NWSC's Silver Mugisha Receives Prestigious Global Sanitation Award

Dr. Eng. Silver Mugisha, the managing director of Uganda's National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC), has been honored with the Global Sanitation Graduate School Ambassador Award. This recognition was bestowed upon him at the prestigious IHE Delft Institute for Water Education, located in the Netherlands, marking a significant milestone not only for Dr. Mugisha but for Africa at large.

The accolade, awarded by Prof. Damir Brdjanovic, celebrates Dr. Mugisha’s unwavering commitment and substantial contributions towards the goals and aspirations of the Global Sanitation Graduate School (GSGS), affirming his status as a vanguard in the global sanitation sector. Notably, Dr. Mugisha's achievement crowns him as the first African recipient of this esteemed award, underscoring his influential role on the international stage.

Dr. Mugisha’s association with the IHE Delft, the world’s leading postgraduate water education facility, extends beyond his latest achievement. As a member of the Program Advisory Board for the Master of Science Program, his efforts have significantly propelled the cause of sanitation education forward, particularly across the African landscape, during his tenure over the last four years.

The commendation from IHE Delft highlights Dr. Mugisha’s innovative leadership at NWSC, which has been instrumental in nurturing the next generation of sanitation professionals not just in Uganda, but across the continent and beyond. His strategic foresight and collaborative ethos were evident during a key session at the plenary, where, alongside Eng. Mahmood Lutaaya of Kampala Water, Dr. Mugisha unveiled the NWSC’s pioneering strategies. These initiatives pivot on financial independence, reform rationale, and the forging of synergistic partnerships.

In his address, Dr. Mugisha outlined the corporation's ambitious vision to achieve self-sufficiency in energy across all its operations. Furthermore, he shed light on the innovative "waste to wealth" model, emphasizing NWSC’s commitment to transforming waste into valuable resources. This initiative not only seeks to catapult the corporation into a global sustainability leader but also aims to bolster business growth, national, and international collaborations centered on wastewater solutions.

Central to NWSC’s operational excellence is the enhancement of its Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems. Dr. Mugisha underscored the transformation of SCADA from a mere monitoring tool to a comprehensive operational control system, poised to revolutionize service delivery and operational efficiency in Kampala and beyond. The SCADA initiative promises a meticulous approach to water distribution, an acute understanding of consumer demand, and an effective strategy to curb Non-Revenue Water (NRW), thereby optimizing the utility’s infrastructure and resource allocation.

This award not only symbolizes global recognition for Dr. Mugisha's and NWSC's forward-thinking approaches but also reinforces Uganda’s standing in the global water and sanitation discourse. Through education, research, and capacity development, Dr. Mugisha’s work with GSGS and IHE Delft continues to address water and sanitation challenges at various scales, heralding a new era of innovation and sustainability in the sector.