Every preventable drowning is one too many. That is why, on 25 July – World Drowning Prevention Day – the World Health Organisation (WHO) is calling for global attention to be focused on drowning prevention. The message is clear: investing in swimming skills, water safety and accessible swimming facilities saves lives.
This call to action ties in perfectly with Swimwise’s mission. We believe that swimming is a right, not a privilege. That is why we work every day towards a single goal: more local swimming facilities, so that everyone has the chance to learn to swim safely.
Those who can swim are safer in and around the water. That is why the WHO regards high-quality swimming instruction as one of the most important measures for preventing drowning. Yet it is becoming increasingly difficult for many schools to organise sufficient swimming lessons. Swimming pools are often overcrowded, distances are increasing and costs are rising. As a result, valuable lesson time is lost and children have fewer opportunities to develop their swimming skills.
Water safety does not, therefore, begin at a lake, river or coastline. It begins in a swimming pool, where children and adults learn to swim and behave responsibly around water in a safe environment.
This is all the more relevant now that Flanders intends, in principle, to allow open-water swimming from 2027 onwards. This is a positive step, but one that only serves to highlight the importance of proper swimming instruction. After all, safe swimming does not begin in open water, but in a swimming pool, where children and adults learn the necessary skills and water safety.
The shortage of swimming facilities calls for solutions that make a difference right now. Of course, new, permanent swimming pools remain essential. However, as such projects require years of preparation, there is also a need for additional solutions that can quickly create extra capacity.
That is why Swimwise believes that temporary and portable swimming pools can also be a valuable addition to permanent infrastructure. In this way, we bring swimming lessons closer to people, reduce the need for travel and create more opportunities to learn to swim safely.
Read about our partnership with the city of Mechelen.
Nowhere is the shortage of swimming facilities more evident than in Brussels. Long waiting lists for swimming lessons, limited pool capacity and schools struggling to provide enough swimming lessons highlight the scale of the challenge. But Brussels is not alone. Elsewhere in Belgium, too, demand for accessible swimming facilities is growing faster than supply.
Read our blog post: Brussels needs more swimming facilities.
World Drowning Prevention Day is more than just a symbolic occasion. It is a call to invest in what really matters: sufficient swimming facilities, high-quality swimming lessons and safe conditions in which everyone can learn to swim.
Everyone deserves the chance to learn to swim safely. Investing in sufficient swimming facilities is therefore not only an investment in sport, but also in safety.
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