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WATER-KASRILS
NEW WATER PROJECT AIMS TO AVERT WATER CRISIS: JOHANNESBURG December 9 1999 Sapa
Almost half of Africa's population still did not receive adequate water or
sanitation services, Water Affairs and Forestry Minister Ronnie Kasrils
said on Thursday on Johannesburg.
"In Africa, water is both scarce and has tremendous quality challenges," he
told delegates involved in the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements'
project - Managing Water for African Cities.
"We live in a continent where almost half of our people's are not
adequately serviced with regard to water and sanitation."
The project aims for sustainable water management demand strategies,
conservation and pollution control.
The delegations' visited Johannesburg, Windhoek and Durban on the first of
a series of regional activities to address Africa's looming water crisis.
By 2050, sub-Saharan Africa, currently the least urbanised continent, will
have the fastest urban growth rates in history which will put immense
stress on water resources, UNCHS spokesman Andre Djikus said.
Most African cities would have to transport water from afar and would
discharge large amounts of used water into freshwater sources, thus
increasing water pollution.
"If we today continue with our business-as-usual approach to urban water
resources management we might see water become more expensive than oil,"
said Djikus.
"The poor will no longer be able to afford sufficient amounts of clean
water, which could result in water riots and even water wars."
South Africa, among many countries in Africa and the developing world, had
in the past relied too heavily on supply-driven water solutions involving
building dams and diverting water sources, Kasrils said.
******
This had now shifted to a more integrated approach to water management
involving a strong emphasis on water conservation and demand management -
with dam building only where appropriate.
While four million rural South Africans had been given access to potable
water in the past five years, he said there was still great disparity
between the water resources available to the haves and have-nots here.
The government was looking for ways to deal with supplying water to the
very poor and in this regard was encouraging private-public sector
partnerships.
The aims of the Managing Water for African Cities programme will be carried
forward by a ministerial advisory group - consisting of ministers from
seven African countries - who would present a common African vision at the
World Water Forum in the Netherlands in March 2000.
This ministerial group was supported by a group of technical experts and
city managers who would translate the policies into action at city level.
The Managing Water for African Cities programme is funded by the United
Nations Foundation, which was set up with a $1-billion gift from US media
mogul Ted Turner to the United Nations.
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source: gopher://gopher.anc.org.za/00/anc/newsbrief/1999/news1210 processed
Fri 10 Dec 1999 10:06 SAST.
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Lori Pottinger, Director, Southern Africa Program,
and Editor, World Rivers Review
International Rivers Network
1847 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, California 94703, USA
Tel. (510) 848 1155 Fax (510) 848 1008
http://www.irn.org
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Lori Pottinger, Director, Southern Africa Program,
and Editor, World Rivers Review
International Rivers Network
1847 Berkeley Way, Berkeley, California 94703, USA
Tel. (510) 848 1155 Fax (510) 848 1008
http://www.irn.org
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