12 July 2018: The Global Water Partnership (GWP) has announced a joint project with the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), which will support transboundary water and hydropower projects in the region by preparing them for financing.

In 2017, the African Ministers Council on Water (AMCOW) and NEPAD found that cross-border cooperation on water resources was lagging behind cooperation on transport, energy and information and communications technology (ICT). The joint GWP-NEPAD project responds to that finding.

SDG target 6.5 calls for implementing integrated water resources management (IWRM) “at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation as appropriate.” The project seeks to advance this aim over the five-year life of the African Union (AU) Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA), which is being implemented by NEPAD from 2019 to 2024. GWP and NEPAD announced their joint project at the PIDA Water Dialogue that took place in Botswana on 12 July.

GWP’s part in the collaboration takes place within the framework of the Africa Water Investment Programme (AIP), an infrastructure initiative supported by the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Water Facility (AWF), the AU and AMCOW. The AIP promotes investment in water-related goals of the SDGs, and was established following a recommendation from the High-Level Panel on Water (HLPW), at the urging of Mauritius, Senegal and South Africa. [GWP Press Release] [AfDB Web Page on PIDA]