Building climate-resilient water and sanitation utilities: Local action for global impact
As the world gathers at Stockholm World Water Week 2025, the accelerating climate crisis looms over our shared global water future. From droughts and floods to rising seas and salinized freshwater sources, climate change is, as UN-Water reminds us, “primarily a water crisis” – and nowhere is this more evident than in the daily work of the world’s water and sanitation utilities.
These essential service providers are on the frontline of climate impacts. They are tasked with supplying safe drinking water and managing sanitation systems under increasingly unpredictable conditions, increasing demand and infrastructure damage, often with limited resources. Yet, as the Global Outlook on Water and Sanitation Service Providers: Water for Sustainable Cities Report – to be launched in October – will show, they also hold the keys to climate resilience, public health, and sustainable urban development.
Utilities: Climate actors in disguise
Utilities may not always be seen as climate actors, but their role is pivotal. They manage the infrastructure and services that help cities and communities adapt to extreme weather, protect water sources, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy-efficient operations, wastewater reuse and a range of other approaches. In many contexts, they are innovating – introducing leak detection systems, decentralized treatment, renewable energy, and nature-based solutions – not just to improve efficiency, but to build resilience against a changing climate.
The report highlights that utilities are “frontline actors, not just service providers”. When supported by the right enabling environment – robust policies, adequate financing, strong regulation, and community trust – they lead transformative change. For more on the report, be sure to attend either in-person or online, GWOPA's Live Studio Talk-show at World Water Week on Wednesday 27th August, from 12:00 - 12:20 pm.
Local capacity, global goals
Under UN-Habitat’s Strategic Plan 2026–2029, ensuring adequate housing, land and basic services for all includes a strong focus on environment and climate action. This means working with cities and utilities to, among other things:
- Integrate climate risk assessments into planning and operations.
- Prioritize investments that enhance resilience and support mitigation, from flood-proof infrastructure to water reuse systems.
- Strengthen community engagement so that no one – especially in informal settlements – is left behind.
- Integrate urban basic services, notably water and sanitation, into Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs)
UN-Habitat/GWOPA embodies this approach. The Alliance connects utilities worldwide in not-for-profit, peer-to-peer learning relationships, enabling them to co-create solutions for climate change mitigation and adaptation, service expansion, and financial sustainability. Over 470 WOPs have already strengthened the capacity of more than 750 utilities in 117 countries, benefiting 58 million people.
Climate change is local – So are the solutions
The climate challenge is global, but its impacts – and solutions – are local. Utilities operate within specific watersheds, communities and governance frameworks. Strengthening their ability to act locally is one of the most effective ways to deliver on Sustainable Development Goals 6 and 13 and to safeguard the human rights to water and sanitation in a warming world.
At Stockholm World Water Week, UN-Habitat is calling on governments, donors and partners to:
- Invest in utility capacity – skilled staff, robust systems, and climate-smart infrastructure.
- Foster enabling environments – supportive policies, fair regulation, and sustainable financing.
- Promote solidarity and peer learning – expanding WOPs as a proven mechanism for lasting change.
Utilities may work quietly in the background, but their contribution to climate resilience is loud and clear. Empowering them is not only a technical necessity – it is a moral imperative to protect people, health, and our planet’s future.