Gary Benham

227 days to go - I can feel it in my water!

Partnering for better water and sanitation in South Africa

Scholarship and exchange programmes like the Chevening Scholarship are recognised around the world.  But were you aware that the UK government also supports learning in more technical fields such as water regulation and management?

As a water scarce country, South Africa's limited water resources require careful management to support economic growth and social development without threatening the environment.  The UK Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) are proud to partner with the South African Department of Water Affairs (DWA) and the not-for-profit organisation Partners for Water and Sanitation (PfWS) to provide training and exchange opportunities between water agencies in the UK and South Africa in order to protect this valuable resource.

The project idea came from a scoping study funded by Defra in February 2009.  Water experts from the UK and South Africa came together to discuss ideas and identify gaps in services.  That group identified that one of the biggest challenges was a lack of training.  This project will provide training and exchange in four areas: regulation, water demand management, assessing wastewater treatment works, and institutional strengthening.  Here’s how it will work:

Regulation:

The UK Drinking Water Inspectorate will review South African legislation & the UK Environment Agency will review South Africa’s “Green drop certification” scheme.  They’ll share advice with the South African government.  They’ll also train DWA specialists and regulators on auditing drinking water quality.  One question I get asked often is whether the water is safe to drink from the tap here.  I've been doing so since July without problems and our kettle looks better than the one we left behind in Stevenage!

Water Demand Management:

Wessex Water (UK) are teaming up with the South African Water Use Efficiency Unit to see how the country’s scarce water resources can be shared effectively and efficiently.  Wessex will share information on good practice in other countries and provide advice on how to use that information locally.

Assessing Wastewater Treatment Works:

In the true spirit of exchange that the dialogue fosters, two South African water experts will complete short work placements on waste water treatment with Anglian Water in the UK.  Together, they’ll assess the current state of wastewater treatment in South Africa and share their findings with national, provincial and district stakeholders.

Institutional Strengthening:

Atkins and Bristol water will evaluate the progress of the Technical Services Department and two Water Service Providers operating on behalf of ZDM on water and sanitation asset management.  Wessex Water will provide Ugu District Municipality with advice on optimising their water demand control centre They’ll make recommendations for improvement and share lessons learned with the regional Kwa-Zulu Natal  & National DWA offices.

Posted at 14:58 26 October 2009 by Gary Benham  |  Comments[0]