What value does water have to Tanzania’s economy?
Original source is GWP, web link here: https://www.gwp.org/en/About/more/news/2024/what-value-does-water-have-…
Have you ever wondered about the economic value of water to a country? The Ministry of Water of Tanzania, the Wami Ruvu Basin Water Board and GWP, with support from the SDG 6 IWRM Support Programme, have provided a preliminary answer to that question for Tanzania: 3.31%, in just three sectors.
The results of this detailed analysis were launched at a high-level hybrid event on 31 October 2024, connecting dozens of interested stakeholders in the Ministry of Water, in Dodoma, with many more online participants.
Held upon invitation from the Minister of Water of Tanzania, H.E. Jumaa Hamidu Aweso, and moderated by GWP’s CEO and Executive Secretary, Alan AtKisson, the event brought together panellists from the Ministry of Water, the Development Partners Group on WASH, FAO’s regional office for Africa, the Secretariat of the African Union Continental Africa Water Investment Programme (AIP) and the Valuing Water Initiative, to delve into the findings of the report.
Covering the value of water for three important sectors for Tanzania’s economy, namely agriculture, manufacturing and mining, the publication makes a strong case for why water is undervalued in financial terms compared to the significant economic value it brings to the country. Indeed, Dr George Lugomela, Director for Water Resources at the Ministry of Water, stated that this report is part of Tanzania’s efforts to introduce better water pricing mechanisms that reflect the true value of water, and hoped that the study could ultimately lead to better water financing models.
Shamiso Kumbirai, of GWP Southern Africa, and the Secretariat of the AIP, noted that Tanzania has been a leader in the continent on this topic, which is aligned with the findings of the International High-Level Panel on Water Investments for Africa, which is aiming to raise at least US$30 billion per year by 2030 to reach the water-related SDGs at the continental level. She highlighted that the economic value at risk from not investing in water normally dwarfs the actual budgetary allocation for water, highlighting that the value at risk is often not quantified.
In his closing remarks, Joakim Harlin, representing the United Nations Environment Programme, congratulated Tanzania on its efforts to put an economic value on water, but also encouraged stakeholders to look beyond the economic value of water, considering the different values that water brings to stakeholders, including for freshwater ecosystems, who are a stakeholder often without a voice. He stated the support of UNEP and of the SDG 6 IWRM Support Programme to Tanzania for the next steps in this journey, and to other countries interested in replicating this experience.
