African finance ministers to discuss smart investments in water, sanitation and hygiene

African finance ministers are set to attend a forum this week which aims to develop and strengthen partnerships in the region for smart investments in water, sanitation and hygiene, organisers said on Tuesday.

Over a dozen African finance ministers have confirmed their participation in the Wednesday meeting which will be held virtually due to travel restrictions necessitated by the Covid- 19 pandemic. Over 30 ministers responsible for delivering these vital services will also take part, convener Sanitation and Water for All ( SWA) said in a statement.

“Together, they will explore concrete ways to ensure universal access to water, sanitation and hygiene in the region,” it said.

SWA is a global platform for achieving the sixth of the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals -- which is to ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.

The meeting of African ministers follows on previous global meetings organised by SWA in 2010, 2012, 2014 and 2017 and will be co- convened by the United Nations Children’s Fund, the World Bank Water Global Practice, the African Development Bank and the African Ministers’ Council on Water.

It will underscore the crucial role of water, sanitation and hygiene to the African economy, population and environment during and after the coronavirus health crisis and will offer ministers practical avenues for financing the sector.

“Covid- 19 has catapulted the water, sanitation and hygiene sector to the forefront of the response to this unprecedented global pandemic,” SWA chief executive Catarina de Albuquerque said in a separate statement on Monday.

“Therefore, options for making smart investments are critically needed to ensure finance ministers use limited national resources efficiently and effectively.”

This week’s meeting comes on the heels of last month’s ’ Waterwise Future for All’ meeting, the world’s first drivein convention which was organised by the W12 Congress and held in Cape Town.

Sustainable water use has become topical not just in Africa but globally as the World Bank predicts that by 2050 almost two billion people living in cities will suffer shortages of the resource as demand increases by up to 70 percent.

African News Agency