Publication Release: Managing the Unexpected – European Utilities facing the Coronavirus Emergency

Aqua Publica has released a report providing an overview of the responses and strategies developed by European public utilities to the ensure the continuity of water services during the Coronavirus emergency.

Developed in cooperation with the UN-Habitat’s Global Water Operators Partnerships Alliance (GWOPA), Managing the Unexpected: European Public Water Utilities Facing the Coronavirus Emergency outlines aspects that have emerged as essential for water operators in the management of various phases of this unprecedented crisis. The document aims to give an account of experiences and lessons learnt during the last months with the hope that, as the UN-Habitat Executive Director Maimunah Mohd Sharif states in her preface, “by sharing what has been tried and tested, these cases can contribute to the ongoing learning and support operators to help them respond to their specific situations”.

The report builds on a series of virtual meetings and dialogues organised by Aqua Publica Europea during the past months in response to the need of European public water utilities to exchange with their peers on the best approaches to tackle shared challenges and uncertainties. It is, therefore, the result of concrete collaboration and solidarity in the public sector at European level.

Thanks to the extraordinary commitment of their employees and appropriate risk management approaches, European public utilities have guaranteed uninterrupted provision of safe drinking water, thus contributing to collective health and well-being. Strengthening the capacities of the public sector through knowledge sharing and cooperation is, and will remain, key to increase the society’s resilience to current and new threats worldwide.

Text from Aqua Publica Europea