Cape Town: Through technical presentations by City staff, site tours and knowledge sharing at the recently held Water Institute of Southern Africa (WISA) Biennial Conference and Exhibition, the City’s Water and Sanitation Directorate demonstrated how long-term planning, sustained investment and innovation are strengthening Cape Town’s water resilience.
The conference attracted approximately 2000 delegates from all spheres of government, researchers, engineers, water utilities and the private sector, to engage with the theme ‘Rethinking Amanzi: Securing Our Future’.
As a co-anchor sponsor, the City of Cape Town supported the delivery of the conference while showcasing Cape Town’s infrastructural investment in the New Water Programme to improve water resilience.
The City’s Executive Director for Water and Sanitation – Leonardo Manus, addressed delegates as a keynote speaker, during a plenary session entitled ‘From Crisis to Resilience: Future-proofing South Africa’s Water and Sanitation Systems’.
Drawing on Cape Town’s experience since the drought, he highlighted the importance of water infrastructure maintenance, and the City’s success in reducing non-revenue water from 32% to 25% over the past three years. This is a key performance target of the City as part of the Metro Trading Services Reform strategy and part of its endeavours towards strengthening water security.
Member of the Mayoral Committee for Water and Sanitation – Councillor Zahid Badroodien stated that being the host City for one of South Africa’s largest water focused conferences, gave them an opportunity to showcase their future-forward investments: from advanced membrane bioreactor technology (MBR) at Zandvliet Wastewater Treatment Works, to the groundbreaking off-grid full-flush sanitation technology already operational in four of Cape Town’s informal settlements.
According to him, similar to many cities around the world grappling with ageing infrastructure and century-old water systems, Cape Town has its challenges. However, many are being overcome through the proactive Pipe Replacement Programme, which sees 50km of water pipes and 100km of sewer pipes replaced annually.
Other professionals from the Water and Sanitation Directorate of the City of Cape Town have also shared their expertise with delegates during break-away sessions, presenting on a broad array of subjects including water reuse, infrastructure renewal, groundwater management, public engagement and climate resilience.
Cllr Badroodien added to his statement that as a co-anchor sponsor, they were proud to help in bringing together the brightest minds in the sector to share solutions that will benefit communities across Southern Africa. Their own experience has shown that resilience is built through sustained investment in infrastructure, embracing new technologies and protecting the valuable water resources that they already have as a unified community.
Technical tours of the City’s flagship projects included different topics, such as:
- Cape Flats Advanced Water Reclamation Plant (AWRP): Currently under construction alongside the Cape Flats Wastewater Treatment Works, the Cape Flats Advanced Water Reclamation Plant will use advanced treatment technologies to produce high-quality drinking water from purified wastewater once operational, supporting the City’s New Water Programme and long-term water security strategy.
- Zandvliet Wastewater Treatment Works (WWTW): Following its R2 billion expansion completed in 2024, the upgraded Zandvliet Wastewater Treatment Works now provides increased treatment capacity and improved effluent quality while positioning the facility to support the future Faure New Water Scheme and advanced water reuse.
- Innovative Sanitation Technologies: The City showcased its partnership with the Water Research Commission (WRC) and the Gates Foundation to pilot innovative non-sewered sanitation technologies in informal settlements. The initiative is testing sustainable, water-efficient sanitation solutions while supporting local innovation and manufacturing.
- Lourens and Sir Lowry’s River Flood Alleviation Projects: The City’s flood alleviation projects along the Lourens and Sir Lowry’s rivers demonstrate how integrated river management is reducing flood risk, protecting vulnerable communities and strengthening climate resilience.
The conference featured more than 80 specialist sessions, over 150 peer-reviewed technical presentations, workshops, panel discussions and approximately 140 exhibitors, creating one of the largest knowledge-sharing platforms for the Southern African water sector.