Expanding Water Cooperation between Tunisia and South Africa
24 June 2025
In collaboration with the Department of Science, Technology, and Innovation, the South African Academy of Sciences and the Capital of Science Diplomacy for Africa, the Embassy of the Tunisia in Pretoria, organized a Seminar about Water Management in Tunisia and South Africa, titled "The Role of Science Diplomacy on Knowledge and Expertise Sharing, Tunisia-South Africa Experience on Water Management as a Model", on June 19, 2025, at Pretoria International Convention Centre.
The event was attended by more than 140 people, including Representatives from the South African Departments of Foreign Affairs, Agriculture, and Health, Representatives from the African Development Bank for Southern Africa, Mr. Mohamed Fethi Ben Hammouda, a Professor and Head of the Department at the Tunisian National Institute of Agronomy and Coordinator of the Tunisian-South African Cooperation project "MAISGM," Mr. Essam Nouiri, a Professor at the mentioned Institute, as well as Heads of Diplomatic Missions, Diplomats, Delegates from South African Research Centres, Private Sector’ actors and media representatives, along with members of the Tunisian community.
In opening of the Seminar, Ms. Karima Bardaoui, the Ambassador of Tunisia in South Africa, emphasized the importance of further enhancing the existing cooperation between the two countries in the field of "water management" that implies common challenges at the African level. In her remarks, Ambassador Bardaoui underlined that the event presented a significant opportunity to draw attention to the dire water crisis in Gaza, where millions of Palestinians have been denied access to clean water for over two years and she reiterated the Palestinian people's right to peace and self-determination.
The event program included speeches by Ms. Gugelethu Zwane, Deputy Director-General: Institutional Planning and Support of the South African Department of Science, Technology and Innovation, and by Dr. Moses Tembo, Principal Water and Sanitation at the African Development Bank for Southern Africa. They both presented the efforts made in Water Management, and reiterated the importance of enhancing African cooperation in this field.
A panel discussion was dedicated to the scientific research cooperation between Tunisia and South Africa on water management. The Panel was enriched by the interventions of Ms. Jennifer Molwantwa, the CEO of Water Research Commission of South Africa, Mr. Ben Hamouda and Mr. Nouiri. It included presentations of the Representatives of the South African Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and South African Professors from the Universities of Western Cape, Fort
Hare and Stellenbosch. The session also featured the special participation of Mr. Abdon Atangana, a Cameroonian Professor at the University of Free State, Head of the African Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, who has been awarded as the Best Mathematician in the world.
The Seminar included presentations by civil society activists, namely Dr. Ferrial Adam, the Executive Director of the Water Community Action Network, and Mr. Nathan Mariemuthu, Director of the Empire Partner Foundation.
The event was an occasion, to introduce Mr. Riadh Fatnasi, a Tunisian Hydraulic Engineer who is working in a water distribution project in the Kingdom of Lesotho.
Overall, the event highlighted the significant level of cooperation between Tunisia and South Africa in the field of water management, as well as the promising opportunities to boost this cooperation economically and scientifically.
Embassy of Tunisia in South Africa