It’s an exciting time in Colombia. After 50 years of civil war and 30 years of unsuccessful negotiations, the government and Farc have signed a ceasefire. A full peace deal is expected to be signed within weeks. Most Colombians had assumed this day would never come.
Most remarkable of all perhaps is that President Santos pulled this peace deal off with only 20% voter approval. Something for UK Prime Minister David Cameron to muse on in his retirement, perhaps, following the UK vote to leave the EU by 51.9% to 48.1%. Both leaders have earned their place in history.
In the capital, Bogota, people took to the streets, hugging each other and singing the national anthem. Bogota Water is an i2O client. They face the challenges of a large and growing urban population and an ageing infrastructure. They use i2O’s oNet solution to control pressures in their network to maximise the number of people who get water and the number of hours water is provided whilst minimising stress on their assets.
A team from Bogota Water visited i2O’s UK HQ in May. Here’s i2O’s CEO, Joel Hagan, wearing the Colombia Public Service Workers’ Union cap.
And here is the Bogota Water team with the i2O team visiting a British pub.
i2O’s longest standing client in Colombia is Aguas Kpital. In 2012 they chose i2O’s oNet and dNet solutions to monitor and control pressure in their distribution network. They have been operating the water network in Cucuta since 2006. On Friday 10th June, they celebrated their 10th birthday.
Congratulations to them on their birthday and to President Santos for a stunning achievement which will bring peace and hopefully greater prosperity to everyone in Colombia.