Water management Pioneers in international business.
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Transcript of Water management Pioneers in international business.
Pioneers in international business
Water management
Facts about the Netherlands
• 1/3 of the country is below sea level (8m people)
• Without dikes and dunes, 66% of the country would be flooded
• 1000 years of water management experience
• First democratic institutions were water boards, established in 1200 AD
• Delta Works: world's largest flood protection project
• Water supply and sanitation coverage nearly 100%
• High-tech systems of water supply and waste-water treatment, largely publicly owned
Pioneers in international business
Water expertise in the Netherlands:
1. Water management
2. Water supply & sanitation
Pioneers in international business
1. Water management
Areas of Dutch expertise are:
• Hydraulic engineering
• River basin management (including spatial planning & nature development)
• Integrated coastal zone management (ICZM)
• Development co-operation
• Institutional development
Pioneers in international business
Water management in the future
• Climate change and growing population density require an innovative approach to water management
• Issue is no longer the fight against water but living with water
• Constant battles against the sea and rivers have forced the Dutch to study and manage the rivers and coast:
– Dutch river basin management expertise
– Dutch coastal management expertise
Pioneers in international business
Water management in the future
• Development of a broad range of new and innovative concepts and approaches
• Acknowledgement of the benefits for society of natural processes in wetland ecosystems
• Idea of multifunctional use of space, a scarce commodity in the Netherlands, is attracting more attention
– Dutch expertise in these new, integral approaches could be very useful in other countries as well
Pioneers in international business
1. Water management and 2. Water supply & sanitation expertise – the sector
• A unique combination of private sector, public sector, research organizations and NGOs working as partners for water
– Dutch companies specializing in hydraulic engineering or drinking water supply and purification apply much of their technological expertise and implementing skill in an international setting
• Dutch water management expertise already being used for the Yellow River, the Volga, Lake Aral, the Danube, the Mekong, the Pantanal, the Ganges, the Brahmaputra, the Logone and St. Petersburg
• Dutch water supply & sanitation expertise applied in a range of countries in Europe, Asia and Africa
Pioneers in international business
1. Water management - the private sector
Hydraulic engineering industry and construction firms
• Leading in dredging technology with largest vessels in the world
• controls 50% of the world dredging market
• Wide experience in land reclamation, airport island and port construction
• Water works, storm surge barriers, innovative flexible dike designs
• Design and maintenance of waterways for maritime and riverine transport
• Design and application of early warning systems (flooding, pollution, etc.)
Pioneers in international business
2. Water supply & sanitation sector – the private sector
• Mostly SMEs; no multinationals
• A number of larger, internationally active engineering firms with considerable know-how in the sector
• In certain niches, Dutch companies play an important innovative role
• High level of know-how available at universities and research institutes
Pioneers in international business
Water sector
For information on the Dutch water sector, see the NWP www.nwp.nl
• The Netherlands Water Partnership (NWP) is an independent body set up jointly by the Dutch private and public sectors to act as a national coordination and information point for water activities overseas.
• It is a single contact point for people in other countries seeking information on the Dutch water sector.
• It aligns the interests of the Dutch private and public sectors with international water issues.
• It supports the collective interests of the Netherlands within the international water community.