Johannesburg – This past week marked World Water Day and National Water Week with multinational company Procter & Gamble (P&G) standing in solidarity with the UN and the South African government in highlighting the fundamental human right to access clean and safe drinking water.
This year's World Water Day theme, "Accelerating Change to Solve the Water and Sanitation Crisis“, underscored the company’s long-standing commitment to improving access to safe drinking water through the Children’s Safe Drinking Water Programme.
World Water Week came after the Gauteng Department of Health confirmed that as of February 28, 2023, a total of six confirmed cholera cases including one death have been reported in the province.
The department added that all cases were adults from ages 19 to 44 years. No confirmed cases have been reported in other provinces.
According to Alicia Eggington, vice president, and GM for South Africa, Botswana, and Namibia, in the late 1990s, P&G scientists invented the P&G Purifier of Water technology while attempting to clean dirty laundry water.
Eggington said when the P&G Children’s Safe Drinking Water (CSDW) Programme was established in 2004, nearly 4 000 children were dying each day as a result of illness caused by drinking dirty water.
“The rollout of the CSDW easy-to-use water purification packet is a significant milestone in our commitment to this cause. Over the past few years, we have successfully rolled out CSDW packet in Sub-Saharan Africa, where community projects have shown the effectiveness of this technology,” Eggington said.
“The CSDW packet forms part of P&G’s temporary solution, especially in case of emergency and rapid response for communities. For a long-term solution, we have worked with various organisations to drill boreholes and provide continuous access to clean, safe drinking water”.
Eggington further stressed the importance of all stakeholders playing their respective roles in improving access to safe drinking water as access to clean drinking water remains a challenge in the country more than 28 years into democracy.
“Unfortunately, access to safe drinking water remains a significant challenge in some areas, particularly in regions affected by natural disasters and other emergencies,” she said.
Anele Nzimande, communications manager at P&G said the company was concerned over the recent cholera outbreak in the country. Nzimande said there was an urgent need for access to safe drinking water in affected areas.
"Our CSDW packets are a simple solution that provides safe drinking water in emergencies and disasters, and in areas where access to clean water is limited. P&G stands with the South African government in recognising the importance of access to safe drinking water for all, as we commemorate National Water Week,“ Nzimande said.
The Star