Story by Memory Chamisa
THE just-ended Third African Implementation and Partnership Conference on Water (PANAFCON) in Lusaka, Zambia, resolved to implement policies that guarantee the preservation of water as Africa’s most strategic resource.
Ministers in charge of Foreign Affairs, Environment, Water, and Sanitation in Africa have since acknowledged the urgent need to raise the profile and value attached to water in national systems for economic planning and development, in order to increase domestic allocations and investment.
“Africa must recognise water as a critical resource and an enabler for sustainable socio-economic transformation to meet Africa’s Agenda 2063. The communique is expected to provide a continental platform for wider engagement and consultation on issues that are related to water and sanitation in Africa,” Zambia’s Minister of Water Development and Sanitation,” Honourable Collins Nzovu said.
“As water is everybody’s business, engagement, collaboration and partnership is necessary to make sure that all Africans have sustainable access to water supply and sanitation,” Eswatini Minister for Natural Resources and Energy, Honourable Prince Lonkhokhela said.
African Union Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment, Mr Moses Vilakati, read out the communiqué, which called on African leaders to mobilise public commitment in supporting water as a strategic economic and security asset.
“The upcoming AU-Africa Water Investment Summit scheduled for August 13 to August 15, 2025, in Cape Town, South Africa as a critical follow-up platform to PANAFCON-3 towards concrete investment partnerships and financing arrangements for water projects is set to Commit to strengthen existing continental monitoring and evaluation frameworks, including the African Water and Sanitation Sector Monitoring and Reporting System (WASSMO) and the PIDA Water scorecard for tracking progress made in the mobilisation of water investments for PIDA PAP 2. African governments have been motivated to improve efficiency and efficacy of utilising available public financial resources, as well as expanding funding and investment opportunities by attracting the private sector,” he said.
The Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Water, Fisheries and Rural Development Dr Anxious Masuka stated the importance of enacting a financing vehicle towards water preservation.
“There is a need to close the significant water investment gap across the continent and the critical need to develop investment-ready water projects that can attract private sector investment, development finance and other sources of finance including climate finance. We must undertake to assure sustainable water availability and safe sanitation systems to achieve the goals of Agenda 2063 through the pursuit of policy goals to actualise the vision of an Africa where there is universal access to safely managed water, sanitation and hygiene services, including in emergency situations; there is sustainable water availability for vibrant economies and growing, prosperous populations facing greater climate uncertainty,” he said.
