World Water Day to be Celebrated at Alexandra

Xylem Water Solutions South Africa is set to celebrate World Water Day and South African Water Week in conjunction with Afrika Tikkun and Afrika Tikkun Services at its Phutaditjaba Community Centre in Alexandra on the 22nd of March. The team at Xylem will host an educational theatre show for the pre-schoolers at the centre – teaching them about water conservation in a fun and educational manner; while lending their expertise to upgrade existing water infrastructure at the site.    

World Water Day is an annual initiative rolled out in 1993 by the United Nations whereby global awareness of water as a scarce resource is raised and addressed. Participants from all over the world find innovative ways to address fresh water challenges in the most needy of areas. The secretary general of the United Nations (UN); Ban Ki-Moon summarises the leitmotif behind the initiative: “To address the many challenges related to water, we must work in a spirit of urgent cooperation, open to new ideas and innovation, and prepared to share the solutions that we all need for a sustainable future.”

Each year sees the UN announcing an official theme for World Water Day. This year’s is Water and Jobs.  Using this theme as a guideline; Xylem Water Solutions South Africa wanted to identify areas where youth could be made aware of water as a scarce resource and to identify areas where youth could enter the labour force with a career in the water industry.

The company found and ideal partner in Afrika Tikkun (AT) and its sustainability arm; Afrika Tikkun Services (ATS) in terms of its global social development initiative; Xylem Watermark.  The team at Afrika Tikkun employs a cradle-to-career model which invests in the development of disadvantaged children from early infancy through young adulthood and into the world of work. This model is then taken further by Afrika Tikkun Services – a for-profit company that aligns with corporate partners as their supplier of choice for placement of skilled youth from under resourced communities.

This year’s World Water Day activity will be the second consecutive year Xylem Water Solutions South Africa, partners with Afrika Tikkun for World Water Day:

“After last year’s enormous success; we decided to work with them again for this year’s celebration. We feel the values of developing children from an early age for the labour market is a commendable effort;” explains Heinrich Louw; marketing manager – Middle East and Africa. “If we can contribute to engender a culture of water conservation at an early age; we are happy to be involved.”

This year Xylem Staff and celebrities will also be painting walls in the centre that lead into the ECD Center at the Alexandra-centre in child-friendly; water-related themes. “We are excited about this part of the day; as the children will see these images every day; reinforcing the message of water conservation.

“We value Xylem’s partnership with us because it speaks to a fundamental resource that is necessary for the dignity, growth and development of young people and families we work with. We especially recognise that if we do not teach our children to value and use this resource better we may have an even worse crisis on our hands in years to come.” says Onyi Nwaneri, head of legal, resource development, marketing and communications at Afrika Tikkun.

Xylem Water Solutions South Africa is proud to be involved with global programmes such as World Water Day and continues to strive for innovative solutions that are applicable throughout the water cycle.