MUMBAI, INDIA. April 4, 2019 — A recent knowledge sharing event on innovation in water technologies was held in Mumbai, India. The meeting was jointly organized by the Trade and Economic Mission of Israel in collaboration with the 2030 Water Resources Group.

 The objective of the roundtable was for Israeli water technology companies and prominent water organizations to share their knowledge on innovation in water technologies with members of the Maharashtra Multi-Stakeholder Platform (MSP). Eight Israeli companies were there to present their work and discuss opportunities for future collaboration. The MSP members were inspired by the various ways that the Israeli government partnered with the water sector and other industries in their country to address critical water scarcity issues and their ability to make more water available in a sustainable way.

India is suffering from a sustained water crisis that will only worsen if no action will be taken soon. Excessive demand for water, coupled with poor governance structures, erratic weather patterns, and climate impacts have led to severe water scarcity in several areas in the country. Although India’s water challenges are complex and unique, best practices and lessons learned from other parts of the world can offer replicable and scalable solutions to address some of the most critical problems.

Israel is the world’s leader in sustainable water management. The Israeli government recently joined the 2030 Water Resources Group in its efforts to reduce the gap between demand and supply for water. A small nation located on the southeastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea and the northern shore of the Red Sea, Israel’s demand for water is many times above its natural supply, due to its arid and semi-arid climate. Despite these challenging conditions, Israel has developed various water-saving technologies, including in water desalination, micro-irrigation, and water infrastructure and transport systems. The expertise and capacity built by leading water technology companies in Israel have been great examples for their Indian counterparts.

The exchange was attended by high-level MSP members, including representatives from the Water Resources Department and the Water Supply and Sanitation Department of the Government of Maharashtra, the Maharashtra Water Resources Regulatory Authority, several public institutions in the water sector, representatives of the Indian water industry, UNICEF, CSOs, and relevant research organizations.

Contact

For further details please reach out to Pearlini Wathore (Pearlini.Wathore@israeltrade.gov.il), J.V.R. Murty (jmurty@worldbank.org) and Karishma Gupte (kgupte@worldbank.org).