International and cross-sectoral collaboration will be key to addressing South Africa’s water and infrastructure challenges, according to speakers at the official opening of the fifth edition of IFAT Africa and the third analytica Lab Africa, which kicked off at Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand.
Organised by Messe Muenchen India and Messe München GmbH, the colocated IFAT Africa and analytica Lab Africa trade shows bring together under one roof the leading conference and trade fair for water, sewage, refuse and recycling in Southern Africa, and South Africa’s only trade fair for laboratory technology, analysis, biotechnology and diagnostics. By integrating these broad and overlapping water, waste and analytics ecosystems, the events extend discovery, networking and knowledge sharing for the thousands of delegates expected to attend the trade fairs over the next three days.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Boris Greifeneder, CEO of the German Water Partnership, said South Africa had real and urgent challenges in the areas of water supply, waste management and infrastructure resilience.
“On the other hand, South Africa also has enormous potential for transformation and innovation. Water is at the heart of both,” he said.