US-AEP Urban Program

Address to the Opening Plenary Session of the Asia-Pacific Urban Institute’s Executive Seminar on Integrated Water Resources Management

Gordon Weynand
Honolulu, April 3, 2002

Mayor Harris, distinguished speakers of the opening session, colleagues, it is my pleasure to join in welcoming you to this beautiful and environmentally sound city.

My organization, the United States-Asia Environmental Partnership, works to support mutually beneficial partnerships between Americans and Asians around sustainable environmental improvement. In this effort, we believe that we have to devote our attention to the key decision-makers, the individuals and institutions whose actions will make a difference. Among these key individuals, US-AEP feels that there is none more important than the mayor, and the people who lead the cities, and there is no institution that is more important than the city itself.

It is no surprise, then, that US-AEP was an early and enthusiastic sponsor of the two Mayors’ Asia-Pacific Environmental Summits that took place in 1999 and 2001, and we look forward to working with Honolulu and our partners to hold another Summit in 2003. At the 2001 Summit, local leaders from 28 Asian cities announced specific political and professional commitments to improve environmental health in their communities, and we are please to have on hand some of these leaders today, including: Ms. Vyas, the Mayor of Vadodara, India and Ms. Prakaikeo Ratananaka, the Mayor of Uttaradit, Thailand.

In order to support these and future Mayors and executives in achieving their commitments, US-AEP is also actively supporting the development of a capacity-building program that will be closely associated with the Summit and will serve Asian local leaders such as yourselves. US-AEP is proud to have taken a leading role in presenting this inaugural Seminar of the Asia-Pacific Urban Institute, which is the seminal initiative of this local leadership program.

What has set MAPES apart and what will make this nascent Institute special and especially relevant is the emphasis on visionary, steadfast, and inspired POLITICAL LEADERSHIP, and the unifying conviction that sound political leadership at the LOCAL level will largely decide the fate of our global environment. Furthermore, the partners associated with the Institute, including US-AEP, understand that leadership cannot really be taught, but instead should be encouraged, cultivated, and, perhaps most important, rewarded.

You Mayors, Municipal Commissioners and Local Party Chairman who are with us today have been recognized for your leadership qualities that have allowed your cities to succeed where other cities have failed. With your leadership, seemingly insurmountable environmental problems have been turned into opportunities for environmental improvement, measured in terms of cleaner air, cleaner water, extended lifespans, and a better life for your citizens. We are honored that you leaders could join us for the next four days, and we take your attendance as an affirmation that you understand that improving the environment requires constant effort and that there is much work to be done.

I am also pleased that the Institute has chosen to take on Integrated Water Resource Management, or IWRM, as its first Seminar topic. By applying IWRM principles to the improvement of water and sanitation provision, cities and regions can help ensure that their freshwater resources are managed more intelligently, and in the process can collectively help avert a global water crisis that is a real possibility in the not-too-distant future.

Access to water and sanitation is a basic human right, and yet mismanagement of water and land resources is putting human health and sustainable social and economic development at risk. Explosive growth of urban centers, unsustainable exploitation of natural resources, uncontrolled industrialization, increasing water demand for food production, and expanding populations lacking proper environmental sanitation have led to progressive depletion and degradation of freshwater resources.

To safeguard the sustainable supply of safe drinking water, concerted action is needed on all fronts, including agriculture, forestry, industry, transport, urban and spatial planning, population planning, and electricity generation. This action must occur on all levels of government, including the national, regional, and, of course, local levels.

This holistic approach, which is the hallmark of IWRM, requires coordination between many diverse groups on many levels. But while some national governments are addressing the issue of IWRM through the development of legislative frameworks, movement towards practical application of IWRM remains slow. This is partly because drinking water and sanitation systems, which are largely managed on the local and provincial levels, are poorly integrated into overall IWRM strategies, while principles of IWRM are only partially present in water supply and sanitation programs. So, in short, what is missing from the IWRM equation is the involvement of the local level. What is missing is YOUR full involvement. However, there is much that you can do as local policy makers and local water managers to affect positive change. Because it’s on the local level where measures are actually applied and where a good deal of work remains to be done.

