The past 

Global water leaders are meeting in New York on 22-24 March 2023 after 46 long years since the first UN Water Conference held in Mar del Plata, Argentina, in 1977. The conference report, also known as the Mar Del Plata Action Plan, identified the critical role that water resources play in improving human social and economic livelihood. The Plan also noted the need to implement specific and concerted actions for solutions at national, regional and global scale, without which a better quality of life and promotion of human dignity could not be assured. 

Following the conference, the first UN Water Decade from 1981–1990, also known as the International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade (IDWSSD), is estimated to have granted access to safe drinking water for over a billion people globally. However, many professionals were of the view that the IDWSSD failed to achieve its goals, mainly due to its broad approach. The issues were generalised and addressed without taking into account regional, national and community differences. For instance, the Action Plan was not based on a holistic approach and did not consider the role of local communities. It mainly focused on the contributions of national governments, which as a result gave governments the leverage to either choose to go by the Plan or not. Lastly, the Action Plan did not come with targets or timelines, which made the assessment of progress difficult.  

Conversely, the IDWSSD cannot be said to have been a total failure because it brought a much-needed spotlight on the importance of clean water and adequate sanitation for all. In that decade, the role of national governments in investing in the provision of clean water and adequate sanitation was highlighted; a role that was previously reserved mainly for regional and international development organisations. In that same decade, the idea of access to clean water and adequate sanitation being a human right was birthed, and the call was sustained through to 2010 when the UN resolved to formally recognise the human right to water and sanitation. Additionally, metrics for measuring progress in terms of water and sanitation access were initiated. Significant progress was recorded both in knowledge generation and practice. Several initiatives came into force with inspiration from the Mar del Plata Action Plan, including, but not limited to, the 1992 International Conference on Water and the Environment, the 2015 Millennium Development Goals Agenda that had a goal dedicated to water, the World Water Day initiative, and the 2016 Sustainable Development Goals Agenda, which has a goal dedicated to water and sanitation, with associated clear targets. 

The present

Currently, efforts are being focused on the Sustainable Development Goal on water and sanitation (SDG 6). Progress on SDG6 is slow, undermining the human right to water and sanitation. Organisations have become increasingly aware of the silos that exist in the water and sanitation sector and are developing programmes to ensure cross-sectoral approaches in implementing solutions. The mapping of stakeholders has taken an inclusive approach over time with women, youth, marginalised groups, and users being consciously included in various levels of engagement spanning from decision-making, design, and implementation of solutions. Lots of innovations and initiatives, both at the global and local scale, are being churned out to solve the water and sanitation challenges. Examples are bio-digester toilets, capturing water from the atmosphere, performance improvement contracts, water safety plans, WASH incubator and accelerator programmes, digital water systems, open access to WASH publications, and more. This shows that there is a lot of effort being directed towards access to clean water and safe sanitation compared to the first water decade. Interestingly and progressively so, the WASH sector is holding itself to the highest standard and wants to make sure that the SDG 6 targets are met on time, hence the call for actionable commitments to be made in the midterm review of the water action decade. 

The future

After this midterm review of the water action decade, all the other sectors will be monitoring the WASH sector to see how progress is being accelerated so they can learn from best practices. To make sure the sector stays on track, I outline some ideas that can be explored. 

Implementation Drive

As mentioned above, there have been many useful innovations in the sector over time. To achieve significant progress, attention should be given to the implementation of numerous innovations. At this stage, adequate resources and policies need to be developed to create a conducive environment for the execution of projects that transfer these innovations and inventions from shelved prototypes to minimum viable products and beyond. This will ensure that the solutions are deployed at the local level. 

