With only four years left in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), progress on SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation has been slow. Billions of people still lack access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene, despite improvements. Water scarcity is a growing problem in many parts of the world, especially due to climate change. Water pollution remains a significant challenge that affects human health and the environment.

With this in mind, the first-ever UN System-wide Strategy on Water and Sanitation, which was launched in July 2024, placed UN-Water in the lead for developing a collaborative implementation plan on water and sanitation.

Participants at the 43rd UN-Water meeting focused on the continued implementation of UN System-wide Strategy for Water and Sanitation and preparations for the 2026 UN Water Conference.

Discussions during the 43rd UN-Water Meeting were organized around the entry points identified in the Strategy. Discussions will address topics including  “Water beyond 2030, including the United Nations SDG 6 Synthesis Report 2026” and mainstreaming water within the Rio Conventions.

UN Water Members and Partners were also updated on preparations for the 2026 UN Water Conference and engaged in a panel discussion on the 2026 UN Water Conference Interactive Dialogues.

The UN-Water meeting was followed by a one-day workshop to discuss the concept papers for the 2026 UN Water Conference. This Interactive Dialogue brought together UN-Water Members, Partners, and Informal Preparatory Working Groups’ members to consider the Zero Draft Concept Papers on: Water for People; Water for Prosperity; Water for Planet; Water for Cooperation; Water in Multilateral Processes; and Investments in Water.

UN-Water plays a coordinating role within the UN, to ensure the UN family “delivers as one” in response to water-related challenges. The overarching focus of UN-Water’s 36 Members and 49 Partners is to support UN Member States to sustainably manage water and sanitation.

The open session of the 43rd UN-Water Meeting took place from 24-25 March 2026 and the workshop on the concept papers took place on 26 March. Both events took place in Rome, Italy, at the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) Headquarters.

The Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) writers for this meeting were Lynn Wagner, Ph.D., and Valentina Romoli. The Digital Editor was Matthew TenBruggencate.