Oleh/By : DATO SERI DR MAHATHIR BIN MOHAMAD
Tempat/Venue : PWTC, KUALA LUMPUR
Tarikh/Date : 29-10-2001
Tajuk/Title : THE INTERNATIONAL WATER
ASSOCIATION (IWA) CONFERENCE ON
WATER & WASTEWATER FOR
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
Versi : ENGLISH
Penyampai : PM
I wish to thank the organisers, the International
Water Association and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia for
inviting me to officially open the Conference today.
2. On behalf of the Malaysian Government, I would
like to thank the IWA Governing Board for choosing
Malaysia as host of this prestigious Conference. I also
wish to welcome the foreign delegates to Malaysia. I
hope your short stay here would be enjoyable. You will
probably notice that Malaysia is not what it is
pictured to be from the media you are familiar with.
We are a reasonably developed developing country with a
multi-racial and multi-religious society living in
peace and relative harmony. In a world in a state of
turmoil because of racial and religious differences we
are still stable.
3. This Conference is very timely because of several
reasons. The first is that we are living in a world
where water resources are continuously depleting in
terms of quality and quantity. This scenario may well
become a source of internal and international conflicts
and wars in the future. The logic is simple; water is
the source of life and civilisation. The early great
civilisations developed around the great rivers, the
Nile, the Euphrates, the Indus, the Yangtze and others.
On the other hand the shortage of water resources
creates fierce competition for clean and fresh water
between tribes, groups and nations. Many studies have
confirmed this thesis, including studies made by many
international agencies such as the World Bank and the
United Nations, and concluded that the likelihood of
the interstate conflict will increase during the next
15 years as countries struggle to develop and to gain
access to water. Yet with 2/3 of the world covered by
water, there should be enough water for everyone.
4. Developing countries are often faced with serious
problems of getting a supply of good fresh water.
There may be rivers, lakes and seas but making the
water clean and potable costs a lot of money which
developing countries of course do not have. The
desalination of sea water for example cost as much as
10 USD per thousand gallons, about 38 Malaysian
Ringgit. Only the very rich can afford this. For the
poor it is a case of "Water, water everywhere but not a
drop to drink". Yet a peaceful world can easily pipe
water from melting snow in the north and south to the
arid deserts of West Asia, North Africa and elsewhere.
5. I know that this IWA Conference is not about
multilateral negotiations, but rather one that is
concerned with technical and management issues.
However, I hope developing countries would be perceived
as part and parcel of the international community which
will also be able to contribute to the development of
knowledge and know-how on science and technology
related to the management of water and wastewater.
Developing countries are also rich in opportunities in
terms of research, infrastructure development, and
human resource development.
6. I believe that the principal thrust for
development, in whatever sector including water and
wastewater management in developing countries, is
dependent on the creation of a strong human resource
base to support the development of a knowledge-based
economy and enhance productivity and competitiveness.
While many developing countries are capable of
developing their human resources, many would be too
poor to do so without assistance. The rich countries
should invest in human resource development in the poor
countries because enriching the poor would provide a
market and greater opportunities for trade and business
for the rich. Besides there is much in terms of
knowledge and skills to be gained from operating in the
challenging environment of the poor countries.
7. I am told that there will be many scientific
papers to be presented by academics, researchers and
practitioners from developing countries. This is very
commendable and encouraging. Obviously much progress
have been made by developing countries, some of whom
must have reached the level in developed countries. I
know that countries such as South Africa, Turkey,
Thailand and also Malaysia are advanced in research
related to water and wastewater technology. Countries
like India, Bangladesh and Indonesia are endowed with
skilled manpower, and in many cases they constitute one
of the main sources of manpower for developed countries
as well.
8. However, we should broaden the perspective in our
contribution to this field. In the past, the
opportunity to study at graduate level on water and
wastewater management for developing countries was only
available in the United Kingdom or the United States.
While such opportunities must continue to be welcome,
it is essential that we develop the capacity to provide
for advanced studies on these subjects in the
developing countries as well. This is because the
situation and the experience of water management in
developing countries are much more relevant to students
from other developing countries. In many instances the
developed countries have forgotten the difficulties
they experienced in the early years of their
development.
9. The University of Technology of Malaysia has
started a programme on environmental engineering
particularly on water and wastewater management for
developing countries since 1990 at masters and doctoral
levels. This programme at present is well attended by
students from foreign countries. To make the programme
more appropriate to the global needs, I hope it will be
further developed so as to remain relevant to changing
situations in developing countries.
10. Apart from the human resource development, this
Conference should also address environmental and
resource issues in an integrated and holistic manner.
Our policies in developing countries or towards
developing countries should take into consideration the
need to identify prudent, cost-effective and
appropriate management approaches that yield multiple
benefits in order to ensure that development is
sustainable and resilient. In realising this, our
regulatory and management agencies should adopt early
preventive measures and apply acceptable principles to
address environment and natural resource management
issues. It should also put in place the enabling
conditions for effective policy change, and this should
include strategies to create opportunities for the
private sector to uphold and take environmental
mitigation measures.
