 About us
|
WaterAid at 2nd Africa Water Week
6 November 2009 Read WaterAid's Africa Water Week blog This year's Africa Water Week, 9-13 November 2009, focuses on various African Union declarations and commitments on water and sanitation, such as those adopted in Sharm El Sheikh in July 2008, with specific emphasis on examining actual action taken and turning these political commitments into concrete actions.
WaterAid's Africa Water Week blogWaterAid's Media Relations Manager, Ann Noon, blogs from 2nd Africa Water Week at the Gallagher Convention Center, Midrand, Johannesburg, South Africa. Day five
Phew, what a week! Yesterday culminated in the prestigious AfricaSan Awards where WaterAid partner The Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Ethiopia Movement was announced the winner of the NGO/Civil Society Award. The award honours individuals and institutions that have supported and mobilised communities to improve their sanitation and hygiene conditions. WaterAid was one of the founding members of the Movement in 2004 and continues to play a significant role in its work, dedicating significant time and resources to help make it such a success so we were thrilled to see our partner honoured in this way. The WASH Ethiopia Movement has done some great work to engage people by organising very successful events around Global Handwashing Day, World Water Day and the first ever Ethiopia Sanitation and Hygiene Festival. The network has also been successful in influencing the Ethiopian government, particularly on the need to integrate education, health and water policies and services. Elsewhere, WaterAid's Senior Advocacy and Research Manager in Madagascar, Lovy Rasolofomanana, took part in a debate between water and sanitation experts and African media on some of the key issues raised during the course of the week including financing the sector and climate change. When the discussion turned to financing, he asked: "Do we have a credible plan for water and sanitation at country level? Even if we get the money, do we have the capacity? We need to think about governance at a local level as well as fiscal decentralisation." He also talked about the strong cultural barriers surrounding sanitation that exist in Madagascar where for example it's considered taboo for a brother and sister to share the same latrine. According to Serena O'Sullivan, campaigns and communications officer for End Water Poverty: "It's been inspiring to see so much progress on the Global Framework for Action this week with new donors and country governments getting involved. There's also been a strong civil society presence, with some excellent examples of strategic advocacy being carried out across Africa. And a lot of interest in the World's Longest Toilet Queue which is taking place on World Water Day next March." Summing up the week, WaterAid's director of policy and campaigns Margaret Batty said: "The Global Framework for Action on water and sanitation has made unbelievable progress this week. There are 18 African countries interested in signing up so there's now a huge amount of follow-up work to be done with them in the run up to the high level meeting on water and sanitation in America next April." Day fourAnother jam-packed day at Africa Water Week. A number of special speakers started off the morning, including the Vice-President of the African Development Bank, and Trevor Manuel, South Africa’s Minister in the Presidency. Another key note speaker was the Prince of Orange, Willem-Alexander, who emphasised that the Millennium Development Goals are global indicators, standardised measurements that – when examined in-country and measured against a country's population – can produce quite different outcomes. He stressed the urgency of reaching the MDGs, but also stated that at least 21 African countries performed better than the global average in increasing access to water and sanitation, and that one third of African countries are performing above the global average. He emphasised that there are positive signs of change, but that efforts should be doubled in order to increase progress in the remaining countries. One of the highlights for the WaterAid team was the special Global Framework for Action side event. According to Margaret Batty, Director of Policy and Campaigns: "Progress has been fantastic this week with real leadership, partnership and input from African governments. Earlier in the week it was terrific to see 13 governments spending the whole day working out their involvement in the Global Framework. "Then there was the session today with AMCOW (the African Ministers’ Council on Water and Sanitation), ANEW (African Civil Society Network on Water and Sanitation) and government officials from Ghana, Liberia and elsewhere, in front of a packed audience and you could sense that there was a very real feeling of support for the Framework." In the meantime, WaterAid was back on South African TV screens, this time on SABC International, who ran a live interview with Abdul-Nashiru Mohammed, otherwise known as Nash, WaterAid’s Regional Advocacy and Policy Advisor for West Africa. There was a nail-biting moment shortly before transmission while we held our breaths waiting to see if our footage would make it from Midrand to Jo'burg in time for the show but it arrived in the nick of time and Nash did a great job of getting our messages out there, in particular about how the sanitation Millennium Development Goal is still so far off track across the continent. Later, when asked about how Africa Water Week has gone so far, he said: "It was great that the key issues have been identified around thematic areas such as financing, sanitation, trans-boundary waters and climate change, and that has helped to identify some of the main challenges ahead. "What is emerging is that the need for cross-sector working is imperative; we need to strengthen government capacity and that of regional bodies such as AMCOW in order to accelerate progress. What’s really encouraging is that people are talking of applying the peer review mechanism in order to review a country’s progress when it comes to delivering on safe water, sanitation and hygiene for all." And our favourite quote of the day? "Water has no passport" – thank you Trevor Manuel, South Africa’s Minister in the Presidency, for that wonderful sound bite during his address to delegates on behalf of the President, Jacob Zuma. Day threeIt's official! At a very special certification ceremony at Africa Water Week last night, Her Excellency the President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, was recognised as a Goodwill Ambassador for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene in Africa. WaterAid and the African Civil Society Network on Water and Sanitation (ANEW), with the support of the African Ministers' Council on Water (AMCOW), have been building towards this moment for several months and we couldn't have hoped for a better reception. With the Ministers in charge of water for Liberia, Mr. Eugene H. Shannon, South Africa, Ms. Buyelwa Sonjia and with the attendance of the Ugandan Minister in charge of water, Ms. Mutagamba, and many of the other leading movers and shakers of the sector, it was certainly a night to remember. Following opening remarks by the AMCOW President and several of the keynote speakers, the President — in a pre-recorded acceptance speech — was very clear about the need to tackle the continent's water and sanitation crisis. "The status quo on water and sanitation in Africa is no longer acceptable," she said. "For as long as water and sanitation remain neglected and for as long as water and sanitation poverty threatens lives and our development prospects, all of us are diminished. The time for words and statements of concern has passed. It is now time for action."
