Statement by Hon. Ronnie Kasrils

Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry, South Africa

Excellencies, Delegates;

1. WAC 1 has been a great success. South Africa was a pilot country, and the project assisted in the development of a strategy for Water Demand Management in greater Johannesburg.

2. AMCOW congratulates UN-Habitat on the achievement of WAC 1 and enthusiastically endorses the launch of WAC phases # 2.

3. In this short statement may I highlight the following amongst many of the important element of the programme:

• The development of South-South cooperation, networking and information exchange;

• The development of experience, expertise and capacity in the region, available for sharing through the WAC programme.

• Key focus area has been on pro-poor needs with public participation requirements, involving water user association at community and local levels.

4. This brings one to the need for development of the role of local municipal government and partnerships. These are a key requirement if we are to attain the MDG's in water, sanitation and improvement of human shelter in the growing slums of Africa's cities.

5. WEHAB now stands for:

Water and Sanitation; Energy; Health and Habitat, Agriculture and Biodiversity. We must strive for the synergy of water, sanitation and Human Habitat.

6. AMCOW pledges our fullest support to the UN-Habitat programme.