UN Water Conference 2026: UAE And Senegal Lead High-Level Preparatory Meeting In Dakar

The United Arab Emirates and the Republic of Senegal have completed a High-Level Preparatory Meeting in Dakar, producing a summary outcome titled ‘The Roadmap from Dakar to Abu Dhabi’ ahead of the 2026 United Nations Water Conference, which Abu Dhabi will host in late 2026 as a major global gathering on water.

The two-day meeting is described as a key step in preparations for the 2026 United Nations Water Conference, with more than 1,600 attendees from over 120 countries participating. Governments, international bodies and diverse stakeholder groups discussed shared priorities on water and aligned positions on Sustainable Development Goal 6.

The programme in Dakar centred on six roundtable "kick-off" discussions, each linked to one of the Conference’s six Interactive Dialogues, which United Nations Member States adopted by consensus at the UN General Assembly in July. These sessions were designed to shape themes and approaches ahead of the Abu Dhabi meeting.

Each roundtable during the Dakar gathering began with statements from the newly appointed co-chair countries of the relevant Interactive Dialogue. Contributions then followed from United Nations entities, ministers, government delegations and representatives from non-governmental organisations, private companies, multilateral development banks, youth groups, civil society and indigenous communities.

Stakeholder participation in the lead-up to the 2026 United Nations Water Conference was expanded through a dedicated multi-stakeholder meeting on 25 January. The UAE, Senegal and UN DESA co-convened this session, working with the African Civil Society Network on Water and Sanitation and the German WASH Network.

This multi-stakeholder gathering drew views from a wide range of groups, feeding into both the preparatory process and the future Interactive Dialogues. More than 20 partner-led side events also took place in Dakar, focusing on finance, data, capacity building and tracking progress towards Sustainable Development Goal 6.

Diplomacy, delegation and outcomes for the 2026 United Nations Water Conference

The UAE delegation to the Dakar Preparatory Meeting for the 2026 United Nations Water Conference was headed by Abdulla Balalaa, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Energy and Sustainability. The group included officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and representatives of the Mohamed bin Zayed Water Initiative and several UAE-based institutions.

Other UAE entities represented were the International Affairs Office, Clean Rivers, the Global Climate Finance Centre, the Salama Bint Hamdan Al Nahyan Foundation, Khalifa University, and Emirates Water and Electricity Company. On the sidelines, senior government representatives, United Nations officials and leaders of international organisations held bilateral meetings to advance cooperation on water.

At the close of the Dakar meeting, Abdulla Balalaa and Cheikh Tidiane Dieye, Senegal’s Minister of Hydraulics and Sanitation, led a two-part reporting-back session with co-chairs and rapporteurs. Inputs were compiled into ‘The Roadmap from Dakar to Abu Dhabi’, which will guide work towards the 2026 United Nations Water Conference in Abu Dhabi.

During closing remarks, Abdulla Balalaa encouraged work towards a global framework on water and called for regular United Nations conferences and meetings on water. Balalaa highlighted the importance of coordination, partnerships and cooperation mechanisms to unlock resources and speed up efforts to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6 and broader 2030 Agenda objectives.

With inputs from WAM