Adama, Ethiopia – Nearly 90 representatives from Ethiopian water utilities, government officials, development partners and sector stakeholders gathered in Adama from 9-13 June 2025 for a five-day national workshop aimed at strengthening institutional capacity on the Water Operators’ Partnership (WOP) approach.
Organized by the Ethiopian Urban Water Supply and Sewerage Service Federation with the support of UN-Habitat’s Global Water Operators’ Partnership Alliance (GWOPA) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), under the auspices of the Ethiopian Ministry of Water and Energy, the event marked a significant step forward in scaling up solidarity-based peer learning to accelerate progress towards sustainable, resilient urban water services across the country.
The workshop was the part of a three-year project being implemented by UN-Habitat through GWOPA to strengthen the capacity of Ethiopian utilities through WOPs, benefiting to three newly established utilities of Bidre, Bulle, and Doyo Gena. The project is funded through a UN partnership with UNICEF.
WOPs – A participative, cost-effective approach
In his opening remarks, Mr Muktar Ahmed, Director-General of the Ethiopian Urban Water Supply and Sewerage Service Federation, emphasised the importance and impact of WOPs in tackling local water service delivery. He was joined by Mr Basazin Minda, Urban WASH Specialist at UNICEF, who presented findings from a comparative study of system and capacity-strengthening approaches, confirming that WOPs were the most efficient and cost-effective capacity development approach for Ethiopian utilities.
“In UNICEF supported projects, we compared different approaches and found the WOPs the preferred model for Ethiopian utilities in terms of efficiency, costs, and sustainability,” said Mr Minda.
Outlining UNICEF’s support to the Ethiopian Government since 2014 to strengthen utilities, Mr Minda shed light on how the WOP approach has evolved in Ethiopia, with utilities like Wolaita Sodo progressing from mentees to local mentors, and the Federation itself advancing from a mentee to leading the Ethiopian Water Operators’ Partnership.
Echoing this, Mr Tamiru Gedefa, Water Supply Lead Executive Officer, Ministry of Water and Energy, called for collective action. “A utility alone cannot bring change – we must unite and work together. The objective is to get knowledge and capacity to scale up.”
From global practices to local partnerships
The workshop facilitated by GWOPA/UN-Habitat experts including Dr Anne Bousquet, Project Manager, drew on the over 15 years of experience by the Global Alliance, and offered a structured learning journey, starting with global good practices and Ethiopian success stories. Presentations from utilities in Adama, Bahir Dar, Hawassa and Wolaita Sodo demonstrated tangible improvements driven by peer learning.
Participants engaged in group exercises to reflect on roles and expectations of mentors and mentees, fostering mutual accountability partnerships. Technical sessions on asset management and non-revenue water provided additional opportunities to share experiences, showcase strengths, and identify common challenges.
A key highlight of the event was the dedicated pairing sessions, which enabled utilities to explore and initiate peer partnerships based on complementary strengths, shared challenges, and mutual learning goals. These sessions resulted in the formation of 14 WOPs, such as the operators in Wolaita Sodo, Adama, Bishoftu, and Hawassa mentoring the utilities in Bidre, Bulle, Chifra, Doyogena, Edega Arbi, Fireweini, Kelual, Mehoni, Shire and Wukro.
UNICEF and GWOPA/UN-Habitat: Anchoring the WOP Platform
The workshop advanced efforts to institutionalise the WOP approach in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian Water and Sewerage Utilities Federation, the Ministry of Water and Energy and UNICEF reaffirmed their commitment to establishing a national WOP platform with support from GWOPA/Un-Habitat, the latter contributing technical support, access to knowledge resources and links to the global peer network, exemplified at GWOPA’s online Global WOPs Community that can host a of Practice strong Ethiopian Community of Practice
Broadening the vision: CWIS Perspectives
The workshop also expanded the WOP agenda beyond water supply to include sanitation. Dedicated sessions explored Citywide Inclusive Sanitation (CWIS) and Sanitation-focussed Water Operators’ Partnerships.
Other UN-Habitat representatives, including Mr Scelo Zibagwe, Programme Management Officer and Head of Programmes at UN-Habitat’s Sub-Regional Office for East and Horn of Africa, and Mr Hezekiah Pireh, Water and Sanitation Team Leader in UN-Habitat’s Urban Basic Services Section emphasised the need for strengthening the full sanitation service chain and integrate peer learning into broader urban development planning.
Looking ahead: A roadmap for resilient services
The final segment of the workshop focused on shaping a national roadmap for WOP implementation. Participants discussed monitoring mechanisms through the WOP Observatory, communications and documentation strategies and financing opportunities, including the upcoming EU-WOP 2 call for applications.#
Reflecting on the progress, H.E. Ambassador, Dr Asfaw Dingamo remarked: “This is a critical moment – one-third of our National Programme targets have been achieved, but much remains. WOPs offer a promising path forward.”
From planning to practice: WOPs in action
Just days after the workshop, WOPs began taking root on the ground. A team of four experts from Adama Water Utility travelled over 600 km to Yabelo to practically start implementing the Ethiopian WOP initiative. Demonstrating peer solidarity in action, the team provided 90 kilograms of calcium hypochlorite to support Yabelo’s disinfection needs.
In a landmark commitment at the 2030 UN Conference, GWOPA/UN-Habitat has announced its leadership in expanding Water Operators' Partnerships (WOPs) globally. The organization has pledged to significantly scale up these partnerships, targeting a minimum of 100 additional utilities by 2030. Highlighting the success of these efforts, the experience in Ethiopia stands as a beacon, demonstrating the effective implementation and scaling of WOPs at the national level and serving as an inspiring model for other nations.
