By enabling access to safe, clean water, Seven Seas Water Group is contributing to the goals of Human Rights Day 2022
Human Rights Day has been observed on the 10th day of December every year since 1948 to recognize the United Nations General Assembly’s adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).
The UDHR, perhaps the most translated document on the planet, proclaims the inalienable rights to which every human being is entitled. This year’s observation is a very special one, celebrating the 75th Human Rights Day with the theme of Dignity, Freedom, and Justice for All.
As the World Health Organization reminds us, health is a prerequisite of this goal, and safe water plays a huge role in maintaining health.
Water for Dignity, Freedom, and Justice
While declarations of universal rights often focus on decision-makers, the difficult task of figuring out just how to make the vision a reality still lies before all of us.
It’s difficult to find disagreement with the proposition that everyone deserves safe, clean water, and that there is not much hope of dignity, freedom, and justice without it. Without access to investment capital, though, many regions will still go without the vital water infrastructure they need.
As a water sector company, Seven Seas is honoring Human Rights Day by promoting ways to extend water service where it’s needed, even where access to capital is lacking.
Avoiding the Build-Neglect-Rebuild Cycle
Private and governmental philanthropy has often bridged the gap between the desire to foster good in the world and the need for the investment dollars to make it happen. Yet after securing funding, and building and ultimately commissioning vital water infrastructure, the lack of a continuing commitment to keep it operational can lead to it falling into disrepair.
Many regions with little access to capital also have limited organizational resources to operate and maintain a modern, compliant water utility. So begins a costly build-neglect-rebuild cycle: Once maintenance is neglected so long that a plant becomes irreparable, all that can be done is to build a new one that costs much more than maintenance would have.
New Financing Models
New financing models, including public-private partnership (P3) build-own-operate (BOO), and build-own-operate-transfer (BOOT), enlist the expertise and specialized resources of water companies for the long haul. They offer risk management resources, regulatory compliance knowledge, supplier networks, and expert operations and maintenance (O&M) teams.
Many areas around the world are in the process of rolling out legal frameworks to standardize and encourage the use of P3s for their ability to optimize capital or even eliminate CAPEX for the client while still delivering water competitively. That’s good news for health in underserved communities, and helps set the stage for dignity, freedom, and justice.
Seven Seas’ Water-as-a-Service® is a pioneer in these flexible financing models, which put water in the hands of experts. There’s no shortage of desire to deliver safe, clean water in the world, but as author Kurt Vonnegut once observed, “… everybody wants to build and nobody wants to do maintenance.”
At Seven Seas, we’re here to handle the maintenance and make the ideals of Human Rights Day a reality. Contact Seven Seas for more information about our quality equipment, flexible financing, and goal to increase access to safe, clean water.
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