Pureit brand of Unilever Bangladesh and Innovation Hub of UNDP jointly hosted a roundtable titled 'SDG 6 Multisectoral Dialogue on Safe Water' to brainstorm about the private sector's challenge in ensuring the supply of safe drinking water for all against the backdrop of urbanization and climate change.
The roundtable was organised at the capital's Westin Hotel on Thursday evening, said a statement.
Nojibur Rahman, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, graced the roundtable as the chief guest, while Engr. Taqsem A Khan, Managing Director and CEO, WASA, was the special guest.
Nojibur Rahman in his speech stressed the need for investment from private sector in ensuring safe water. "The partnership between the government and private sectors is very crucial to entitle everyone to safe water. If they work in unison, the goal to ensure safe water for all can be reached by the year 2021," he added.
He also suggested considering the country's climate and geography while making any plan.
Special guest Engr. Taqsem A Khan said, "The demand of water is quite high owing to the high density of population. It is a big challenge to ensure safe water for even 17 million people living in Dhaka. We are trying to face this challenge under the leadership of the prime minister. But, it is not possible for the government alone to manage safe water for such a huge population. The private sector also has to come forward. Dhaka WASA has already started some projects in partnership with the private sector."
He urged the private sector to have their greater involvement in the process.
The roundtable is a step towards realizing the organization's overarching goal to lead sustainable practices and investments in ensuring safe water.
"When we as a business want to grow, we must make sure that growth has to be responsible. Hence the 4 'R's - 'Reduce', 'Recycle', 'Reuse' and 'Recharge' have to be taken into account. Unilever's WASH agenda is coming to Bangladesh in a great way. Our brand Pureit as well as the organization has been at the forefront of the WASH agenda. I invite all organizations, entrepreneurs, and financials institutions in this room and would like to declare that if you think that brands of Unilever can work with you to expand your reach and develop business models, you are most welcome. We will create time, energy and investment into it to make it a reality. Secondly, I would suggest adding one more P to the PPP. It's not simply profit-driven partnership. Rather, it is purpose-driven partnership," said Kedar Lele, CEO of Unilever Bangladesh.
The roundtable discussed the existing projects of the government, non-government organizations, and INGOs regarding ensuring safe water in Bangladesh and the projects that need to be undertaken in the days to come.
Sudipto Mukherjee, country director of UNDP said, "Safe Water is a challenge that requires large capital expenditure and time. At the same time, it represents an untapped market potential for private sector to serve millions of people and multiple Sustainable Development Goals. UNDP is supporting private sector endeavors by offering technical advices, to measure impact, and plan inclusive businesses and the platform to connect stakeholders."
All stakeholders including financial institutions, public and private sectors, and NGOs had their participation and voices in the roundtable. The recommendations that came from the event will pave the path for the next course of action in ensuring public-private partnership to entitle everyone to safe water.
Moreover, Shamima Akhter, Country Public Affairs & Communications Officer of Coca-cola; Sandeep Kota, Associate Director of PwC; Javed Bin Karim, Senior Advisor of World Bank and Tanzeen Ferdous Alam, Marketing Director of Unilever Bangladesh Limited also attended the roundtable along with other dignitaries.
Earlier, in February this year, Unilever Bangladesh teamed up with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Bangladesh to help the country attain the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
