Leveraging the Resident Coordinator System and UN Country Teams for the implementation of the Water Action Agenda

The UN 2023 Water Conference (UNWC) was the midway point of the Water Action Decade. It was a significant achievement for the global water agenda and sustainable development at large: for the first time ever, at the global stage at the UN, water was addressed in such a comprehensive manner.

As the main outcome of the UNWC, commitments included in the Water Action Agenda demonstrate that the world stands ready to act and deliver. Urgent action is required as the water cycle remains out of balance, we must utilize the political momentum created by the Conference, to follow-up upon the commitments made in the Water Action Agenda and mobilize action across countries, sectors and stakeholders to meet SDG6 and other water-related goals and targets.

In this roundtable session, Member States, UN leadership and other stakeholders will discuss how to implement the commitments in the Water Action Agenda at the country level. The session will highlight transformative commitments from different actors (private sector, public sector and civil society) and connect them to the relevant Resident Coordinators and dedicated water focal points in the Country teams.

The event aims to identify opportunities and bottlenecks at the country level and translate these insights to a UN Systemwide approach on the implementation of the Water Action Agenda. To enhance cooperation for water on the ground and create a system change in resilient water management. The outcomes of the session will feed into the first stocktaking meeting of the WAA organized by UN-Water and its membership during the annual HLPF in July 2023.