As part of celebrations to mark the 2017 World Water Day which came up on March 22, Nigeria has indicated her preparedness to harness the latent goldmine in waste water for sustainable development. This is in conformity with the theme of this year’s event “Why Wastewater? The intention is to highlight the symbiotic relationship between water and wastewater in the quest for sustainable development.
Hopefully, it will also create opportunity to consolidate and build upon the previous years’ World Water Days’ themes that had focussed on key aspects of water as a resource in the development process.
World Water Day is an annual global event usually, officially celebrated on March 22 every year to create awareness on Water Resources Management. It is an international observance day. It is meant to inspire people around the world to learn more about water-related issues, tell others about these issues and take action to make a difference, particularly in developing countries. This day was first formally proposed in Agenda 21 of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro. The United Nations (UN) designated 22 March as International World Water Day in 1992 at the same conference. The first International World Water Day, designated by the United Nations, was commemorated in 1993. Since then, each year has focused on a different issue in the water value chain
The theme is about reducing and reusing wastewater as a valuable resource to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goal Number 6. One aspect of Target 6.3 is to halve the proportion of untreated wastewater and also to increase the recycling and safe reuse of water across the globe. Scientists aver that after appropriate treatment, wastewater can be used for a variety of purposes. They cite industry as an example of where wastewater can be reused as water in cooling towers as well as agriculture where it can be reused as water for irrigation.
World Water Day is supported by stakeholders across the globe. Many organisations promote clean water for people and sustainable aquatic habitats. Events such as theatrical and musical celebrations, educational events, and campaigns to raise money for access to clean and affordable water are held worldwide on or close to 22 March. In Nigeria, it was marked by organised walking.
Global water crisis is one of the issues the Day is made to focus attention on. The global water crisis properly defined include challenges such as water scarcity, water pollution, inadequate water supply and the lack of sanitation for billions of people in developing countries. The day brings to light the inequality of access to WASH, a collective term for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, services and the need to assure the human right to water and sanitation.
To mark the day, the United Nations pointed out that most human activities produce wastewater and over 80 percent of the world’s wastewater is released to the environment without treatment.
In a 2017 United Nations World Water Development report, the world body said that limiting the discharge of untreated wastewater will not only save lives and strengthen healthy ecosystem, but also help sustainable growth. It also stressed the need to shift paradigm of wastewater management from ‘treatment and disposal’ to ‘reduce, reuse, recycle and resource recovery’. The UN insisted that wastewater should no longer be seen as a problem, but as part of the solution to challenges that all are facing. Treated wastewater, it emphasised can be a cost-efficient, sustainable, safe and reliable alternative source of water for various purposes ranging from irrigation and industrial uses to drinking water, particularly under conditions of water scarcity. For this, we need to change mind-sets, to raise awareness and redouble educational efforts to share the benefits of wastewater reuse.
The report stressed the need to see improved wastewater management at the heart of a circular economy, balancing development with the protection and sustainable use of natural resources. At a time when demand is growing and limited resources are increasingly stressed by over-abstraction, pollution and climate change, the world simply must not neglect the opportunities from improved wastewater management. We cannot afford to waste wastewater.
UN-Water coordinates plans and programmes for the day in consultation with UN member organisations who share interest in that year’s theme. Also, End Water Poverty, a global civil society coalition with 250 partner organisations worldwide, coordinates a calendar of global events to commemorate World Water Day, on the 22nd and during the whole of March.