During his State of the Nation Address in 2006, President Thabo Mbeki had resolved to eradicate the bucket toilet system by the end of 2007; and we all know that this deadline has been long passed without the expected success. Municipalities provide bucket toilets to communities as a temporary solution, while more permanent forms of sanitation are being built. The intention is that it should only be temporary, but the system tends to remain in place longer than planned when s

Rainfall in Africa is highly variable with the total amount of precipitation changing through the years and across the continent. Africa has an average of less than 1,000 millimeters of rain falls per year across most of the continent. Rainfall tends to decrease with distance from the equator and is insignificant in the Sahara, in eastern Somalia, and in the southwest of the continent in Namibia and South Africa. But it has become more mutable: droughts and floods are more fr

The distribution of water on the Earth’s surface is extremely uneven. Only 3% of water on the surface is fresh; the remaining 97% resides in the ocean. Of freshwater, 69% resides in glaciers, 30% underground, and less than 1% is in lakes, rivers, and swamps. Collectively, only one percent of the water on the Earth’s surface is usable by humans, and 99% of the usable quantity is situated underground. Water resources management refers to a whole range of different activities: p

Structural and terrestrial distribution of water resources has been a classic factor in the development of human societies and communities. Although the land was extremely arid, ancient Egypt was able to develop because the source of the Nile River. The distribution, availability and uses of fresh water vary throughout Africa and there are several strategies for increasing water supply, reducing water use and power consumption. Science and technology as a human endeavor has c

The World Economic Forum estimates that 24% of sub-Saharan Africans have access to electricity and the energy generation capacity of Africa (excluding South Africa) is a mere 28 Gigawatts, equal to that of Argentina alone. In fact, research by McKinsey found that Africa’s potential energy generation capacity may be more than 10 terawatts including solar. Experience has shown that renewable energy sources are the most effective and an integral part in the quest for a just ener

Water stress and polluted water contribute to the death of many African populations daily. Every hour, an estimated 115 people die in Africa from diseases linked to improper hygiene, poor sanitation, and contaminated water, according to the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA). Wastewater is used to describe all forms of water which have been degraded in quality as a result of their overall usage. Wastewater that has been exposed to contaminants h

It’s been 15 years since the world crossed a threshold, where for the first time in human history, the bulk of the population settled in urban areas. Today, Africa and Asia are the only remaining continents where the rural population outnumbers the urban. Changes in the parameters of urban streams, followed by decreased water quality, are the most obvious signs of imminent water management challenges. Water Sensitive Urban Design can assist with lowering the frequency and sev

Corporate sustainability practices typically fall under the umbrella of ESG, i.e., environment, social, and governance practices, which represent the three pillars of sustainable investing. Increasing water scarcity is one of South Africa’s greatest challenges. The local demand for water supply in South Africa has increased, making the effective governance of available water resources to achieve water security and equitable allocation of water resources more difficult. Compan

South Africa continues try and strengthen municipal capacity and coordinate projects more effectively through a variety of structures. Inappropriate governance and institutional arrangements in managing national water services has a devastating effect on vulnerable communities. Adding to that, depletion of water resources through pollution, environmental degradation, and deforestation places more pressure to implement solutions that are geared to be efficient, innovative and

MEB has over the years identified better opportunities and solutions to assist with closing the finance gap for water infrastructure. In order to improve the water infrastructure planning process, we base our designs and plans on the development objectives of our clients and provide continuous support to help analyse the best options available to develop these objectives into a workable financing model that is established with current challenges in mind. A lot of planning goe

Africa’s mega cities are a melting pot of religions, languages, wildlife, and history making up the diverse continent of Africa. To be considered a megacity, usually defines a city with more than 10 million inhabitants. South Africa soon to be megacities, include Cape Town and Johannesburg, these financial hubs are forecasted for continued growth in the upcoming decades, and all have a population of a minimum of 4 million people. "Already, half of the world's population lives

MEB brings you unparalleled visibility and control when it comes to monitoring your water and wastewater treatment solution. Our untouchable value-add in application scheduling, gives you multiple alert solutions, with precise timing and operating parameters. Additionally, our patented technology provides real-time monitoring with advanced forewarning systems, making accurate risk mitigation a walk in the park. Alarms proactively notify operators to system issues and anomalie