Global Water Partnership

16/02/2026

💧 𝗡𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗮’𝘀 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝘀 𝗮 𝗵𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗰 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻

At the AU-AIP High-Level Leaders Session on Water Investments, held at the African Union Headquarters, on the margins of the 39th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union, H.E. Dr Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, President of the Republic of Namibia, addressed African Heads of State, Ministers, and global partners in her capacity as Co-Chair of the High-Level Panel on Water Investments for Africa.

During the session, where Mr. Alex Simalabwi, CEO of GWPO, presented a pipeline of USD 10–12 billion in climate-resilient water investment opportunities across Africa, President Nandi-Ndaitwah informed delegates of Namibia’s historic decision to host the Global Water Partnership Organisation (GWPO) headquarters.

This announcement reflects Namibia’s commitment not only as Co-Chair of the African Union Heads of States High-Level Panel for the Africa Water Investment Programme (AIP), but also as a global leader in advancing , , equality and sustainable .

The event brought together African leadership and leading development partners - including The World Bank, UNECE, UNICEF, European Union, Green Climate Fund, African Development Bank Group, United Nations Development Programme - UNDP, African Water and Sanitation Association, and other AIP partners - demonstrating unprecedented global alignment to accelerate investment in water and sanitation.

The establishment of GWPO’s global headquarters in Namibia reflects Namibia’s global leadership in advancing water security and represents a transformative shift, positioning Africa at the centre of global water investment cooperation.

16/02/2026

💧 H.E. Dr. Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, President of the Republic of Namibia, announces the establishment of the new GWPO Headquarters in Namibia on the margins of the African Union Heads of State Summit

On the margins of the 39th Ordinary Session of the African Union Assembly in Addis Ababa on 15 February, H.E. President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah welcomed the establishment of the Global Water Partnership Organisation (GWPO) Headquarters, highlighting the importance of Global South leadership in addressing global .

The President met with GWP Global Chair Hon. Pablo Bereciartua, GWPO CEO Mr. Alex Simalabwi, and H.E. Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, Former President of Tanzania and Chair of Global Water Partnership Southern Africa. During the discussions, the CEO briefed the President on progress following the Africa Water Investment Summit under the G20 Presidency of South Africa, including the identification of a USD 10–12 billion investment pipeline, and outlined how the new headquarters will support mobilisation of partners and financing to accelerate implementation as part of the emerging G20 legacy Presidential Global Water Investment Programme (GIP).

President Nandi-Ndaitwah underscored the critical importance of both for Namibia and globally. She noted that Namibia joined the Partnership not only to benefit from international cooperation, but also to contribute its experience in managing extreme to global solutions.

She expressed appreciation for the Global Water Partnership and reaffirmed Namibia’s strong commitment to advancing collective action on water at continental and global levels.

📺 Watch short recaps by NBC Digital News 👉 https://bit.ly/3OJOJ8V and the Namibian Presidency 👉 https://bit.ly/46cdIYC

13/02/2026

👨‍⚖️ 𝗚𝗪𝗣’𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗔𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗹𝗮𝘄

Following the exchange of official letters of notification in Windhoek on 12 February, between Hon. Pablo Bereciartua, Chair of the GWP Steering Committee and Minister of Infrastructure of the City of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Hon. Inge Zaamwani, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform of the Republic of Namibia, the Headquarters Agreement has now taken legal effect.

With this formal act, the full privileges and immunities of GWPO as an international organisation are now in force, operationalising Namibia’s role as host of GWPO’s global headquarters and establishing a permanent institutional platform to support the mobilisation and delivery of worldwide.

13/02/2026

🏜️ 🌊 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗰𝗲𝗮𝗻 – 𝗮 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 #𝗪𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁

After the signing of the Headquarters Agreement between GWPO and the Government of the Republic of Namibia, Namibia hosts the primary seat of the GWPO dual-headquarters model – a new Global South-anchored and delivery architecture.

Learn the details 👉 https://bit.ly/4cyvKrM

13/02/2026

💧 At the signing of the Headquarters Agreement between GWPO and the Government of the Republic of Namibia, Hon. Inge I. Zaamwani, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform of Namibia, highlighted the significance of hosting the GWPO Secretariat in Windhoek.

12/02/2026

✍️ 𝗚𝗪𝗣𝗢 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗚𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰 𝗼𝗳 𝗡𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗮 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗔𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗚𝗪𝗣𝗢’𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝘀𝗲𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗵𝗼𝗲𝗸

The Government of the Republic of Namibia has signed a Headquarters Agreement with the Global Water Partnership Organisation (GWPO), officially establishing the GWPO Secretariat in Windhoek.

The agreement was signed by Hon. Inge I. Zaamwani, Namibia’s Minister of Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water & Land Reform, and Mr. Alex Simalabwi, CEO of GWPO and Executive Secretary of GWP.

🗨️ “Today is a day of immense pride for our organisation and partnership,” Mr. Simalabwi said.

Explore details 👉 https://bit.ly/4aN77GE

10/02/2026

🗨️ “GWP’s experience since 2020 shows that an international network can drive systems change by using global presence to co-define norms, indicators and methodologies, convene political and technical coalitions, and co-design investment architectures that link national practice to high-level climate and finance decision making.

