WAKARU® wins world competition
for innovative solutions in the water sector.

The Global Demo Day 2018 Latin America took place last July, at the City of Knowledge Convention Center (Ciudad del Saber) in Panama. Present were those who, in a selection and previous analysis, were considered the 10 best startups in the world with innovations in the water sector. Having the ideas and solutions presented tried to answer the challenge of solving the current and future problems associated with effective water management. This event was attended by finalists representing Ecuador, Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, Portugal and Norway.

The coordinator of the Ecological Reserve Project Rodrigo Tarté, of the Cidade do Conhecimento Foundation - Liriola Pití - welcomed and thanked all those who made this event possible through their effort, work and knowledge. Especially to the participants who, with their ideas, contributed to share and put their knowledge at the service of society, promoting a solid change in the behavior of citizens.

Pablo González Ruiz De La Torre, Director of Innovation at the Entrepreneurship Center of IE Business School, introduced the competition and presented the rules that guided this year. The projects were evaluated by a jury of international and reference experts in the sector, with criteria such as; the innovation of the project, the team, the potential to globally scale the solutions presented, the degree of preparation of the stakeholders, the opportunity and positioning in the market. The participants selected for the 2018 edition were; EnviroNor (Norway), Loginvex (Colombia), Ecowash (Costa Rica), Super Agua (Panama), WaterWise - Wakaru (Portugal), IGrow (Panama), The Tide (Mexico), Green Modular Water (Panama) and Yaku Pura ( Ecuador), which presented the respective proposals for the jury's evaluation.

The presentations were scrutinized by a panel attended by experts from the IE Business School, the World Bank and the Government of Panama through SENACYT-National Secretariat of Science, Technology and Innovation, CONAGUA-Comisión Nacional del Agua and IDAAN- Instituto de Acueductos y Alcantarillados Nacionales. Throughout the event, support for innovation on issues related to water was discussed, both nationally and internationally.

After a period of consideration and analysis of the proposals presented, the winners of the 2018 H2O Challenge and the Global Demo Day were announced. Wakaru - Portugal, The Tide - Mexico and Loginvex - Colombia were chosen as the most successful solutions. innovations of the event. These projects will have access to local support services, from the Ciudad del Saber Foundation, and support from the World Bank for the realization of a pilot in Panama.

During the event, the National Communication Award "The Water Challenge" was also awarded, where the City of Knowledge, SENACYT and CONAGUA awarded the best reports published in Panama, in different media, which promoted information and the promotion of water security, the efficient use of water and its value as a vital element in life.

Vitor Prisca, CEO of Wakaru, said 'that the recognition of the innovative potential of the Water Wise solution results from the global awareness that we have to do more and better, so that the management of the water resource is more and more efficient'.

More Info Global Demo Day 2018 Latin America