3rd IGAD WATER FORUM
Forum Successfully Concluded!
We are pleased to announce that the 3rd IGAD Water Forum was successfully concluded on 19-21 May 2025, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Forum achieved its aims of promoting further development and harmonisation of regional policies, standards and guidelines for groundwater use and protection, and enhancing collaboration in assessing and managing shared groundwater resources in the Horn of Africa.
Thank you to all participants who made this event a great success!
Theme
"Building a Platform for Sustainable Regional Groundwater Cooperation"
About the Forum
IGAD organized a successful Water Forum, bringing together scientists, policymakers and practitioners from the Horn of Africa region and beyond, to discuss water-related challenges and possible solutions.
Previously, IGAD organised two successful water fora, namely the first one in Nairobi in 2014 and the second one in Entebbe in 2022. The third IGAD Water Forum was successfully held in Addis Ababa, from 19-21 May 2025.
Objectives Achieved
The Forum successfully promoted further development and harmonisation of regional policies, standards and guidelines for groundwater use and protection, and enhanced collaboration in assessing and managing shared groundwater resources in the Horn of Africa.
Key Focus Areas Covered
Governance & Policy
Institutional and informational requirements for regional water cooperation
International Collaboration
Frameworks, agreements and joint actions for shared water resources
Innovation & Capacity
Better groundwater assessment and development in borderlands and data sparse regions
Project Context
The Forum was organised within the framework of the Horn of Africa Groundwater for Resilience project, perhaps the largest and certainly one of the most important groundwater projects ever. This comes as no surprise, since groundwater is a vital natural resource for the region, its existence and prosperity. Concerted effort is required to manage and protect scarce water resources properly, while adapting to climate change and ever-increasing demand for water. This can be achieved only through all-inclusive cooperation across institutions, disciplines, scales and administrative boundaries. This Forum successfully contributed to this goal.
Special Focus Achieved
The Forum successfully strengthened groundwater resilience through broad stakeholders' engagement, including public-private and cross-sectoral partnerships and awareness raising.