From hidden utility to core infrastructure: elevating water in urban resilience strategies

This session crystallized the consensus that water must be at the core of urban resilience and digital transformation. From Cape Town’s real-world experience of drought, to Arcadis’ global perspective on cross-sector data collaboration, to Bentley’s vision of digital twins as enablers of integration, the conversation highlighted that water can no longer be treated as a hidden utility. It is the foundation of smart, sustainable, and resilient cities.

Cape Town’s experience: surviving “Day Zero” and building resilience

Siya Bashe opened the discussion by reflecting on Cape Town’s near miss with “Day Zero,” when the city came perilously close to running out of water in 2018. For her, the lesson was clear: water belongs at the centre of urban planning. “That is on the basis that everybody knows that Cape Town survived day zero. Therefore, we all know that any drought crisis has a capability to make the city stumble.”

“Cape Town’s experience showed that water must be central to planning, otherwise cities risk stumbling during crises” - Siya Bashe

To prepare for the future, Cape Town adopted a comprehensive water strategy called Our Shared Water Future. This plan commits to ensuring access to safe water for all, promoting wise use through pricing and regulation, diversifying supply sources, shared regional benefits and becoming a water sensitive City.  Key investments include groundwater development, desalination, reuse, and advanced metering infrastructure. The City is also embedding water resilience into the city’s Vision 2050.

Siya Bashe stressed that resilience cannot be limited to technical aspects. Financial sustainability is just as crucial: “When we put water in the centre of our planning, we don’t only focus on the technical side. We also put emphasis on ensuring that there is financial sustainability, there is affordability, we put tariffs that are going to make our system resilient.” For Cape Town, building resilience means embedding water considerations across governance, finance, infrastructure, and community engagement.

Water as a strategic asset for cities

Cristina García of Arcadis highlighted a recurring challenge: water is often an afterthought in smart city agendas, where energy, mobility, and data typically dominate. She argued that this needs to change. “Often water is an afterthought, and it’s not quite prominent in planning. Whereas what we see is that water is a foundation. It underpins everything. It underpins health, it underpins housing, and even in some situations, energy production.”

“Often water is treated as an afterthought, but in reality it is a foundation that underpins health, housing, and even energy production” - Cristina García

For Cristina García, reframing water as a strategic asset helps cities unlock broader benefits. She shared examples of cross-sector collaboration where shared data platforms allowed utilities and municipalities to manage stormwater more effectively, prioritize lead pipe replacements in disadvantaged neighbourhoods, and quantify the public health and energy benefits of water investments. “By making connections visible, suddenly we shift from water being a constraint to being an enabler.”

She also emphasized the role of combining nature-based solutions with digital tools. Wetland restoration, green roofs, and permeable pavements can reduce flood risks, but digital modelling and digital twins provide the evidence base that builds trust in these approaches. “Together they create resilience that’s physical, ecological, and also data-driven,” Cristina García explained.

Digital tools to elevate water in city planning

From Bentley’s perspective, Cecilia focused on the transformative role of technology in elevating water’s visibility and importance. “If we want to make cities elevate the water topic, we need to shift from the narrative of water as a hidden utility… to a strategic asset. Technology will play a very transformative role in making this water system visible.”

“Traditionally, stormwater has been treated as a risk to manage. But now there’s a growing mindset that sees it as a resource to tap into” - Cecilia Correia

Cecilia outlined how digital twins, IoT sensors, and AI-driven analytics are empowering utilities and municipalities to monitor flows, detect leaks, simulate droughts or floods, and take proactive action. She noted that this visibility not only improves operational resilience but also helps engage citizens and policymakers. “These tools really make water data more accessible and engaging, helping both policymakers and the public understand the risks and opportunities.”

She also stressed that innovation is reshaping how cities think about stormwater. “Traditionally, it has been treated as a risk to manage. But now there’s a growing mindset that sees it as a resource to tap into. This change is really sparking innovation across planning, design, and technology.”

For Cecilia, digital twins are more than a technical innovation — they are strategic enablers of integration. By unifying fragmented infrastructure and datasets across departments, sectors, and even regions, digital twins create shared platforms for collaboration. The result is better decision-making, optimized performance, and more sustainable investments.

Collaboration, governance, and trust

The panel converged on the idea that digital technologies alone are not enough. Effective governance, clear rules for data sharing, and trust between institutions are equally important. Siya Bashe noted that Cape Town introduced a council-approved data strategy, a data analytics operating model, and digital governance committees to ensure accountability and unlock value from data.

At the same time, Cristina García reminded participants that climate shocks do not respect organizational boundaries. Floods or droughts affect not only water utilities but also energy, housing, transport, and public health. This requires resilience strategies that are community-wide and ecosystem-based, not siloed.

Cecilia echoed this by pointing to interoperability as the defining challenge and opportunity: connecting water systems to energy, mobility, and climate strategies to deliver truly integrated smart cities.

Closing reflections

The session closed with a strong call for integration, urgency, and a reframing of water’s role in urban development. Siya Bashe reminded the audience that resilience cannot be built in silos. Drawing from Cape Town’s experience, she stressed that future-proof strategies must connect water with energy, mobility, health, and governance to ensure cities can withstand climate shocks. Her message was clear: building resilience is as much about coordination and political will as it is about infrastructure.

Cecilia reflected on the unique responsibility of the water sector. Far beyond technical roles, she argued, water professionals are stewards of a resource that underpins every dimension of society — from energy and food to health and industry. She expressed optimism that the growing wave of digital innovation is not just about technology for technology’s sake, but about shaping more purposeful, interoperable, and AI-driven solutions to support a sustainable and resilient future.

Cristina García emphasized the need for a cultural shift in how cities perceive and plan for water. Too often treated as a secondary issue, water must instead be placed at the very centre of smart city strategies. For her, this shift is not only a matter of resilience, but also of narrative — cities and utilities must tell a stronger story about water’s value if they are to secure the investment, trust, and momentum required to deliver long-term change.

Together, the closing reflections underscored a shared vision: resilient cities of the future will be those that recognize water as a foundation, integrate it across sectors, and harness digital innovation not just to respond to crises, but to anticipate and prevent them.