WASH–Employment Nexus

Currently, there are still high numbers of people who do not have access to clean water and safe sanitation, and there are multiple challenges related to water conservation due to climate change and human-related activities. On the other hand, unemployment is still one of the longstanding global challenges of the world that is threatening the national security of several countries. It is necessary to understand the volume and the kind of workforce needed to reach the SDG 6 targets by 2030. Once that is done, the next step will be to design academic, vocational, and technical programmes targeted at the unemployed population. Also, there is the need to approach the provision of water and sanitation services from a sustainable self-financing angle, which allows the services to pay for their maintenance and expansion. The WASH crisis provides the avenue for job creation and the employment crisis provides the workforce. What are currently missing are the right training, resources, and political will to harness the benefits of the WASH-employment nexus. If this is done successfully, a larger part of society will be working on specific sustainable initiatives improving access to WASH services for more people. 

Global Accountability System

Authorities responsible for the implementation of WASH policies, programmes, and projects need to be held accountable on their output and their goals and objectives. The current regime of individual states self-reporting on the SDGs does not work. National governments should be encouraged to set their own self-paced and characteristic objectives, but there must be an independent global system to monitor progress while taking into account national limitations and differences.  An independent accountability system can expose mismanagement of WASH-related resources and low levels of commitment and dedication by governments on the water action agenda. This accountability system could go a long way to help donor agencies and investors to know where to donate or invest for maximised societal and environmental impact. A good example is how the International Monetary Fund uses the debt to GDP ratio and other fiscal indicators to assess countries. I believe that there should be a similar system that will compel countries to prioritise universal access to clean water and safe sanitation.

Cover image: ©UNDESA. In the picture: Mr. Li Junhua, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs and the Secretary-General of the UN 2023 Water Conference; Mr. Henk Ovink, Special Envoy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands for Water; and Mr. Sulton Rahimzoda, Special Envoy of the President of Tajikistan for Water.

Climate Change: A Threat To Attaining Sustainable Development

Growing up, I was very familiar with streams and wetlands as my family and I lived in an agricultural research area. My favourite delicacy as a child was taro, which grew all over the marshy areas within the community. I also recollect how the whole community came together to dig shallow dugouts and immediately groundwater built up in the dugout and was used for irrigation purposes. Though, we did not have access to treated water from the water utility company, I never had to think about unavailability of water in my community. My community had a fair share of rains, too. During raining seasons, it was common practice that every household harvested rain water for drinking and domestic use. We, the children, whenever it started raining beamed up with joy, playing in the rain; which was fell gently and the rain drops were refreshing to the body. I really miss those moments!

Well, I started missing those moments quite early. Somewhere in the early part of 2000, I realised that taro had become scarce, one could no longer find taro growing all over the marshy areas. The marshy areas were turning into dry grounds and the many streams and ponds were giving way to dry land. Surprisingly, most dugouts were drying up too and no water gathered in them as it used to. The refreshing rains no longer came as scheduled, to the extent that one could not distinguish between the minor and the major raining seasons. The usual weather forecast was turning into a white elephant as it was just inaccurate and misleading. The moments it rained, the rains came down so heavily in such a way that it caused flooding, and even led to loss of lives and properties. That was the beginning of the end of the good old days. While in senior secondary school, I started learning about climate change and its effects on the environment. I then understood how taro became endangered and up to today, an uncommon delicacy in Ghana. Also, I realised the reason why the rains no longer came, and when they came, it was in extreme weather event that anyone in the rain became at risk. Climate change took away my joy!

Climate, water resources, and socio-economic structures are dependent on each other and therefore a significant change in any one of them brings about pressure on the environment and threat to livelihood. Today, climate change is a household term not for any good reason but its dire impact on livelihood. Due to climate change many parts of the world are facing droughts and flooding, which contributes to many other negative consequences. Clearly, water is the primary driver of the impacts of climate change. Hence, the necessity to consider sustainable management of water resources to prevent these adverse impacts from exacerbating. To do this several actions need to be taken, and these three in my opinion are very critical:

