IHE Delft Rector Eddy Moors calls on countries to prioritize capacity development at World Water Forum
Read the speech below:
To fix the world’s water crisis, you need people and institutions to have the capacity to do so. This is why the IHE Delft Institute for Water Education working under the auspices of UNESCO calls upon all countries to prioritize capacity development in all their water and sanitation-related efforts. For any investment in green and grey water infrastructure to have a lasting impact, capacity development must be part of the package.
“IHE Delft working under the auspices of UNESCO calls upon all countries to prioritize capacity development in all their water and sanitation-related efforts.”
Too often, the water sector investments devote little or no resources and attention to the issue of capacity. In the search for quick or immediate return-on-investment, developing capacity – which requires sustained efforts over a longer period of time – falls to the wayside. The consequence is a world that remains unprepared to face current and future challenges. By including capacity development, at individual and institutional levels, water investments become truly sustainable.
It is for this that the Global Water Education Network (GWEN) was recognized as one of the nine game changers in the closing remarks by the President of the General Assembly of the UN2023 Water Conference and is part of the water action agenda.
Capacity development is key to sustainably solving the world’s water crisis
Therefore, we urge all decision-makers to prioritize capacity development. This means devoting more resources to capacity development not only in future investments, but also changing existing financing schemes to prioritize capacity development. It means thinking in the long term instead of focusing on immediate return of investments – something that may appear expensive in the short term, but in the long term, there is no other way. Capacity development is key to sustainably solving the world’s water crisis and the Global Education Network can help to achieve this.
Eddy Moors
Rector
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