The GEN-M was recently presented at a special ceremony last Friday that featured Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei, and will be used by The National Coordination for Disaster Reduction of Guatemala now and in future crises. Generating up to 800 liters of water per day with a weight of just 780 kilograms, the GEN-M is transportable and easily installed. Each unit contains an internal water treatment system which with the exception of electricity, does not need additional infrastructure to operate.
The decision to use Watergen's GEN-M came after President Giammatei visited Watergen's offices in Israel earlier this year, who saw great potential in the technology for solving some of the Guatemala's pressing issues of water shortages.
The advent of GEN-M will allow Guatemala City increase its water production to meet the current demand of 6.5 cubic meters per second, with the capital city only producing 4 cubic meters per second between 2018 and 2019, well below demand.
Experts estimate that 20% among Guatemala’s population of 16 million have difficult accessing safe-drinking water.
Following the decision to use GEN-M, Guatemala’s Presidential Commissioner for Foreign Investment and Tourism Isaac Farchi commended the relationship between Israel and Guatemala, saying that "after a successful working visit to the State of Israel with President-elect Alejandro Giammattei, we are all witnesses today to the fruits of the brotherhood between Guatemala and Israel.
"We are very grateful to Watergen, which donated this machine during these difficult times facing Guatemala. It is a clear sign that Israeli technology provides the most vital of needs and helps the Jewish state’s many friends. Thanks to Watergen, we hope soon to keep building on the good relationship that our president’s visit to Israel has generated," Farchi added.
Guatemala’s Minister of Economy, Antonio Malouf also praised Watergen, saying that "With this donation by Watergen, we will make use of innovative solutions to the major challenges we are dealing with. Furthermore, this technology contributes to the growth of a more dynamic and resilient economy. For this reason, I reiterate the need to continue articulating efforts that positively impact the quality of life for all Guatemalans."