Global Education and Sensitisation

In recent times, there has been massive climate change awareness worldwide, however the need for continuous advocacy in communities cannot be overemphasised, hence the need for more intense education and to some extent civil disobedience. Education is needed because though naturally the climate experiences some changes, the human activities are the main cause for the sharp changes that are being recorded. Activities such as deforestation, emission of C0₂, untreated disposal of wastewater, etc. are worsening the negative impacts of climate change. These are activities that with proper sensitisation could be minimized. Sensitisation is a great platform to activities such as afforestation, use of clean energy, etc. that can be practiced to mitigate the negative impacts. One success story in mitigating the adverse effects of climate change was recorded in Uganda, where Young Water Professionals committed to planting one million trees in 2019 as part of the country’s efforts to reduce global warming.

Technology and Innovation

Water resource management institutions and any other industries that heavily rely on water need to adopt a sustainable way of operations. For instance, adopting nature based solutions in protecting water bodies is a good way to reduce the climate change impact. Growing trees around water bodies does not only prevent the excessive evaporation of water but also prevents silting, eutrophication and creates a great opportunity for carbon sequestration. Innovations in climate smart agriculture like greenhouse farming will help conserve water and also prevent the leaching of nutrients into water bodies. It is also very important for the world to consider sustainable city planning putting into account the fact that there will be limited or excess rainfall at one point in time. Copenhagen has taken a lead by adopting the dimensions to a smart city and thus hoping to be CO₂ neutral by 2025.

Institutional & Capacity framework and Infrastructure

To manage the impact of climate change on water security, it is important to develop a strong institutional capacity involving human resource, infrastructure and tools. This can be achieved through the training of more people on water resource management, water quality control and relevant disciplines. Apart from making policies that help reduce the effects of climate change, the whole process of formulation of all other national policies and regulations need to be made carefully considering how they contribute to climate change. In the case of Ghana, a National Climate Change Policy has been developed as a way of ensuring a climate-resilient and climate-compatible economy which addresses a low-carbon growth path while the country works towards achieving the sustainable development goals.

Climate change is happening and its impacts are being felt every day, it therefore depends on the whole world to pay attention to it and find sustainable means to manage it. As the Decade of Action has begun, collaborative efforts are needed from across industries and economies to manage efficiently and effectively, the adverse effects of climate change on attaining sustainable development.

Happy World Water Day!

World Water Day 2020, on 22 March, is about water and climate change – and how the two are inextricably linked. Adapting to the water effects of climate change will protect health and save lives. Using water more efficiently will reduce greenhouse gases. We cannot afford to wait. Everyone has a role to play.

Recounting the experiences shared by my colleagues from the Young Water Professionals community about the 2017 World Water And Development Congress & Exhibition in Buenos Aires – Argentina, made me yearn to have an experience of my own. So when I saw the call for rapporteurs for the Development Congress in Colombo, I knew that was my chance to experience the amazing networking and knowledge-sharing platform that I had heard about, and while contributing to the success of the Congress as a rapporteur.

As my flight landed at the Bandaranaike International Airport, my eyes were fixed on the beautiful city of Colombo at sunset. The orange skies and the view of the sun, which seemed to be entering the sea, was spectacular at sight. My pleasure of this view was short-lived as I felt anxious at the thought of my responsibilities as a Lead Rapporteur on SDGs & Innovation at the Congress. My anxiety vanished after meeting the amazing team of rapporteurs, who had varied backgrounds and came from different parts of the globe with a balanced gender representation, which was an indication of IWA’s respect for diversity.

The Colombo Development Congress brought several water professionals, academic institutions, industries and regulatory bodies from across the world together with the aim of connecting strategies with solutions as ‘sustainable solutions to emerging economies’ was at the centre of all conversations. During the Congress, conversations on human rights to water, non-sewer systems, cross-sectoral collaborations and digital technologies were constantly mentioned as critical areas that needed to be considered in making progress towards achieving universal access to clean water and sanitation. The keynote speakers did an amazing job by pointing out urgent actions that needed to be worked at, such as the transition from centralized wastewater treatment systems to decentralized treatment systems. Prof. Kala Vairavamoorthy, CEO of the International Water Association, referred to the adoption of digital technologies in the water sector as an enabler to realize improved and equitable water and sanitation service delivery. Dr Silver Mugisha, Managing Director of National Water and Sewage Cooperation – Uganda, made it plain that utilities in emerging economies need to move from patronizing already made technologies to developing their own technologies that suit them.

