LUSAKA, June 1– A conference regarding water and sanitation challenges in Africa opened on Tuesday in Lusaka, Zambia’s capital, with a call for accelerated efforts to tackle the continent’s pressing issues. Addressing the opening of the Third African Implementation and Partnership Conference on Water, Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema called on African nations to shift from dialogue to decisive action by placing water and sanitation at the center of the continent’s health, prosperity, and peace agendas. Hichilema expressed concern that progress has fallen short of ambition, with millions across Africa still lacking access to safe water and dignified sanitation. “Rapid population growth, urban expansion, climate variability, and chronic underinvestment have left millions without safe water and dignified sanitation. This gap threatens health, livelihoods, and stability across our continent,” he said.
He emphasized the urgent need for innovative approaches that recognize water as an economic driver and sanitation as a catalyst for opportunity. He also called for strategies to attract private capital and foster innovation in water-efficient technologies and sanitation enterprises, adding that the water and sanitation crisis is not merely a technical challenge but a test of our collective resolve. Minister of Water Development and Sanitation Collins Nzovu noted that Africa faces the compound impacts of rapid population growth, urbanization, climate change, and a legacy of underinvestment, which have left millions of Africans without reliable access to clean water or adequate sanitation. He called on delegates to use the conference as a platform to harmonize efforts, scale up climate-resilient interventions, and deliver practical, impactful outcomes. The conference, held from Tuesday to Thursday under the theme “Assuring Inclusive and Climate-Resilient Water Security and Sanitation for the Africa We Want,” convened heads of state and government from key regional blocs, ministers responsible for water, sanitation, and hygiene, along with a broad range of stakeholders.
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