The Liberian Minister for Land, Mines and Energy, Mr. Eugene H. Shannon, who accepted the Goodwill Ambassador certificate on behalf of the President, told the audience: "She wants me to assure you that she accepts the challenges associated with this position." By accepting the role of Goodwill Ambassador, President Johnson-Sirleaf will champion the issue of safe water sanitation and hygiene education for all, both within Africa and internationally, and help keep it at the top of the development agenda. The day also saw an excellent presentation on Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) in West Africa by Idrissa Doucoure, Head of the New Initiatives Unit at WaterAid, as part of the Closing the Sanitation Gap session, followed by a panel discussion in which Ada Oko-Williams, Regional Learning Centre Coordinator at WaterAid Nigeria, played an active role. The impact of a lack of water on people's lives was stressed again in a performance by a local drama group. Overall, yet again a very successful day at Africa Water Week, with a strong WaterAid presence and voice. Look out for the next installment tomorrow. Read WaterAid's news story about Her Excellency the President of Liberia's new role See pictures of the presentation ceremony on Twitpic (opens in a new window) Day two — Monday 9 November 2009The first official day of the 2nd Africa Water Week kicked off brilliantly here at the Gallagher Centre in Midrand, South Africa.
Some of the very first visitors to WaterAid's Exhibition stand included the Ministers in charge of water for South Africa, Lesotho, Mauritania and Burundi. As delegates entered the main conference hall, WaterAid's logo was featured on the big screen and remained there for the entire opening session. The welcoming ceremony started with the showing of a three minute WaterAid film on the status of WASH in Africa, followed by an official welcome from the African Union Commissioner, the Southern African Minister of Water and Environmental Affairs and the President of the African Ministers' Council on Water. This was followed by an introduction to the key sub themes of the conference and related parallel sessions, all of which WaterAid staff is attending: Financing water and sanitation infrastructure, closing the sanitation gap, climate change adaptation, and managing Africa's trans-boundary waters. Ada Oko-Williams, Regional Learning Centre Coordinator from WaterAid Nigeria, was interviewed on sanitation by SABC, South African Broadcasting Corporation, which will be featured on SABC tonight and tomorrow.
Ada shared some of the key outcomes she would like to see from this year's Africa Water Week: "I want to see governments taking seriously commitments that have been made in the past and reviewing progress to date. I want to see concrete action plans, not just words. And I want to know the specifics of how governments intend to deliver on their budgetary commitments on water and sanitation." On Tuesday, November 10th, the 2nd day of Africa Water Week, WaterAid staff will be presenting on Community-Led Total Sanitation in West Africa, followed by a very special event tomorrow evening. So please look out for more exciting news tomorrow! Day one — Sunday 8 November 2009A sprint to the finish. That's the overriding theme of this year's Africa Water Week taking place this week in Midrand, South Africa. The emphasis is on action; on implementing the Sharm el Sheikh commitments so that progress towards reaching the Millennium Development Goals on water and sanitation is accelerated. Alongside hundreds of delegates from ministries, NGOs and civil society organisations from across the continent, WaterAid is pushing for African governments to honour their commitments to water and sanitation made at the Sharm El Sheikh summit in Egypt, 2008. The week is a great opportunity for WaterAid to share its experience, expertise and achievements in the water, sanitation and hygiene sector as well as an invaluable occasion to learn from other major players. The week got off to a good start, with a Global Framework for Action meeting on Saturday attended by representatives from UNICEF, DFID and several African governments. Idrissa Doucoure, head of WaterAid's New Initiatives Unit was pleasantly surprised by the reaction at the meeting: "It was great to see how receptive and understanding people are of the fact that the Global Framework for Action can really help to advance the sector agenda," he said afterwards. On Sunday, the African Civil Society Network on Water and Sanitation (ANEW) organized a civil society pre-meeting to identify key issues, gaps, and strategic ways forward. It particularly sought to articulate the specific roles and responsibilities civil society will have. It promises to be a big week. Not only will we be looking to drive forward governments' action plans for banishing water and sanitation poverty once and for all but we also have a very special event taking place on Tuesday. For more details, watch this space... Media contact: To interview spokespersons or for photos, video material, background information and copies of reports, or to attend the press conference, please contact: Ann Noon, Media Relations Manager, annnoon@wateraid.org, tel: 0044 7787 414307
 |
||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
PDF 714KB) or in French 
