Brazil : A pilot project for training the staffs of the water sector: Towards the establishment of a PWTC in the State of São Paulo

Among the 26 States that make up the Federation of Brazil, the State of São Paulo (248,808 km2, 41 million inhabitants) is concentrating over a third of the national wealth. Its capital, São Paulo, has more than 11 million inhabitants.

 

The ”SERT” (Secretariat in charge of Labor and Employment) has for primary role the professional integration of unemployed people into the economy, and the development of growth sectors, including the water and sanitation sector featuring prominently.

 

Brazil makes huge investments for the development of the water and sanitation sector; according to data from PLANSAB, nearly  € 100 billion (R$ 304 billion) of investment are planned over the period 2014-2033, especially in urban sewerage.

 

According to official statistics (SNIS 2012), the total number of jobs in this sector is 726,586 employees, including nearly 238,000 in the State of São Paulo alone.

 

In this very moving context, the ”SERT” decided to implement a large pilot project for staff training, based on the results of the feasibility study made for the establishment of a Professional Water Training Center (PWTC) in Brazil, in which the International Office for Water contributed in late 2013 and early 2014.

 

Thus, this pilot project is an introduction to the establishment of a PWTC in the State of São Paulo, in line with the vision of the 8th World Water Forum to be held in Brasilia in 2018.