{"id":45418,"date":"2026-02-23T09:39:26","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T09:39:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/?p=45418"},"modified":"2026-03-06T08:26:23","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T08:26:23","slug":"regional-learning-exchange-to-advance-water-smart-industrial-development-hosted-in-east-london","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/featured\/regional-learning-exchange-to-advance-water-smart-industrial-development-hosted-in-east-london\/","title":{"rendered":"Regional learning exchange to advance water-smart industrial development hosted in East London"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"dropcap dropcap2\">E<\/span>ast London, South Africa\u00a0\u2014 Industrial leaders, water experts, and development partners from across Africa will convene in East London to advance practical solutions for water security and climate-resilient industrial development during the\u00a0<strong>NatuReS II Regional Learning Exchange 2026<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Hosted by the East London Industrial Development Zone (ELIDZ) in partnership with the Deutsche Gesellschaft f\u00fcr Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) through the Natural Resources Stewardship Programme II (NatuReS II), the three-day regional exchange will take place from\u00a0<strong>24 \u2013 26 February 2026<\/strong>\u00a0at the ELIDZ Conference Centre.<\/p>\n<p>The gathering comes at a time when water security is increasingly becoming a defining challenge for economic growth and industrial sustainability across Africa. Delegates from <strong>South Africa<\/strong>, <strong>Ethiopia<\/strong>, <strong>Zambia<\/strong> and <strong>Tanzania<\/strong> \u2014 including representatives from government, industry, water utilities, academia, civil society and development institutions will share practical approaches aimed at strengthening water stewardship while sustaining industrial competitiveness and economic resilience.<\/p>\n<p>Held under the theme:\u00a0\u201c<strong>From Source to Industry: Stewardship Multi-Stakeholder Partnerships for Socio-Ecological Transformation and Water-Smart Industrial Futures<\/strong>,\u201d the exchange will explore how collaborative partnerships between industry, government and communities can respond to growing climate pressures and water scarcity challenges affecting industrial regions across the continent.<\/p>\n<p>The programme will further showcase how industrial zones can serve as innovation platforms for sustainable resource management, highlighting the ELIDZ\u2019s implementation of water stewardship initiatives as part of advancing integrated, climate-responsive industrial development.<\/p>\n\n<h3>Event details<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Event<\/strong>: Natures II Regional Learning Exchange 2026<\/li>\n<li><strong>Dates<\/strong>: 24-26 February 2026<\/li>\n<li><strong>Time<\/strong>: 08:30-17:00<\/li>\n<li><strong>Venue<\/strong>: ELIDZ Conference Centre, East London<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>Programme highlights<\/h4>\n<p>Media will have opportunities to cover:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Opening leadership addresses outlining regional priorities for water security and sustainable industrialization<\/li>\n<li>High-level discussions on the link between water resilience and industrial competitiveness<\/li>\n<li>African case studies demonstrating multi-stakeholder stewardship partnerships<\/li>\n<li>Industry dialogue on the business case for water stewardship<\/li>\n<li>Guided site visits showcasing ELIDZ water stewardship infrastructure, including water testing and alternative water-sourcing facilities<\/li>\n<li>Interview opportunities with programme leaders, technical experts, and participating stakeholders<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Members of the media are invited to attend selected sessions and engagements during the programme.\u00a0Media representatives are requested to confirm attendance in advance for accreditation and logistical arrangements.<\/p>\n<h4>Media RSVP &amp; enquiries<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Siphosethu Tikana (CPRP)<\/li>\n<li>Acting Manager: Marketing &amp; Corporate Communications<\/li>\n<li>East London Industrial Development Zone (ELIDZ)<\/li>\n<li>Email: <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><a style=\"color: #ff6600;\" href=\"mailto:siphosethuti@elidz.co.za\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">siphosethuti@elidz.co.za<\/a><\/span> | Website: <span style=\"color: #ff6600;\"><a style=\"color: #ff6600;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.elidz.co.za\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">www.elidz.co.za<\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n<h3>About East London Industrial Development Zone (ELIDZ)<\/h3>\n<p>The East London Industrial Development Zone (ELIDZ) is a prime industrial site in South Africa. It is geographically designated and positioned for specialised industrial activity. The\u00a0ELIDZ was one of the first IDZs in South Africa to be awarded a provisional operator\u2019s licence in September 2002.<\/p>\n<p>Renowned for its leadership sustainability,\u00a0the ELIDZ has earned the prestigious title of being\u00a0named one of the world\u2019s leading Eco-Parks. This recognition, awarded by the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation\u2019s (UNIDO) Global Eco-Industrial Park Programme (GEIPP), highlights the ELIDZ\u2019s unparalleled commitment to environmental conservation.<\/p>\n<p>Serving as a global model for eco-industrial parks,\u00a0the ELIDZ epitomises innovation, infrastructure, and skills development as crucial elements for unlocking economic opportunities, not only in South Africa but worldwide.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-luminous-vivid-orange-background-color has-background wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/companies\/east-london-industrial-development-zone-elidz\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Find out more &amp; explore opportunities<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:35px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"482\" height=\"207\" src=\"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/ELIDZ-LOGO-transparent-2.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-24807\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/ELIDZ-LOGO-transparent-2.png 482w, https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/ELIDZ-LOGO-transparent-2-300x129.png 300w, https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/ELIDZ-LOGO-transparent-2-150x64.png 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 482px) 100vw, 482px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<div style=\"height:100px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Advancing water-smart industrial development in Africa: The exchange will explore collaborative partnerships between industry, government and communities <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":45422,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[60,1964,15,3,58,550,11,548,2,24,66,9,22,610,30,560,116,551,448,611,253],"tags":[523,79,1381,473,70,1504,1343,1788,2066,1342,2065],"class_list":{"0":"post-45418","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-agriculture-forestry-fishing","8":"category-business-news","9":"category-business-opportunities","10":"category-company-news","11":"category-construction-and-engineering","12":"category-east-london-industrial-development-zone","13":"category-eastern-cape","14":"category-eastern-cape-development-corporation-ecdc","15":"category-featured","16":"category-government","17":"category-healthcare","18":"category-manufacturing","19":"category-mining","20":"category-newsletter","21":"category-oil-gas","22":"category-provincial-focus","23":"category-sadc","24":"category-special-economic-zones","25":"category-tanzania","26":"category-trending","27":"category-zambia","28":"tag-ethiopia","29":"tag-industrial-development","30":"tag-industrial-property","31":"tag-industrialisation","32":"tag-infrastructure-development","33":"tag-tanzania","34":"tag-water-infrastructure","35":"tag-water-security","36":"tag-water-stewardship","37":"tag-water-supply","38":"tag-zambia"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45418","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45418"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45418\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45489,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45418\/revisions\/45489"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45418"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45418"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.globalafricanetwork.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45418"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}