GWP has contributed to systemic transformation across seven mutually reinforcing dimensions:

💧 Water governance systems;
💧 Financial architecture for water and climate;
💧 Technical water solutions;
💧 Transboundary water cooperation;
💧 Inclusive, participatory systems;
💧 Knowledge and learning systems;
💧 and international processes.

By convening and aligning diverse actors, GWP has helped embed more integrated and participatory decision-making, strengthen national and regional water governance frameworks, and lay foundations for investment-readiness and finance mobilisation for - and -related priorities.”

Explore the independent evaluation of the Global Water Partnership’s 2020–2025 Strategy, commissioned by Sweden with support from the Netherlands 👉 https://bit.ly/4qPNV0K

09/02/2026

💧 at the heart of multilateral negotiations: Abdoulaye Sène, Regional Chair of Global Water Partnership Afrique de l'Ouest - Gwp/ao, analyses institutional obstacles and calls for more solidarity and integrated global governance.

Explore reflections in Senegalese news media Seneweb.com (in French) 👉

Les 26 et 27 janvier 2026, Dakar a accueilli la réunion préparatoire de haut niveau de la Conférence des Nations Unies sur l'eau 2026, co-organisée par le Sénégal et les Émirats arabes unis en collaboration avec l'ONU.

06/02/2026

𝗚𝗪𝗣 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝟱-𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟬-𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟱

In December, an independent evaluation of the Global Water Partnership’s 2020–2025 Strategy, commissioned by Sweden with support from the Netherlands, confirms that GWP has substantially delivered its Strategy and made significant systemic contributions to water governance, climate resilience and transboundary cooperation.

As the report notes: 🗨️ “The evaluation concludes that the Global Water Partnership [...] has substantially delivered its ambitious 2020–2025 Strategy, effectively contributing towards the strategic vision of a water-secure world.”

Explore the full evaluation report 👉 https://bit.ly/4qPNV0K

Following a decisive year that advanced the Global Transformation Agenda on Water Investments, GWP’s new Strategy has now taken effect, setting out an ambitious plan to unlock USD 15 billion in global water investments and mobilise USD 500 million directly for countries and partners, in collaboration with G20 countries, Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs), Climate Funds, and other partners.

Explore GWP’s 2026-2030 Strategy 👉 https://bit.ly/45Fdskx

04/02/2026

🔥 𝗛𝗼𝘁 𝗼𝗳𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀: 𝗡𝗲𝘄𝘀𝗙𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿-𝗝𝗮𝗻𝘂𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻!

Among the top stories, you’ll find:

💧 Stakeholder consultations advance Investments for towards the
💧 GWP Partners approve landmark governance reforms
💧 Independent evaluation confirms GWP’s impact and future readiness

Explore NewsFlow, packed with stories from all over GWP’s network 👉 https://bit.ly/4kAYwud

03/02/2026

The "Adapting to Climate Change through Smart Irrigation and the – Ghar El Melh " project in Tunisia by Global Water Partnership Mediterranean and Partners is a strong example of how integrated approaches can drive both policy and practice.

Learn more 👇

02/02/2026

💧 OPTAIN celebrates the World Wetlands Day

OPTAIN demonstrates how retaining water in the landscape is essential for resilient agriculture, healthy wetlands and good water quality.

Across Europe, farmers and water managers are facing growing challenges: droughts, floods, soil degradation and pressures on water quality. Small agricultural catchments are especially vulnerable.

🌿 Natural / Small Water Retention Measures (NSWRM) are part of the solution. They help landscapes:
• retain water for longer periods
• reduce flood peaks
• retain nutrients and reduce pollution
• strengthen climate resilience

From September 2020 to February 2026, OPTAIN brought together researchers, farmers, advisors, water managers and decision-makers across 14 case studies in the Boreal, Continental and Pannonian regions.

🔹 A core pillar of OPTAIN were the Multi-Actor Reference Groups, involving more than 500 stakeholders from local, regional, national and international levels.

These groups co-defined challenges, shared knowledge, and helped shape solutions grounded in real needs and practical experience.

Key achievements include:
• harmonised modelling and optimisation approaches (SWAT+, field-scale models, CoMOLA)
• new R packages, indicators and workflows assessing impacts on water, nutrients, erosion and farm economics
• an NSWRM catalogue, guidelines and an online learning environment
• regional dialogues connecting countries and enabling cross-European stakeholder exchange on wetland and water retention measures

💧 One of the strongest achievements is the collaboration between science and society.
When farmers, water managers and policymakers co-create solutions, Natural/Small Water Retention Measures become more effective and easier to implement.
Although OPTAIN is now ending, its tools, knowledge and partnerships continue to support sustainable land and water management in Europe and beyond.

👉 Discover more: https://www.optain.eu/



A big thank you to our partners 🤝🌎🌱💧😀

CDE - Centre for Development and Environment, University of Bern
Agroscope
HUN-REN Agrártudományi Kutatóközpont, Hun-Ren ATK Talajtani Intézet
Országos Vízügyi Főigazgatóság - OVF
SGGW / Warsaw University of Life Sciences
Univerza v Ljubljani / University of Ljubljana
Kmetijsko gozdarski zavod Maribor
Universiteit Gent
Jūros tyrimų institutas / Marine Research Institute
Università degli Studi di Milano
NIBIO
VÚMOP - Výzkumný ústav monitoringu a ochrany půdy
Global Water Partnership Central and Eastern Europe
Office International de l'Eau - OiEau
Norsk institutt for vannforskning - NIVA