The voice of Young Water Professionals was not left out as we deliberated on how to overcome the challenges we face as young professionals in the sector during the Emerging Water Leaders Forum. During this Forum, I had the opportunity to share my story about how I used the IWA Network to gain access to peer reviewers and a scholarship to further my education. Other Young Water Professionals also gave personal accounts about how they benefitted from the IWA Network and this came across a major source of inspiration for the over 40 participants of the Forum. The greatest moment of inspiration for me was when I saw two Young Water Professionals, Mary Namusoke from Uganda and Omi Gupta from India, on stage during the Closing Ceremony. They made an important call to action for the continuous involvement of young professionals in all activities within the water sector. This was also a clear demonstration of the various opportunities that are being created for young professionals to work together with senior professionals within the IWA Network and beyond.

At the end of the Congress, while returning home I meditated on the week’s activities and the lesson’s I had learnt. Rosie Wheen’s (Executive Director – WaterAid Australia) keynote on human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation came to mind immediately. Rosie used a storytelling approach to draw the attention of everyone to the inequalities that still exist in the water and sanitation services delivery chain. As she narrated stories from her past experience, people listened with rapt attention and most participants confessed that they could now picture the water and sanitation challenges in a more human way. Personally, her speech came as a confirmation of my thoughts about the need for the water and sanitation sector to move from using a business-centered approach to a more human-right based approach of providing services. In Rosie’s final words, she called for everyone to be conscious of the power we have and how we are using that power to promote the human right to clean water and sanitation.

My experience at this year’s Development Congress was a rich mixture of networking, learning of new skills and contributing to conversations that will put the water sector on the right path towards attaining the Sustainable Development Goal on water and sanitation.

Jacob K. Amengor
IWA Young Leadership Award Winner 2018
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacobamengor/

With increasing population and the increasing impacts of climate change around the world, the delivery of clean water and sanitation services by utilities have become more indispensable and more challenging. A situation which has necessitated the need to shift from the traditional water and sewerage systems to a more current, digital, efficient mode of operation among many utilities across the globe. Digitalizing water and sanitation systems is unequivocally a more efficient way of managing non-revenue water, optimizing water resources and bridging the gap between demand and supply.

Africa has not been left out in this global transition. Most African water utilities are introducing digitalisation in several areas of the water sector. Predominantly, automation – the ability of the treatment works and network systems to control themselves, real-time capability – the capability to collect and analyse data and provide the insights immediately, and virtualization – advanced treatment works that have process models that control aspects of the treatment works, are being adopted by most African water utilities.

Why water utilities in Africa need to make cyber security a priority

As African utilities continue to record improved efficiencies because of the increased reliance on digital technologies over time. Therefore, one critical area that needs much attentiveness is the security of these digital systems. Security of these digital systems is very important, because increased automation and connectivity reduces the scope for standalone/manual operation of the water supply system or even eliminates it completely. That means a hack of the digital system of a utility could result in its collapse and in the worst scenario, could be an avenue of causing harm to the people that they serve.

Water utility systems such as process control systems and enterprise systems are all potential targets for cyber-attacks.  For instance, systems control and data acquisition (SCADA) systems used to manage automated physical processes essential to water treatment and distribution systems have become standard in medium to large drinking water utilities and in many small water systems. Though, the application of standard information technology cybersecurity best practices are observed, these types of systems have proven to be vulnerable to cyber-attacks.

