Governing Members have always been at the heart of IWA’s collective efforts to build a water-wise world. By bringing together water sector leaders locally to share best practices, drive innovation and connect through IWA’s global network, they represent IWA on the ground at national and regional level. They are a driving force of our organisation – and I felt their energy and commitment most recently at the latest IWA Governing Assembly meeting in London at the end of September.
Our Governing Members reflect the diversity of the water sector at country level and mirror the breadth and strength of the wider Association. Spanning the continents, they are now some 70-strong, and one of my greatest ambitions for IWA is to see us build on recent growth and add significantly to this number.
Led by committees of representatives from across a country’s water sector, our Governing Members play a vital role in IWA through their representation in IWA’s Governing Assembly. They are instrumental in shaping IWA’s events, and they create critical networks to facilitate interaction between individual members. More than this, they strengthen the water sector in their respective countries, building bridges to create real change in water policy, water practice and water management on the ground.
We know that by expanding and empowering our Governing Member base, we can amplify our members’ voices and impact. To support this, IWA is preparing a Governing Member Strategy – a strategy that responds to the requests of our existing Governing Members and is supported by IWA’s Secretariat. Aligned with our 2025-2030 Strategic Plan, this strategy aims to tap into the full potential that Governing Members have to offer by providing a framework to actively support the growth of their representation and build more impactful participation and engagement.
An important part of this strategy will be a detailed Governing Member engagement plan. This will be based on a prioritisation exercise conducted with representatives of the Governing Members and will translate prioritised strategic actions into specific implementable activities, defined by realistic timelines.
Activities will include the promotion of youth-led initiatives to ensure that the interests of Young Water Professionals (YWPs) are integrated into the enterprises of Governing Members. This will be implemented in close collaboration with IWA’s YWP community and national YWP Chapters.
In addition, responding to feedback received, IWA will prioritise the development of multilingual, region-specific toolkits tailored to the particular challenges and contexts of different regions. These will be backed by the creation and dissemination of case studies and documents that reflect local realities. This will support IWA’s commitment to ensuring that members have equitable access to resources and activities, driving more inclusive engagement across our network.
As President, I am very proud to be representing IWA as it transforms and empowers its membership in this way, forging new initiatives to support water professionals wherever they are in the world. Indeed, I am honoured that I am able to do so through to 2028, following the vote at the recent Governing Assembly for me to serve as President for a second term. I am moved by this trust that our Governing Members have shown in me.
As the 2030 deadline for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals nears ever closer, IWA is working hard to build strong foundations to support the global community to address the challenges of delivering safe, sustainable, water and sanitation for all, in the face of an increasingly volatile climate. The above actions – along with others outlined in our 2025-2030 Strategic Plan – will help to ensure that IWA members can contribute to meaningful change up to that deadline and beyond.
Hamanth Kasan, President, IWA