11. Malaysia has very extensive experience in
implementing integrated development programmes on a
sustainable basis. In the Eighth Malaysia Plan (2001-
2005), the Government of Malaysia will strengthen the
database for environmental decision-making by
introducing the use of sustainable development
indicators. This will enable the Government to better
ascertain environmental impacts and plan appropriate
preventive and remedial actions. This covers important
areas particularly forestry, energy generation,
agricultural and industrial development, as well as
urbanisation.
12. In water and wastewater management, the Government
has set up the National Water Resources Council in 1998
to ensure that water resources will be managed more
efficiently and effectively from an integrated
perspective. We have already adopted river basin
management approach, and no longer perceive rivers
alone and in isolation. Our main target is to improve
river water quality while maintaining the flow rate at
the required level using regulated dams etc. By
improving the quality of water in rivers, more water
could be obtained from downstream parts of the rivers
for treatment and to meet ever increasing demands for
water. Other uses of the rivers such as for
recreational, aesthetic and agricultural purposes could
also be enhanced. In our case, effective river basin
management strategies include regulatory protection of
rivers, control of polluting discharges, and
establishment of water quality standards, through
monitoring and enforcement of river water quality. In
addition, many new regulations and policies have been
put in place to address issues of waste reduction,
reuse and recycling.
13. Most, developing countries are facing water stress
including water-rich countries such as Malaysia. This
is due to an uneven distribution of population and
industries which result in water deficits in the more
developed and thickly populated areas, while there is
excess in less populated areas. In Malaysia the States
of Selangor, Penang, Perlis, Malacca and Kuala Lumpur
are in deficit and cross-border transfer of water from
other states becomes necessary.
14. Water stress can also be due to pollution caused
by uncontrolled developments in the areas adjacent to
rivers and waterways. Development upstream and
especially near the sources is particularly damaging as
usually water supply is from upstream areas. The
management of water catchment areas is therefore
crucial to the total management of the water supply.
15. We appreciate the concern of the environmentalists
who want to keep the rivers in their pristine state.
However it is not always possible to do so in a country
that is developing as fast as Malaysia. We need living
space for our expanding population. The approach
should not be through stopping development but through
careful planning and due consideration for the
preservation of supply and the quality of water. It is
entirely possible to do this but it costs money. The
people and the Government must bear this cost if we
want to preserve the quality of life.
16. Poverty is the greatest cause of water pollution.
Traditionally rivers have been regarded as a natural
sewage system. Excrement and rubbish are thrown into
the rivers to be carried away elsewhere. When
populations are small and widely dispersed along the
river banks, and the river is wide and fast flowing,
throwing waste may not cause serious problems. But as
the population grows and the variety of waste increases
the rivers can be completely choked with debris. Not
only will this result in pollution but floods become
more frequent, dispersing the rubbish and endangering
the health of the people. Obviously using rivers as
sewers and for rubbish disposal is not acceptable.
Even though people are poor they must learn to dispose
waste by other means. It is entirely possible to do
this. It is a problem of culture. If cleanliness is a
part of the culture of the people then the pollution of
rivers can be prevented. During a cholera epidemic in
my home state, the people were forced to use pit
latrines and bury waste. When the epidemic was over
people were too shy to use the river for their toilet.
17. Rivers carry silt from the erosion of their banks
and beds. When they overflow their banks annually, the
silt is deposited on the surrounding land and the soil
is enriched and made more fertile. This is the story
of the Nile and the Egyptian civilisation. But today
floods are not welcome in the built-up areas in the
river basin. Siltation ponds serve to mitigate floods
and clear the water as the silt drops in the slow-
flowing parts of a widened river and siltation ponds.
The clearer water flowing into the sea would reduce the
tendency for the river mouths to become shallow. At
the same time more downstream water can be used for
irrigation and even for treatment and consumption,
especially industrial applications. The cleaner water
brings back the fish and other marine life.
18. Clearly water needs to be properly managed. It is
too valuable a resource to be allowed to be polluted,
to erode its banks and to flood its basins. It is of
course a very important source of power as water
driving the turbines is not wasted. It can be used
again and again downstream, to generate electricity or
to irrigate or to provide water for numerous
applications.
19. In many parts of the world the only source of
water is deep wells. In many desert countries there
appears to be an inexhaustible supply of underground
water. It is unlikely that the supply will be depleted
when used by small populations. But it is quite
possible that massive tapping of underground water for
irrigation of vast areas of arid deserts might
eventually dry up the underground reservoirs. We do
not know yet what will happen but it is well to
remember that nature abhors a vacuum. We are tapping a
lot of oil, gas and water below the surface and we must
someday pay the price.
20. There should perhaps be a policy governing the
regulation and management of water resources in
developing countries. We do not want to obstruct
development but we must be careful and skilful in the
management of our water resources. We can learn a lot
from each other and we can avoid the mistakes of some
developed countries and also our own mistakes from
being repeated by other countries.
21. Perhaps there should be a body representing
developing countries tasked with research and
development of water and wastewater management. I am
sure such an organisation can be of assistance to
developing countries in need of advice on water
management and environmental management.
22. On this note, I have great pleasure to declare
open the IWA Conference and Exhibition on Water and
Wastewater Management for Developing Countries.
Sumber : Pejabat Perdana Menteri
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