Water marshals coming The Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry with its partners SABMiller Namibia, City of Windhoek, Namibia Water Corporation (NamWater), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GiZ) and Ogilvy and Mather, recently launched a national water-saving campaign codenamed “My Water, My Future, Our Namibia”, to encourage more Namibians to save water until the dams in the central area have recovered.Speaking at the launch of the campaign, SABMiller''s corporate affairs officer, Maija-Liisa Prinzonsky said they aligned themselves with the campaign because the company supports internal and external forces that influence the country''s potential growth. Prinzonsky said SABMiller as a stakeholder in the campaign wants to assist the government to meet its objectives.
“We can contribute as a positive role model in the communities in which we operate. This means supporting jobs, stimulating growth, promoting responsible alcohol consumption and being a good steward of water and other natural resources,” she said.
Tjivekumba Tjivikua, a City Police superintendent called for residents in Windhoek to adhere to water-saving measures put in place by CoW. Tjivikua requested more stakeholders to come on-board and create more awareness about saving water.
The head of planning and water resources management at NamWater William Venter said Namibians needed to save more water. “There is no guarantee the current rainy season will replenish the water supply in the dams,” said Venter.
During his keynote address, the deputy permanent secretary at the agriculture ministry Abraham Nehemia reiterated that water is an important resource.
“Many public institutions, such as government offices, schools hospitals and correctional facilities do not employ proper or regular maintenance programmes meant to save water,” Nehemia said. “Often taps in public institutions are left leaking for a lengthy period of time or in some cases, are left open which leads to high water losses and huge bills for government,” he added.
He called on all Namibians to play their part in saving water. “There are many ways each of us can save water at home and our workplaces. These range from fixing leaks, and replacing old and aging infrastructure,” said Nehemia.
It was also revealed at the launch of the event that water marshals have been appointed to monitor and report all water use inefficiencies.
The water marshals are expected to fix small leaks and share water management messages with the nation. Nehemia added that the water marshals will need support from the public to ensure that water is used efficiently.
“Water marshals will be introduced to the public and everyone will have access to them in case they need to report water leaks in their respective institutions. The marshals have undergone basic training in this regard and will be supported further up the line,” said Nehemia. The campaign is scheduled to run for two years.
Shona Ngava