As UN-Habitat's Global Water Operators’ Partnerships Alliance (GWOPA) commences the Water Year in the lead-up to the United Nations 2026 Water Conference, efforts to translate global water commitments into tangible results continues to gain pace.
The Conference will take place from 2 to 4 December 2026 in the United Arab Emirates. In the nearer term GWOPA members are actively contributing to preparatory processes shaping the Conference to ensure the perspectives of water and sanitation utilities are reflected in the outcomes, including at the High-Level Preparatory Meeting from 26 to 27 January in Dakar, Senegal. The meeting is expected to focus to sharpen the focus on implementation, accountability and impact, building on progress since the UN 2023 Water Conference.
GWOPA will be represented in Dakar by its Secretariat, alongside members, including the Office National de l’Assainissement du Sénégal (ONAS) and the African Water and Sanitation Association (AfWASA) at the Stakeholder Meeting event on 25 January. The Stakeholder Meeting is a special event in connection with the Dakar High-Level Preparatory Meeting and an opportunity to bring together diverse voices and perspectives to deliberate strategies for accelerating the implementation of SDG 6 and the 2030 Agenda. It will also provide a platform to rally and mobilize stakeholders, including non-profit organizations.
The 2023 UN Water Conference held at the mid-point of the Water Action Decade (2018–2028),generated more than 800 voluntary commitments under the Water Action Agenda to accelerate progress on the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 on clean water and sanitation for all. For GWOPA, that milestone translated into a delivery mandate, anchored in its Water Action Commitment, 100 utilities for 100 million people – an initiative backed by Member States to strengthen at least 100 public water and sanitation utilities by 2030. GWOPA said the Initiative is expected to benefit an estimated 100 million people through safer, more responsive, more resilient or more accessible basic services.
Through this commitment, GWOPA has sought to position water operators as central actors in localising the SDGs, particularly where climate pressures and financing gaps risk leaving communities behind, including in lower socio-economic areas. The approach relies on expanding peer-to-peer cooperation via Water Operators’ Partnerships (WOPs) and sanitation-focused partnerships (SWOPs), with an emphasis on long-term capacity development, institutional strengthening and knowledge exchange, creating ripple effects as supported utilities go on to mentor others.
GWOPA is also engaging in the policy track towards the UN 2026 Water Conference. In March 2025, several GWOPA member utilities participated in global stakeholder consultations that helped shape the six themes adopted by the United Nations General Assembly, ensuring that utility perspectives were raised across all tracks. As a global alliance, GWOPA emphasises that engaging utilities and service providers is critical to linking technical service delivery expertise with participatory governance and multi-stakeholder collaboration, accelerating progress in delivering essential basic services in cities.
Member States have agreed upon the six following themes: Water for People, Water for Prosperity, Water for Planet, Water for Cooperation, Water in Multilateral Processes, and Investments for Water.
Ahead of the Dakar meeting, GWOPA is calling for stronger recognition of utilities as frontline public service providers, delivering water and sanitation services every day and playing a central role in translating global goals into local action.
As the world depends on at least 285,000 utilities to achieve SDG 6, the Alliance also points to the fact that utility voices need to be represented stronger within global water processes as a core stakeholder group in global conferences and policy forums.
GWOPA notes that Water Operators’ Partnerships are a proven approach to strengthening utilities. Through non-commercial, peer-to-peer cooperation, WOPs and SWOPs help utilities improve governance, operational performance as well as service quality. Likewise, partnerships and peer-to-peer dynamics enable scalable, long-term impact. Therefore, by strengthening institutional capacity, WOPs support service expansion, improve investment readiness and help utilities access finance for sustainable infrastructure development.
Opportunities for stakeholder engagement are set to expand as preparation for the Conference continue. A second round of special accreditation for non-governmental organizations and other stakeholders will open on 9 February 2026 and close on 31 March 2026. For further details, please visit the UN Water Conference webpage.
The UN 2026 Water conference preparations are also expected to feed into ongoing exchanges in the lead-up to and during the 13th World Urban Forum (WUF13) from 17 to 22 May 2026 in Baku, Azerbaijan, reinforcing the role of public water and sanitation utilities as key actors in shaping inclusive and sustainable housing and urban futures.
For coordination with GWOPA before or during the High-Level Preparatory Meeting in Dakar, please contact: Anne Bousquet ([email protected]), GWOPA Secretariat; Office National de l’Assainissement du Sénégal (ONAS), Senegal’s national sanitation utility and GWOPA member