Groundwater - making the invisible visible
The United Nations General Assembly adopted resolutions to designate 2 February as World Wetland Day in 1997, and 22 March as World Water Day in 1992. The two days are celebrated internationally each year to raise awareness about wetlands and water resources, with the aim to draw attention to the value of each as a precious life-giving and finite resource.
As in the past, Namibia commemorated World Wetlands Day, International Day of Forests, and World Water Day jointly in the form of National Water Week. This took place under the national theme “Groundwater too precious for people, forests and wetlands - making the invisible, visible".
Despite the importance of groundwater, groundwater is out of sight and out of the minds for most people. Therefore, a World Water Day on groundwater would put the spotlight on this invisible but important resource.
The activities included:
- Young Water professionals’ engagement;
- an exhibition by industries and role players to showcase water resources management tools;
- an educational tour to water resources sites; and
- a formal commemoration day of the event.
The commemoration was extended to stakeholders at regional, basin and local level. Key partners included: the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform; Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism; the Namibia Water Corporation; UNESCO; UNDP; the Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST); Franco Namibia Cultural Centre (FNCC); EduVentures; City of Windhoek; Southern African Science Centre for Climate Change and Adaptive Land Management (SASSCAL); and Accor Hotels, amongst others.
