Delta Programme Commissioner visits Rijkswaterstaat
On 8 September, Delta Programme Commissioner Wim Kuijken visited WVL, the Water, Traffic and Environment Agency of Rijkswaterstaat (RWS, the executive branch of the Ministry of I&M) in Utrecht. A large number of the agency’s 800 employees were – and are – involved in research for and the implementation of the Delta Programme.
Roeland Allewijn, Director of Safety and Water Use, welcomed Wim Kuijken who then spoke to some 40 employees of RWS-WVL and regional agencies about their experiences of working for the Delta Programme. He complimented them on their active involvement and collaborative working method. According to the Delta Programme Commissioner, RWS is the ideal organisation to link central management, uniform frameworks and regional elaboration, based on the national water taskings it faces. Moreover, RWS employees fulfil an important formal role due to their involvement in water management, they monitor system cohesion and they set the parameters for users and other water systems, if necessary. To this end, specialised knowledge and knowledge of the region concerned are crucial. It is equally important to honestly admit when such knowledge is lacking and uncertainties arise, and how these can be dealt with. The conclusion was that retaining and expanding this knowledge base is of vital importance not only to RWS but also to the implementation of the Delta Programme.
Directly afterwards, the Delta Programme Commissioner discussed these experiences with the WVL Management Team. The conclusion was that the work the agency performs in its field can provide added value in the search for integrated solutions and finding opportunities to link the agendas of water affairs, infrastructure and liveability. The WVL Management Team will therefore focus on realising an organisation that encourages and facilitates the required internal and external collaboration.