Minister of Water and Sanitation, Nomvula Mokonyane, has today challenged the private sector to be more active in the transformation of South Africa by joining the state and civil- society in partnership to increase access to water, promote water security and to provide effective water resource management.
Speaking, today, at the Water Stewardship Summit held in Johannesburg, the Minister emphasized that water, as a scarce resource for which no substitute exists, must be at the centre of planning in all spheres of government as well as the private sector.
"The South African Water Partners Network (SWPN) is a bold initiative we have undertaken to ensure that the private-sector, along with all three spheres of government and civil-society moves our country from innovation to implementation so that we may bring the best solutions for our people to gain access to clean water and decent sanitation" said Minister Mokonyane.
"The engagements we are having in our country are coming at an opportune time when the world has taken notice of the importance of water for sustainable development, economic growth and global peace and stability. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted recently at the United Nations have again re-affirmed the need to treat water wisely and to promote global partnerships in this regards." says Mokonyane.
The summit was convened under the auspices of the South African Water Partnership Network (SWPN) in partnership with the National Business Initiative (NBI) and the International Water Stewardship Programme, as implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) on behalf of the UK and German governments, is intended to mobilize the private-sector, civil-society and government to find practical ways of how business, in particular, may successfully implement water stewardship.
Minister Mokonyane also called on the private sector to appreciate the political will that is in place to find innovative solutions that would eradicate inequalities in communities created by discriminatory access to water and more especially where industries are operating water-reliant plants and operations, with surrounding communities having none to limited access to water.
"As government, we have taken a decision that no single-purpose dams will be tolerated. We can't have the De Hoop Dam in Limpopo, supplying water to Medupi, yet forty-seven (47) villages surrounding the dam have no access to water. There are these realities all over the country and we cannot go on as if it's business as usual" added the Minister.
The South African Water Partners Network brings together large corporates such a Coca- Cola, Nestle, SAB-Miller, Anglo-American, ESKOM etc. who are large water users and partners in efforts to find solutions to challenges of water security and water resource management.
"We are encouraged that our partnership has received acknowledgement from the World Economic Forum and in January 2016, we will take our action-plan and concept to the WEF to influence a global approach on cooperation between governments and the private sector on water. This will be extended to the continent as a priority to assist us especially in creating regional water security and promoting development" concluded Minister Mokonyane.
The Water Stewardship Summit will conclude its business on 28 October 2015. The Minister has wished the summit well and will be awaiting its outcomes.
Enquiries:
Mlimandlela Ndamase
Cell: 081 0330701
E-mail: NdamaseM@dws.gov.za
