Foreword
The management of water resources and supply is essential to the development and growth of cities. Sustainable resource use and the provision of quality services to a growing urban population underpins the success of future cities, enables them to act as poles of economic growth, and is at the core of social and economic development in an urbanizing world. The purpose of this book is to contribute to the broader green and inclusive growth ideas of the World Bank, by changing the way urban policy makers in Africa and project managers from the World Bank and other international organizations think about urban water management, planning, and project design. The city of the future in Africa needs to be designed to accommodate twice as many people, and we need to plan it now. Traditional approaches are unlikely to be able to close the gap between supply and demand for water. Helping practitioners and decision makers in African cities consider a wider range of solutions to secure urban resilience in an uncertain future will require a concerted effort across sectors and institutions. Implementing efficient and flexible urban water systems and adopting a holistic view of all components of the urban water cycle will be essential if we want to provide environmentally sustainable growth and access to better services for current and future African communities.
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