Zimpapers Politics Hub
WORLD leaders, including SADC member states, are converging in Tajikistan for the Third High-Level International Conference on the International Decade for Action Conference aimed at ending global water problems.
The conference which ended yesterday ran under the theme; "Water for Sustainable Development" within the framework of the Dushanbe Water Process.
This year's event followed up on commitments made during the UN 2023 Water Conference and accelerated action towards achieving the Water Action Agenda.
The conference was a precursor to the launch of the first-ever United Nations System-wide Strategy for Water and Sanitation.
The Dushanbe Water Process is an important initiative of the government of Tajikistan to support the implementation of internationally agreed water-related goals.
It was part of the United Nations' Water Action Decade, a global initiative to accelerate efforts towards sustainable water management and access to clean water and sanitation for all. Some SADC leaders from nations with critical water challenges largely caused by climate change also attended the conference.
Zimbabwe was being represented by the Vice President Constantino Chiwenga, who is the chairperson of the Inter-Ministerial Task Force on SADC Summit Preparations, to be hosted by Zimbabwe.
The issue of water is expected to be an agenda at the summit.
The presence of the SADC leaders at the Dushanbe conference presents a good opportunity for the regional bloc to emulate efforts being undertaken at the global level to solve water shortages.
It is, however, a blessing for SADC leaders to attend the conference as it became a precursor to the SADC Summit on solving water and sanitation issues in the region.
The SADC leaders in Tajikistan carried the hope of all the region and took a cue from initiatives being undertaken globally to end water shortages in the region.
Climate change has led to increased variability in rainfall patterns, prolonged droughts, and more frequent extreme weather phenomena. These factors have contributed to scarcity and reduced water quality in the region, posing serious challenges for the agriculture and manufacturing industries and also for human consumption.
Water experts who spoke to the Zimpapers Politics Hub said the Dushanbe water conference was an opportunity to solve the region's water problems.
An expert in Water and Sanitation, Engineer Bernard Musarurwa expressed hope that SADC countries that attended the conference could tap from technology advances that were being articulated at the summit to harness water as a resource for domestic and industrial use.
"One wants to believe that the organisers of such a conference were looking for dialogue and solutions to the provision of adequate and safe potable water supply and the safe disposal and treatment of wastewater for the citizens of the delegates to the conference," Eng Musarurwa said.
Turning to Zimbabwe, Eng Musarurwa said local authorities needed to address the erratic and intermittent supply of clean and safe piped municipal water in major cities.
"It is hoped that the Zimbabwe delegation to the Dushanbe Water and Sanitation conference would bring back useful knowledge and information to generate the required impetus and focus for the country to attend to the woeful situation regarding water and sanitation in the country, especially the City of Harare, the perennially dry City of Bulawayo, and elsewhere, including the rural and communal areas," he said.
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"Most sewage reticulation and treatment plants around the country are now dysfunctional and inadequate for the purpose due to neglect of maintenance and upgrading commensurate with the increase in the population and demand for the services,"
Bulawayo Residents Association president, Mr Winos Dube, said it was prudent for SADC leaders to attend such a conference as they will take a cue on how to solve water problems in the region.
"In this region, as SADC we are facing water problems. It is good that SADC leaders attended the conference. It will help them come up with tangible initiatives to address water challenges at the forthcoming SADC Summit," Mr Dube said.
He said residents of Bulawayo were looking forward to a permanent solution to their perennial water challenges.
"We, in Bulawayo sometimes undergo regimes of water rationing. We hope such initiatives will help solve the city's water problems once and for all," he said.
