On 9 October 2025, regional and global leaders initiated the process to establish a USD 20 billion Initiative in Latin America and the Caribbean to close the water investment gap in the region and accelerate access towards the 2030 SDG 6 and water-related targets.
This effort will include a High-Level Panel of Heads of States and Leaders from the Region to mobilise political commitments and climate-resilient water investments for implementing the regional Water Investment Programme.
The Initiative — co-convened by the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF), and the Global Water Partnership (GWP), in collaboration with the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), and the University of Oxford (Watermarq) — responds to an urgent regional financing gap and a deepening human water crisis.
Across the region, there are 145 million people without safe water, 323 million people without safe sanitation (JMP, 2025), and 150 million people living in water-scarce areas (
World Bank, 2024).
ECLAC and CAF estimate that annual investments in water and sanitation need to increase between three and five times in order to achieve the SDG 6 targets. In this context, this joint Initiative aims to mobilise at least USD 20 billion in climate-resilient water investments by 2030, unlocking national and international resources and aligning efforts with existing regional initiatives.
Event took place during ECLAC’s Regional Water Dialogues
The session marking the beginning of the Initiative took place on 9 October 2025 in Santiago, Chile during the
Fifth Regional Water Dialogues
for Latin America and the Caribbean, organised by ECLAC.
The Initiative was presented by Mr Martín Abeles, Director of the Natural Resources Division of ECLAC; Mr Julián Suárez Migliozzi, Manager of Sustainable Territorial Development of CAF; and Hon. Pablo Bereciartua, GWP Chair and Minister of Infrastructure, City of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
A special message from the Government of Chile, delivered by Mr Rodrigo Sanhueza, Director of Water, was followed by a high-level roundtable with representatives from Grenada, El Salvador and Brazil.
Mr Alva Browne, Permanent Secretary within Grenada’s Ministry of Infrastructure, Public Utilities, Civil Aviation and Transportation, said that “Water is the lifeblood of resilience. For small islands like Grenada, securing it means protecting our health, our food systems, our economies, and our dignity. The Caribbean stands ready to work with our Latin American partners, the European Union, and the global community to ensure that the coming decade is one of delivery — not diagnosis.”
Regarding how the High-Level Panel can contribute to closing the investment gap, Ms Ethel Cabrera, President of El Salvador’s Water Authority stated, “Strengthening water investment in El Salvador requires institutional coherence, financial innovation, and effective international cooperation, and a High-Level Panel is precisely the space where these commitments can be transformed into concrete and sustainable actions to guarantee the country’s water security and climate resilience.”
Ms Ana Carolina Argolo, Director of the National Water and Sanitation Agency of Brazil, highlighted the strategic importance of the Latin America and Caribbean Initiative on Water and Climate Resilience Investments, and pointed out that “this platform will enable national plans to be linked to regional and global investment mechanisms, strengthening water governance in South America.”
In view of mounting water challenges with increased climate change, droughts and the upcoming COP 30 in Brazil, GWP leaders from the three GWP regions (Ms Fabiola Tábora,
GWP Central America, Ms Alejandra Mujica, GWP South America, and Dr Roxanne Graham-Victor, GWP Caribbean) have joined forces with their partners, UN ECLAC and CAF to support the development of this Initiative in close cooperation with governments. National stakeholders from the LAC region will join governments of Grenada from the Caribbean, El Salvador from Central America and Brazil from South America during the launch of the Initiative ahead of COP 30.
The session was moderated by Ms Fabiola Tábora, Regional Coordinator of GWP Central America, who opened the discussion by underscoring the importance of collective regional leadership and decisive action: “The prosperity and well-being of Latin America and the Caribbean depend on our collective ability to act decisively.”
Mr Martín Abeles, ECLAC highlighted the urgency of scaling up investment in water security as a foundation for sustainable development and climate resilience in Latin America and the Caribbean. The latter requires not only resource mobilisation but capacity development from a technical, operational, political and prospective viewpoint.
Mr Julián Suárez Migliozz, CAF emphasised: “We are committed to carrying out three main functions: advocating for accelerated investments in water, mobilising more resources for regional and national investment programmes, and promoting dialogue and cooperation in the management of national and transboundary water resources”.
With regards to the partnership driving the Initiative, Hon. Pablo Bereciartua, Chair of GWP and Minister of Infrastructure for the City of Buenos Aires, stated that: “The partnership is our greatest strength – a formidable alliance for change. The partnership behind the initiative we are launching today, combines the analytical economic policy leadership of UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, the investment financial expertise of the Regional Development Bank for Latin America and Caribbean, and the on-the-ground presence of the Global Water Partnership.”
Accelerating investment and regional cooperation
The High-Level Panel will serve as a regional political and investment mechanism driving the design and implementation of a LAC Water Investment Programme. Together, these initiatives will catalyse country-led investment plans, strengthen institutional capacity and governance, and mobilise finance from public, private, and climate sources. Following its launch in Santiago, the Panel will be inaugurated at COP30 (Brazil), and the engagements will continue at the UN 2026 Water Conference (United Arab Emirates).
This new Investment Programme will build directly upon the foundation GWP has already established with countries in the region through the Global Water and Climate Development Programme (WACDEP), NDC Partnership, GCF Readiness initiatives and the
—our long-standing partnership with the UNEP-DHI Centre that helps identify the most pressing needs for water management and prepare the ground for investment. It will also coordinate with other key regional initiatives led by other partners including the multilateral development banks, Global Environmental Facility, World Water Council, Sanitation and Water for All, the private sector and others.
Hon. Pablo Bereciartua, GWP Chair and Minister of Infrastructure for the City of Buenos Aires, concluded the session in Chile: “Let’s leave Santiago having launched more than just an Initiative. Let’s launch a new era of collaboration and investment that will ensure a resilient water future for every nation and every citizen of Latin America and the Caribbean.”
Advancing the G20 Presidential Legacy: Global Outlook Council and Global Water Investment Platform (GIP)
The launch of the LAC Regional Water Investment Programme, aligned with the G20 Presidential Legacy–Global Water Investment Platform (GIP), ahead of the upcoming COP 30, represents a key milestone to elevate water investments for the LAC region as part of the global climate change negotiation processes, as well as to bridge water and climate change as part of the Global Transformation Agenda on Water Investments and the implementation of the
.
“We are pleased to see the growing momentum on water investments around the world. Following the launch of the
G20 Presidential Legacy: Global Outlook Council and Global Water Investment Platform (GIP) on 13 August 2025 by H.E. Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa and Chair of the G20, during the African Union – AIP Africa Water Investment Summit in Cape Town, and the adoption of the Roadmap for the Council on 22 September in New York, on the margins of the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Latin America is now following up with its regional water investment initiative aligned with the vision of the G20 Presidential Legacy,” said Ms Nchedi Moripe, Chief Director of Executive Strategic Partnerships, Department of Water and Sanitation of South Africa, current Chair of the G20.