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Managing the world’s water resources is foundational to development. If you want to feed the world—and contribute to poverty reduction, human health, and economic prosperity—pay attention to water.

Interview with Mrs Asli Duale, founding Chair of WEAVE – Women Education and Voicing Entrepreneurship – a Somali NGO set up in 2008 in Mogadishu. 

Water Management and the provision of safe sanitation services, being a public good, rarely attract private investment, which explains – in part – the limited success of numerous initiatives for Public-Private Partnerships in the sector in Africa. Indeed a number of River/Lake Basin Organisations (R/LBOs) have in the past 10 years conducted relevant studies and developed investment plans, the implementation of which is still constrained by inability to attract investment. However, it goes without saying that inadequate provision of safe sanitation services has grave implications for freshwater availability, not to mention being a key factor in environmental degradation in Africa.

In 2015, the Government of Cameroon finalised its national adaptation plan on climate change. GWP was closely involved in the process, providing significant support to ensure the document recognised the importance of water issues, facilitating stakeholder engagement, and ensuring compliance with international guidance on the development of climate adaptation plans. GWP has continued to work with the government to publicise the plan at national and regional events and to seek support from partners for its implementation.

In the run up to the World Water Day 2016, GWP-CAf partners, like Cameroon Ministry of water and energy, private sector, NGOs and civil society organizations, organized the national water week 2016, in Yaoundé, which had as theme “water and jobs” and took place over seven days, from March 17-22, 2016.

 

Several events took place during the national week. Among which, there was a media workshop; two site visits, conducted, one to the wastewater treatment plant and the other to water treatment plant; a campaign for the dissemination of knowledge and legal text on water sector and sanitation; an exhibition fair; football and power walking and a forum on water jobs. All of these activities ended with a competition for a best poem written and cartoon on “water and jobs” for pupils of 5 schools in Yaounde.

The distribution of many rural communities in Brazil presents a major challenge in terms of providing access to energy. The production and consumption of energy can, however, have serious consequences for the natural environment. The energy sector in Brazil has been engaged in a process of ‘learning from mistakes'. One important lesson learnt is that establishing and maintaining a high-level policy consensus is key in achieving success. 

The CWP Mali made a guided visit to Gouendo on 16 and 17 November. The visit made it possible to interact with the beneficiaries to obtain their feedback on the pilot project, to know the peasants' perception of the project and to suggest areas for improvement.