The 5th International Conference on Water Economics, Statistics and Finance; The International Conference on Rethinking Treatment with Asset Management

The event runs, once again, the two conferences jointly organized by IWA Specialist Group on Statistics & Economics and IWA Specialist Group on Strategic Asset Management, with plenary sessions common to both conferences and parallel sessions for each conference. It has one Organizing Committee, common to both conferences and two Scientific and Program Committees (SPC), one for each Conference. The conference aims to discuss the major challenges for the water sector in the years to come, namely: sustainable water management, water security, growing water scarcity and increasing frequency of extreme events. Facing increasing difficulties, from climate changes to contaminants of emerging concern, while needing to better benefitting from digitalization, water services must pursue financial and operational sustainability, along with human resources empowerment, mastering key performance indicators, risk management and decision making tools. In fact, while in some places water infrastructures are degrading and public and private utilities are facing significant replacement and rehabilitation costs, the way professionals used to assess and design water facilities is changing. This often occurs as a result of new approaches triggered by external stress on water systems (e.g. increasing energy costs, public health concerns due to emerging contaminants, climate change effects, etc.), but also as a consequence of imposed limitations to operation and rehabilitation expenditures. Optimizing infrastructures in order to meet capital availability is surely a task for water professionals to continuously embrace and interiorize as part of their job. But, the risk is there that society overvalues this tasks as a required effort only to get water services at better prices. Accordingly, the sector should evaluate whether its activity is being correctly communicated to all stakeholders.