Engagement on transboundary water resources management in Africa, Dakar, November 4-5, 2024

A High-Level Stakeholder Engagement workshop on Transboundary Water Resources Management in Africa was held from 4 to 5 November 2024 at Dakar (Senegal). This meeting Co-organized by The Nile Basin Initiative (NBI), as chair of the African Network of Basin Organizations (ANBO) and African Ministers' Council on Water (AMCOW), convened senior management of the River, Lake and Aquifer Basin Organizations (RLBOs) in Africa with the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) to inform the continental policy agenda.

The objective of this meeting was to institutionalize strategic operational arrangements with RLBOs and RECs through jointly formulated and executed engagement plans and resources mobilization activities to strengthen ties between AMCOW, the RECs and RLBOs, to guide post-2025 Africa Water Vision and launch the updated ANBO 10-year strategy.

Presentations from RECs and RLBOs deliberated on the state of transboundary water management on the continent. Mohamedou Baba Sy, OSS Water Department Director, who attended the meeting presented case studies emphasizing governance systems for transboundary water management, supported by international partnerships.

The discussions focused on refining the goals and governance of ANBO. Key discussions included addressing human capacity issues, formulating post-2025 Africa Water Vision, and reviewing the first 10-year strategy to identify gaps, and clarifying the governance structure and relationships with members in order to secure their commitment. It is envisaged that the Strategy will be completed within the first quarter of 2025 before the hosting of the General assembly meeting