Enterprise systems such as employee payroll, electronic billing systems and customer records are critical systems that are targeted by cyber-attacks. Cyber-attacks and threats are carried out in various forms including but not limited to, phishing, social engineering, DDoS (distributed denial-of-service) attack, virus, worms, malware, trojan, ransomware, spyware/adware, sequel injection, MITM (man-in-the-middle) attack, vulnerabilities in web applications and networks, zero-day attack, and several other forms.

Africa needs to put in more efforts to build sustainable resilient cyber security systems to protect its water utilities. This is crucial due to the continent’s high vulnerability to cyber-attacks, especially when developmental resources are not enough in the continent. In Kaspersky Lab reports on cyber threats in Africa, Kaspersky stated that about 49 million cyber-attacks took place in Africa during the first quarter of 2014. IT services and consulting firm Serianu, estimated the loss to African businesses from cyber-crime in 2017 stood at 3.5 billion USD, with Nigeria, Kenya and Tanzania being the hardest hit. Serianu also pointed out a sad fact that about 95% of public and private institutions spent less than 1,500 USD on cyber security annually.

All these figures show how widely exposed African countries are to cyber-attacks, compared to other economies. Sadly, Serianu’s Africa Cyber Security Report 2017, mentions that as many as 96% of cybersecurity incidents in Africa are not reported or remain unsolved. This further explains how cyber security has been overlooked by the African continent.

What needs to be done

Addressing the cyber security needs of water utilities in Africa starts from the acceptance of the threats that comes with the adoption of digital processes and making the safety of these systems a priority. To improve efforts being made by African water utilities in the area of cyber security the following recommendations can be considered.

Combining Efforts – Rightly, many utilities in Africa are building or thinking of establishing their own cyber security protocols within their organizations. As much as, tackling the menace of cyber-attacks individually is good, considering a collaborative and centralized system will be amazing. All African governments through the African Union (AU) and led by the African Ministers’ Council on Water (AMCOW) should come together to produce a cyber security law, framework or policy for the water and sanitation industry on the continent. This will help regulate and ensure that enough attention is given to cyber security by the water utilities.

On the other hand, all utilities in the region should join forces to establish data and cyber security centres across the continent. This act will reinforce the security of these utilities and the fact that is a collaborative effort makes it more difficult for cyber criminals to succeed with an attack on a particular utility. The Africa Water Association (AfWA)  can lead the way in implementing this solution.

Robust Technology & Processes – The digital technologies being implemented in the utilities should be strong to provide security to some extent. For instance SCADA systems should come with in-built security features, genuine anti-viruses should be used and updated regularly. Full audits of digital systems such as electronic billing systems, smart metering systems, geographical information systems, etc. need to be carried out consistently to identify specific risks and mitigate them.

Processes for dealing with cyber threats need to be developed, documented and updated regularly considering the dynamic and evolving nature of the cyber space. Documented processes should also clearly define roles and responsibilities, and specify the procedure to follow when there is a suspicious cyber-attack.

Informed people – In most cases, malwares will require a human interphase to reach the target network. Therefore, better cyber awareness among water utility employees and their consumers is very necessary. According to the Water World Magazine, over 90% of cyber-attacks were linked to some form of human error in the last quarter of 2015. Routine training has to be organised for employees to sensitize them on their role in preventing and reducing cyber threats. Staff dedicated to cyber security need to be current with the latest cyber risks and solutions to mitigate and respond to cyber-attacks effectively.

Conclusion

The African water industry has to learn lessons from the cyber gaps of water companies around the world, especially in America and Europe, to gain a better understanding of how they can protect their systems and manage such attacks in case they happen. Water utilities need to put in measures to ensure that even in the event of a cyber-attack, they are able to ensure their reliable services, to serve their consumers. This even more, considering the fact that access to clean water and sanitation is a human right. Water is life.

In 2015, I joined the International Water Association (IWA) through the IWA Connect platform. Prior to that, I had come across the organization while researching for my final year thesis in university. I was convinced to join the association, not because I knew the benefits it had in store for me, but because there was a promotion to receive two editions of ‘The Source’ magazine if you joined before a particular date. For a while, I was dormant and hardly contributed.

