Bremen mayoral delegation visits sister city Durban, South Africa

Last week, we saw the strength of the connection between sister cities Bremen, Germany and Durban, South Africa, and the key role that BORDA plays in that cooperation. A delegation from the Bremen Senate and the Chamber of Commerce visited South Africa and Namibia in early June 2018 to promote new partnerships and strengthen existing cooperation.

The delegation, which included such prominent figures as Dr. Carsten Sieling, Mayor of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, Karoline Linnert, Deputy Mayor of Bremen, Volker Schuette, Honorary Consul of South Africa in Bremen, and Stefan Reuter, Managing Director of BORDA, visited Durban on 3-4 June. The delegation engaged in bilateral talks with the Mayor of Durban, Zandile Gumede, and visited several project sites featuring collaboration between Durban and Bremen.

The delegation became familiar with BORDA’s work in South Africa during a site visit to the Newlands Mashu Demonstration and Research DEWATS near Durban, which included an engaging tour led by Professor Chris Buckley (University of KwaZulu-Natal). Dr. Carsten Sieling emphasized the significant role BORDA plays in the city partnership. Thanks to the delegation and to Durban representatives for the exciting exchange!

Following the visit to Newlands Mashu, the delegation flew to Cape Town, a city experiencing a water crisis due to several years of drought. The delegation was impressed by the City’s messaging campaign, which motivated its residents to reduce its water consumption by half within a brief time. Stefan Reuter and Carley Truyens, Coordinator of BORDA South Africa, used their time in Cape Town to meet partners from the public and private sectors, discussing decentralised sanitation and exploring the potential to implement DEWATS in the water stressed city.