From November 19 to 23, 2018, the 80th meeting of the Scientific and Technical Council of the African Water Association was held at the Kempinski Hotel in Djibouti. 120 delegates from the Association's member companies and water and sanitation service providers arrived in the Djibouti Capital City to discuss the continent's water and sanitation issues and propose solutions.

The opening ceremony was marked by speeches and welcome addresses to delegates. First the Director General of ONEAD, Mr. Mohamed FOUAD ABDO, then Mr. Sylvain USHER, Executive Director of AfWA, followed by Dr. Papa SAMBA DIOP, President of the STC, and finally the address by the guest of honor, the Minister of Agriculture, Water, Fisheries, Livestock and Fisheries Resources, Mr. Mohamed AHMED AWALEH, who closed the series of speeches and declared open the 80th session of the AfWA Scientific and Technical Council.

To mark a highlight on the theme of this conference, a high-level panel was organized on technological innovations to improve the performance and efficiency of water and sanitation operators. This panel aimed to shed light on all the issues underlying technological innovations and their importance for water and sanitation utilities in addressing the challenges of the WASH sector. Observations, questions and comments closed this session.

In addition, the sessions of the specialized committees, Specialized Committee 1, Management and Administration, Specialized Committee 2, Techniques and Specialized Committee 3, Sanitation, were among the various components of this meeting. Reflections were carried out on the orientations to be given to the activities of AfWA during the sessions.

Furthermore, after intense work by the specialized committees, a gala dinner provided delegates with an opportunity to entertain themselves, have a good time and enjoy a show of Somali and Ethiopian songs and dances.

The meeting closed with the meeting of the Executive Board, the highest body of AfWA, and the technical and tourist visits. Everybody agreed for the organization of the 81st session of the STC with more ambitions, challenges and work to be done to place the future of AfWA under positive auspices.