And that’s where the water utility managers and engineers come in. There is good reason why we invited you here along with your local political leaders. Municipal water utilities are the main water providers for almost 50 percent of the world’s population, and thus play a vital role in managing this often-scarce resource. As global urbanization continues, municipal water utilities have the complex task of providing affordable and safe drinking water to its customers in a cost-effective and efficient manner. Limited energy resources, sparse freshwater supplies, and mounting environmental concerns make water delivery even more challenging.

US-AEP and USAID has supported many efforts in Asia to improve and support water utility management.

For instance, with the assistance of USAID, the Alliance to Save Energy has undertaken its “Watergy” program, which looks at the important link between energy and water supply and terment. According to ASE, “energy consumption in most water systems worldwide could be reduced by at least 25 percent through cost-effective efficiency actions. This means that water utilities globally have the potential to cost effectively save more energy than the entire country of Thailand uses annually.” Through the Watergy Project, the Alliance helped the city of Indore, India save 1.6 million rupees (US $35,000) within just three months of action with no investment cost just be improving the way existing pumps worked together. We are fortunate to have the Municipal Commissioner of Indore, Mr. Sanjay Shukla, with us today. Through efforts like these, municipal water utilities can cost-effectively provide water services, reduce energy consumption, and protect the environment.

In Indonesia, the US-AEP program is complementing a $4 million USAID mission-assisted Local Government Water Services project by providing small, innovative, quickly-funded knowledge creation activities in several interlocking areas, such as increased productivity, closer coordination with local governments, and consumer participation, including encouraging greater woman’s participation in the management of water resources. These activities have helped water enterprises become more financially viable by working to improve cost recovery and to set tariffs at a level that allows services to be expanded and existing systems to be better maintained. We have found that if local governments, water enterprise supervisory boards, and consumers work together, even small and weak water enterprises can achieve financial viability. The results of this work can only be appreciated when we consider the effect it has on the dat-to-day lives of people.

When the US-AEP – assisted Water Efficiency Team (WET) project first visited the local water utility of Karang Asem in Bali, Indonesia, Mrs. Gusti Ayu Nyoman Padmawati age 29, had to spend more than two hours a day hauling her family’s water. Like the other women in her area, she had to climb two hills along a 200 meter-long road and trail three times a day to reach a public water tap. Responding to the request for assistance from the local water enterprise, the WET team brought no funds. The local officers did the work themselves; WET only advised on how to become a commercially viable, customer oriented service. In the months and years since, the local water utility’s new connection program, financed only from growing cash flow, increased the number of hookups by almost 40%. Piped water service is now enjoyed by over 70% of the urban population, including Mrs. Padmawati. Now she has piped water in her own home for all of her family’s cleaning, bathing, and cooking needs. She spends more time with her family, especially with her eldest child who frequently needs assistance with his homework. In April 2001 she told an interviewer, “Helping me and my neighbors get water connections has made my life so much better.” When you consider that the WET projects and other water projects funded and assisted by US-AEP have helped – water enterprises in a similar way, we estimate we have helped improved the lives of – Indonesians, most of whom live under the poverty line. Improving the lives of so many people gives us a sense of purpose in our work, but also drives us to continue providing assistance so more people in other cities can enjoy the benefits of clean and accessible water.

This story, as well as the work of the Alliance to Save Energy that I previously discussed, shows that, with the right policies and political will on the local level, a lot can be done to improve water supply and sanitation with limited resources. Because local governments are so important to the success of their water enterprises and vice versa, it is important that they work closely together to provide for the water and sanitation needs of their people.

I hope that in the days to come you can formulate new strategies that you can implement at home with the combined input and efforts of your local government, water utilities, and communities. We will look forward to hearing your commitments on Saturday and hope to see you all again in Honolulu for MAPES 2003. Thank you.