Article by Dr Inga Jacobs, President of Young Water Professionals, WISA.

It is widely recognised that capacity building and sustainable knowledge transfer are critical concerns for several sectors in South Africa, and the water sector is no different.

The loss of intellectual assets is a major threat to effective water management particularly in water-scarce countries such as South Africa where the onus has always been on the scientific community to find technological solutions for sectoral challenges.

The repercussions for the sector include high staff turnover as well as the loss of skills and institutional memory. Young water professionals in South Africa are therefore faced with the threefold challenge of developing their skills, finding mentors to help them do so, as well as grappling with the added responsibility of re-learning knowledge that could have been retained through sustainable knowledge transfer policies and programmes.

Fulfilling the present and future needs of the water and wastewater industries requires the continuous development of a workforce which is both adequate in size, capable in skills and strong in leadership. Recognising that young water professionals (students and professionals in the water sector and under the age of 35, or who attained their most recent qualification within the past five years) are the future of the water sector, the Young Water Professionals (YWP) was established as an international initiative by the International Water Association (IWA). In Southern Africa, the Southern African Young Water Professionals (SA YWP) in collaboration with the Water Institute for Southern Africa (WISA) has been highly successful in providing opportunities for YWPs to meet and communicate; providing career development opportunities for them; supporting employers with the recruitment and retention of YWPs as well as ensuring that the programme remains relevant.

The Southern African Young Water Professionals programme is entering its 4th year of existence as an official programme with more than 800 student members and provincial chapters set up in the Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and further afield in Zimbabwe and Mozambique.  Plans are also underway to launch the Mpumalanga and the Free State YWP chapters this year.

I can honestly say that young people have found the YWP programme immensely supportive in career development, networking, technical skills training, but perhaps more importantly, having a supportive network of individuals who are going through the same challenges that young people face when developing their careers.

This is oftentimes the non-technical challenges such as networking at conferences, finding a mentor, or sharing the challenges of being a young woman professional in a still largely male-dominated sector. Through the YWP programme these kinds of formal but also informal lessons are shared, and it helps to grow professionals that are equipped to deal with the technical but also non-technical challenges that the water sector throws before us. Even professionals who work in other sectors have come to us because that kind of support is not provided in their respective sectors.

Main achievements to date

The first Southern African Regional Conference, the biggest YWP conference to date, attracted 300 participants; the second conference attracted 440 delegates. These regional conferences surpass international YWP conferences in the amount of delegates and the extent of the technical programmes.

Other achievements include but are not limited to:

• DIY Manual on Lessons Learned from Southern Africa – the Southern African region has developed a guideline that documents success stories and lessons learned and shares it with the rest of the world with the hope that other regions can also learn from our experience in setting up the YWP programme
• provided support to the “I drink Tap Water” campaign
• Moola for Amanzi competition with the Dutch-SA Water partnership
• support to Aqua Enduro (a DWA initiative)
• more involvement of YWPs in management committees and leadership positions in membership organisations i.e. WISA Board, IWA board, Strategic Council etc.
• an exciting programme of activities at the WISA 2012 conference including the international Wetskills competition
• our own clothing range.

Main aims as YWP president

Given this incredible track record, and as we usher in the new committee, it is my hope that we move from a period of establishment and growth to a period of consolidation of the programme through partnerships. This means that I would hope to grow the programme in the provinces but also expand our network further into the region and really be the regional platform for young water professionals.

Also, the development of partnerships is another key focus and already the YWP programme is working with the Department of Water Affairs to provide support to the Africa Youth Summit in July. We will host several workshops and activities to share survival tips by young professionals for young professionals and scholars on what to expect from a career in the water sector and to highlight the numerous opportunities.

Activity highlights

The YWP has a very exciting programme planned this year both in the region and globally. Some of the highlights include the following:

• YWP International Conference – Budapest, Hungary  held from 10-13 July
• YWP activities at IWA World Water Congress – Busan, South Korea, 16-21 September 2012
• a series of non-technical career building workshops hosted at the CSIR in Pretoria focusing on training in financial planning, self-esteem, setting goals etc.
• YWP activities at Freshwater Governance Conference – Drakensberg, November 2012.

We believe that young professionals will play a vital part in facilitating change in the water sector. The youth are dynamic enough to take change in their stride, while having the mentorship of distinguished water professionals for guidance.

We are the ones faced with the consequences of the environmental threats, and we are passionate about improving the situation. More than this, we aim to improve the way things are done in a fun and positive way, while still maintaining economic relevance and scientific excellence.

YWPs are more comfortable working in a multi- or even trans-disciplinary environment than the baby boomers on whom we still rely so much, making us well suited to tackle the challenges facing us today in a communicative, team-based manner. We are comfortable working in a global environment, but we need the mentorship and guidance of more experienced professionals.

Picture: Dr Inga Jacobs