are many individual actions that, when they combine, will change the picture drastically’ BROADER, INCLUSIVE CULTURE Two specific areas can address water issues. The first focuses on how we approach these
