On 26 and 27 January, in coordination with the Italian Embassy in Dakar, MAECI, MASE, and ISPRA, AICS supported the Italian Delegation at the UN Water High-Level Preparatory Meeting in Dakar, a central event in the consultation process leading up to the UN Water Conference 2026 (United Arab Emirates, 2–4 December).
During the event, the Agency participated in the six thematic dialogues on water and sustainable development (people, planet, prosperity, cooperation, multilateral processes, and investments). On 27 January, it also took part, at the invitation of the Dutch Delegation, in the side event “Water at the Heart of Climate Action”, where the first results of the WHCA programme, launched in 2023 and supported by a recent contribution of €5 million from the Italian Government, were presented. This initiative, linked to the global Early Warnings for All programme, aims to strengthen early warning systems and water resilience through data, forecasting, and local community engagement.
Among other activities, the AICS team participated in a workshop promoted by the European Commission (DG INTPA) on the delegated cooperation initiative “Progiress”, dedicated to the cross-border management of water resources in the Senegal River Basin and the Senegal–Mauritania aquifer. The programme includes an Italian contribution of €3 million and additional EU funding of €5.8 million, benefiting six countries in West Africa. On this occasion, Italy’s participation in the Team Europe Initiative on Transboundary Water in Africa was also announced.
At the invitation of UNECE, AICS also took part in the regional workshop to validate the draft agreement on the Senegal–Mauritania Aquifer, confirming the role of Italian Cooperation in promoting shared water resource management.
Through these initiatives, Italian Cooperation aims to strengthen its commitment to sustainable water management in preparation for key international events in 2026–2027, including the UN Water Conference and the World Water Forum in Riyadh.
