With the 2026 UN Water Conference in Abu Dhabi only weeks away, Namibia is strengthening its position as a global hub for water investment and diplomacy.
In 2026 alone, it became home to the global headquarters of the Global Water Partnership Organisation (GWPO), was selected to host the 2028 International Network of Basin Organisations World Basin Summit, supported the launch of a Global Ambassadors’ Forum for water during Stockholm Water Week, and convened world leaders on water investment at the 81st United Nations General Assembly.
Namibia now brings that momentum home. From 10 to 13 November, the country’s water sector will convene in Swakopmund for the 3rd Namibia Regional Water Symposium, focused on ensuring water security through innovation, collaboration and responsible water stewardship. Together, these milestones point in one direction: one of sub-Saharan Africa’s driest countries taking its place on the global stage as a leader on water.
“Namibia shows that countries living with water scarcity can lead the world on water security,” said Alex Simalabwi, CEO and Executive Secretary of GWPO. “From our headquarters in Windhoek, we will work with the Government and partners to turn political leadership into prepared projects and finance on the ground.”
Namibia’s leadership on water at the 81st UN General Assembly
On 21 September 2026, on the margins of the UN General Assembly in New York, President Nandi-Ndaitwah convened the International High-Level Panel on Water Investments for Africa and Global Cooperation, alongside Senegal, the African Union Commission and international partners.
The Panel’s 2021–2026 progress report, presented by Panel Alternate Co-Chair, former Tanzanian President H.E. Jakaya Kikwete, showed that the Continental Africa Water Investment Programme (AIP) has helped identify an estimated US$10–12 billion in annual water investment pipelines, established a Water Investment Scorecard measuring investment readiness across 30 countries, and advanced more than 15 climate-resilient national water investment programmes.
“We must, therefore, translate political commitment into valuable projects and tangible results,” said President Nandi-Ndaitwah at the High-Level event.
Namibia is a founding Co-Chair of the High-Level Panel, alongside Senegal. In that role, Namibia has championed the AIP, which aims to mobilise at least US$30 billion a year by 2030 for water security and sustainable sanitation.
A global water headquarters anchored in the Global South
In May 2026, Windhoek became the primary seat of GWPO’s new dual-headquarters model, with Cape Town serving as its finance and investment hub. This makes GWPO the world’s first Global South-anchored intergovernmental organisation dedicated to water. Through GWPO, Namibia is now connected to a network of more than 2,800 water organisations and to the Global Water Investment Platform. In June 2026, Windhoek hosted GWPO’s inaugural Board meeting, and President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah received the Board at State House.
Convening global water governance in Windhoek
Also in June, Namibia was also selected to host the 2028 International Network of Basin Organisations World Basin Summit, recognising its leadership on basin management and Africa’s growing role in global water governance.
Building a diplomatic constituency for water
In August 2026, Namibia joined South Africa, the World Meteorological Organization and GWPO to launch the Global Ambassadors’ Forum for Water and Economic Diplomacy at World Water Week in Stockholm. Diplomats from nearly 30 countries took part. The Forum equips ambassadors to raise water on national and international agendas and to connect country-led investment pipelines with development and climate finance.
This builds on Namibia’s wider multilateral record, including co-facilitating, with Germany, the intergovernmental negotiations on the UN Pact for the Future.
Bringing global momentum home: the Namibia Regional Water Symposium
The Namibia Regional Water Symposium programme connects national water-resource challenges with climate vulnerability, rural and municipal supply, groundwater, desalination, water reuse, research, industry, governance and community-based management. Planned site visits to a wastewater treatment facility, a desalination plant and a fishing operation reinforce that solutions must work in practice.
The Symposium will feature an address by South Africa, which co-chairs the 2026 UN Water Conference interactive dialogue on investments for water alongside France, with GWPO as a partner. The address will link the national conversation in Swakopmund directly to the global investment agenda that will be set in Abu Dhabi.
GWPO is proud to support this national effort. Working with the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform, GWPO will draw on its technical expertise and global network to connect Namibia’s priorities with relevant experience and solutions. At the Symposium, GWPO will introduce its work to the Namibian water sector and present how National Water Investment Programmes under the AIP help countries turn national priorities into investment-ready project pipelines.