In 2026, the biennial GWOPA Assembly took place on 17 May 2026 in Baku, Azerbaijan as part of the thirteenth session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13), both in-person and online.
The GWOPA Assembly convened on 17 May in Baku and online, on the opening day of the World Urban Forum 13. High-level speakers including UN-Habitat Executive Director Anacláudia Rossbach and UN Special Envoy on Water Retno Marsudi placed water and sanitation utilities at the centre of sustainable urbanisation, calling for faster, more integrated action on SDG 6 ahead of the 2026 UN Water Conference.
Throughout the Assembly, seventeen years of the WOPs movement were reflected upon, as members and partners from across the globe looked ahead to GWOPA's 2026–2029 Strategy with a shared message: Water Operators' Partnerships work, but must now be scaled, better embedded in national systems and more directly linked to investment and policy. Assembly Chair Rose Kaggwa continued forth with the Assembly discussions as she represented service providers on the Advisory Group for the Baku Call for Action outcome document of WUF13.
Why did the 2026 Assembly matter?
The assembly offered a significant momentum and a shared responsibility to ensure that the voices of water and sanitation utilities are meaningfully reflected in the lead-up to WUF13 and the implementation of the UN-Habitat Strategic Plan 2026–2029.
The 2026 GWOPA Assembly was an opportunity to contribute to the discussions on strategic orientations as GWOPA reflects on achievements of its 2019-2025 Strategy and prepare the next strategy for 2026-2029.
GWOPA members were also able to join the Joint Opening of WUF Assemblies and a short open session gathering all service providers in this new stakeholder group. This was an important milestone in the process of recognizing water and sanitation utilities, along with other service providers that contribute services that are fundamental to adequate housing, within the existing WUF stakeholder groups.
Assembly Highlights
Participants of the Assembly engaged in the discussions on strategic orientations as GWOPA reflects on achievements of its 2019-2025 Strategy and prepares for the next one 2026-2029.
The revision of the GWOPA’s Strategy comes at a crucial moment when the community of water and sanitation utilities and their partners and supporters are joining efforts to prepare for the 2026 UN Water Conference.
The 2023 UN Water Conference, which was the first such event in nearly half a century, called for commitments, pledges and actions from across the water and sanitation sector to help deliver on the water actions in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. These commitments are compiled in the Water Action Agenda towards achieving SDG 6 and related goals and targets.
The Alliance made the collective pledge “100 utilities for 100 million people” to to strengthen at least 100 additional public water and sanitation service providers to benefit 100 million people with safer, more responsive, more resilient or more accessible basic services. With the pledge, GWOPA raises the profile of water operators as key actors in localizing the SDGs, elevating the global recognition of basic service providers in achieving the SDGs.
As we enter the final five years of the 2030 Agenda, the Assembly provided a time for GWOPA’s members to take stock of the progress made on our collective pledge and ensure that our new Strategy reflects the needs of our community, responds to the new challenges that have emerged since 2019 and provide a clear framework to streamline our collective efforts.
The Assembly acted as an opportunity to understand how the Alliance works: how our members benefit from joining, how they can contribute, and how the governance works. Over the last 17 years, GWOPA has refined its ways of working together as members, serving the Alliance with a Secretariat, a Steering Committee, and regional WOP platforms. Join us to meet current and new representatives from your constituencies and your region, to discuss how to best capitalize on this network.
The elections for available seats at the GWOPA Steering Committee are now closed. The poll results will be shortly announced online.
Read more about Steering Committee elections.
The World Urban Forum is the leading international conference on sustainable urban development. For GWOPA members, their attendance at WUF13 offered unparalleled networking opportunities with key stakeholders in urban development, access to expert knowledge and research, and insights into innovative solutions for urban challenges, such as sustainable development, housing and climate change. The forum allowed participants to influence urban policy, engage in meaningful dialogue on the future of cities, and promote sustainable and inclusive urban practices.
WUF13 proved especially relevant for utilities and service providers as it highlighted their crucial role in ensuring equitable access to essential urban services, including water, sanitation, waste management, energy and mobility foundational for adequate housing, slum upgrading and resilient, climate-responsive cities. The Forum enabled utilities to directly influence global urban policy debates tied to the New Urban Agenda and SDG 11, while showcasing scalable solutions such as digitalization, climate adaptation, circular economy practices and partnership models.
By bringing together governments, UN agencies, development banks, financial partners and other stakeholders, WUF13 created opportunities to form strategic alliances, explore financing opportunities and contribute to mobilize support for infrastructure investment and capacity development. Participation also helped to establish stronger, ongoing collaboration between utilities and broader partner networks beyond the event itself.
Just before the GWOPA Assembly, members joined the Joint Opening of WUF Assemblies in the morning on Sunday 17 May, followed by a short open session with all service providers.
This session provided significant momentum and a shared responsibility to ensure that the voice of water and sanitation utilities are meaningfully reflected in the lead-up to WUF13 and the implementation of the UN-Habitat Strategic Plan 2026–2029.
The Secretariat is working with its global membership to develop a strong water and sanitation track at WUF, attendance, both in-person and online proved useful in facilitating the Alliance's learning and networking with urban development actors.
Watch the interview with Tahir Khalilov, Chairman of Azeri United Water Supply, as he speaks about Baku's role in the Urban Agenda and WUF13.