A year down the line, I was still clueless about the association I had joined, mainly because I was unaware of how it could impact my career. Then, I came across a call for abstracts for the International Young Water Professionals Conference 2017. I decided to give it a try. While waiting for the outcome of my submission, I visited the website and IWA Connect regularly to check for updates. In doing so, I began to understand the amazing opportunities this association had for its members and especially for young professionals. Then it dawned on me that if this association offers so much professional development to young professionals, why weren’t more people talking about it?

In the early part of 2017, I received a notification that my abstract was accepted for an oral presentation during a technical session at the conference in South Africa. My joy was short-lived when I realized I had to submit a full paper in a few months! This was because I had no clue how to write research papers, to the extent of summarizing my research work from 50 pages to 8 pages. The IWA came to the rescue. Webinars were organized to educate presenters on how to write papers, prepare PowerPoint presentations, and even how to present one’s work during the conference. That brought me so much relief, and equipped me with new knowledge and skills that made my presentation successful at the conference.

Before attending the conference, I made the effort to find out how a Young Water Professionals Chapter could be formed in Ghana. I was connected to Brenda Ampomah, an IWA Programme Officer in Ghana, who gathered a few of us to help develop the necessary documents for the creation of the chapter. Together with my colleagues, we were soon able to create the document and Kirsten De Vette, the IWA Capacity and Development Officer, also shared her thoughts and gave feedback on the work we had done so far. Today, Ghana is listed among the YWP chapters globally that have a formal agreement with the IWA.

At the conference, I met other IWA staff and members, and I could see their passion for providing the platform for young professionals to develop their careers while providing solutions in the water industry. I joined a group on IWA Connect ‘Creating Water-Wise Cities’ and met the group’s Programme Officer, Lisa Andrews, at the conference in South Africa. Since then, she has supported and guided me in new initiatives under the scope of the programme objectives.

_{Jacob Amengor and Lisa Andrews, at the IWA Young Water Professionals Conference 2017, in Cape Town, South Africa.} 

At the conference, I represented the Ghana Chapter at the Global Coordination for Young Water Professionals meeting, which led to my appointment to serve on the YWP Chapter Coordination Sub-Committee. The conference gave me the opportunity to join a great network of young water professionals and to be motivated by their many different aspirations and achievements. I also served as one of the rapporteurs of the conference and it was an experience worth recounting.

_{Attendees to the IWA Young Water Professionals Conference 2017, in Cape Town, South Africa}

Today, I can confidently write an abstract and a full paper because of the training from IWA. The paper I presented at the conference has been submitted to IWA Publishing and is going through the process of publication. I now know how to put together a session within a conference, because IWA gave me the opportunity to be part of the organizers of the IWA session at the Young Water Leaders’ Summit during the Singapore International Water Week.

Through IWA, I now have a better understanding of how to effectively use social media tools in advancing my work in the water industry. At the end of a recent project, Emma Weisbord, IWA Governing Members and Young Water Professionals Officer, offered to help me understand how to communicate my work in an effective manner. She provided me with a set of tools that I could adopt and use easily. Today, even if IWA membership fees were doubled, I would still pay to be a member because I appreciate the personal development it has brought me. By now, I am sure you are convinced about how the IWA can help you reach your career goals without so much struggle.

I recommend that you join the IWA today and not to be dormant as I was in the first year of my membership. To help you be active and benefit fully from the activities of the Association, I advise you sign up on IWA Connect and all other IWA social media platforms. Join specialist groups and the YWP groups and look out for opportunities to take initiatives. You should connect with other IWA members and seek their guidance in your career. You can collaborate with other members to jointly work on a research, write a blog post or organize a session. Lastly, join your IWA YWP country chapter to get involve in their activities. I invite you to join me and the IWA today on your water-wise journey!