South Africa is set to participate in the World Water Week Conference in Stockholm, Sweden, which gets underway on Sunday.
Water and Sanitation Deputy Minister, Judith Tshabalala, will lead a South African delegation to the conference, which wraps up next week Thursday.
World Water Week 2023, hosted by the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI), is focused on innovation, particularly at a time of unprecedented challenges facing water security around the world.
The annual conference is the global leader on water issues and attracts diverse participants and global professionals in the water sector.
The year’s theme for the conference is, ‘Seeds of Change: Innovative Solutions for a Water-Wise World’, which invites global leaders to rethink how to manage water and come up with ideas, innovations and governance systems required in a more unstable and water scarce world.
Tshabalala will participate in several panel discussions with her counterparts from across the globe, and among her engagements will be Africa Focus Day, a high-level ministerial panel session aimed at addressing pressing water challenges faced by the African continent.
Africa Focus Day also serves as a platform for knowledge exchange and collaboration and to bring together water leaders, policymakers, civil society and academia across Africa and beyond.
“We, as the Department of Water and Sanitation, will use this opportunity to participate in various sessions to demonstrate to the world how South Africa is managing the imbalances of the energy and water usage by both households and businesses.
“We will also demonstrate how the department is working to achieve its vision of being a recognised world leader in water management, of course through positive inputs by SA’s Water Boards, research and academic institutions, business and other partners within SA’s water sector participation,” Tshabalala said.
Tshabalala will also be accompanied by two learners, Kelebogile Abrahams and Mahlohonolo Mosia from Emang-Mmogo Comprehensive School in Kimberley, Northern Cape.
The learners will represent South Africa in the Stockholm Junior Water Prize Competition for outstanding young learners participating in science-based projects aimed at improving water management in communities.
The two South African learners won the National South African Youth Water Prize Competition, held by the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) in May this year.
The aim of the programme is to encourage learners to protect water resources, use water efficiently, and furthermore, motivate them to pursue careers in the water sector.
Source: South African Government News Agency