As of 10 December 2024, 57 national governments and 25 stakeholders from international organizations, financial institutions, philanthropies, the private sector, academia, and civil society organizations (CSOs) endorsed a declaration seeking to strengthen the water dimension within the global climate ambition. The COP 29 Declaration on Water for Climate Action launches the Baku Dialogue on Water for Climate Action to serve as a COP-to-COP collaboration platform fostering continuity and coherence on water-related climate action.

The Declaration on Water for Climate Action is the initiative of the Azerbaijani Presidency of the 2024 UN Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC COP 29), which aims to:

• Promote dialogue and partnerships among countries at international, regional, river, and basin levels;
• Strengthen the generation of scientific evidence on the causes and impacts of climate change on water resources, water basins, and water-related ecosystems; and
• Enhance water-related climate policy actions.

The Declaration recognizes the critical role the water-energy-food-ecosystems nexus plays in climate change mitigation and adaptation. It acknowledges water’s multisectoral and cross-cutting nature, and that climate objectives and the SDGs will remain out of reach unless water security is addressed.

The Declaration notes that 2.2 billion people lack access to safe drinking water, approximately half the world’s population is experiencing severe water scarcity, and 3.5 billion people do not have access to safely managed sanitation. It underscores the need for concerted efforts, strengthened actions, and dialogue and partnerships at the international, regional, national, river, and basin levels, to address these challenges.

The Declaration aims to strengthen leadership and cooperation on tackling climate change-induced water scarcity and water-related hazards and disasters and to conserve, protect, and restore water resources. In so doing, it will take into account the perspectives of Indigenous Peoples, local communities, women, children, youth, migrants, persons with disabilities, and people in vulnerable situations.

The COP 29 Water for Climate Action initiative was developed with support from the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and with contributions from stakeholders gathered through a consultative process.

The Baku Dialogue on Water for Climate Action was launched through the endorsement of the COP 29 Declaration on Water for Climate Action by governments and stakeholders, on 21 November 2024, during Nature and Biodiversity Thematic Day at the Baku Climate Change Conference. [COP 29 Declaration on Water for Climate Action] [UNECE Press Release]