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15 Mar 2023

President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi left for the US yesterday to attend a UN Water Conference scheduled for March 22-24 in New York. 

According to a Ministry of Foreign Affairs press release, the conference will assess the implementation of the objectives laid out in the Water Action Decade 2008-2018 and act as a midterm comprehensive review of the UN goals on water and sanitation. 

Subsequent to the first UN conference on water taking place in 1977 in Argentina, the global community adopted a resolution that “all peoples, whatever their stage of development, social and economic conditions, have the right to have access to drinking water in quantities and quality equal to their basic needs.” 

Water was later fused into the UN action plans and development goals and the upcoming conference is anticipated to reaffirm internationally agreed water related targets including those contained in the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The conference could be a watershed moment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) envisioning “clean water and sanitation for all,” and UN secretary general Mr Antonio Guterres recently stating that 'water is a dealmaker on SDGs, for the health and prosperity of the people and planet'.

Prior to attending the  conference, President Masisi will have meetings with NantWorks chief executive officer and special healthcare advisor to the US president, Dr Patrick Soon-Shiong in Carlifornia. 

He will also visit the Heliogen manufacturing site to appreciate the renewable energy technologies in concentrated solar energy and thermal storage systems.

In addition, Dr Masisi has been invited by the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and Virginia Polytechnic in Blarksburg to give public lectures on the subjects of, ‘Good Governance, Democracy and Management of Natural Resources in Botswana’ and ‘Merging Conservation, Democracy and Sustainable Development in Botswana’ respectively. 

The President is accompanied by First Lady Neo, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Lemogang Kwape, Minister of Lands and Water Affairs Dr Kefentse Mzwinila and senior government officials. Ends