Arisu headquarters in Seoul / Courtesy of the Seoul Metropolitan Government
From Tanzania to Laos, cities struggling with aging pipes and unreliable drinking water are turning to Seoul for answers.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it had launched an 11-day training program for 15 water officials from 10 cities across eight countries, sharing the technology and operational expertise behind Arisu, the capital’s tap water system, as part of a broader push to expand international cooperation on water infrastructure.
Participants from countries including East Timor, Laos and Mozambique will take part in the program through Wednesday, visiting major facilities such as the Arisu Field Education Center, the Gangbuk Arisu Water Treatment Center and the Guui Arisu Water Treatment Center.
City officials said the training focuses on water treatment processes, water quality management, leakage reduction and broader policy planning tied to Seoul’s municipal water system.
The program also includes discussions on water-related challenges facing participating cities, with attendees expected to develop and present city-specific action plans based on the training.
Seoul said the initiative has increasingly evolved beyond technical exchanges into full-scale overseas infrastructure cooperation projects.
Since 2012, the city has hosted 24 rounds of training programs involving 305 water experts from 95 cities in 40 countries. Those relationships have since helped connect Seoul’s expertise with international development projects backed by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).
The city said water infrastructure improvement projects worth 13.2 billion won ($9.7 million) are currently underway in Tanzania and Laos using Seoul’s operational expertise.
In Dodoma, Tanzania, Seoul and KOICA have been working since 2023 on a 5.1 billion won project to modernize aging water facilities and improve pipeline management systems. In Laos’ Bolikhamsai province, an 8.1 billion won project was launched in March to upgrade water intake facilities, purification systems and distribution pipelines.
Source: Korea Times News
