Launched by Chair of the G20, His Excellency Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa, during the African Water Investment Summit, the Roadmap for the Global Outlook Council was presented during a High-Level Consultative Dialogue that took place on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, hosted by the Government of South Africa with the support of the Global Water Partnership Organisation (GWPO), the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
A historic moment for water investments
The Roadmap for the G20 -Global Outlook Council builds on the Africa Water Investment Summit held in Cape Town in August 2025, where Heads of states and over 38 ministers, in the presence of other leaders and investors identified an initial USD 10–12 billion annual pipeline of investments. The Cape Town Declaration, adopted at the Summit, recognised water as central to peace, human dignity, economic growth, climate resilience, and sustainable development.
South Africa, holding the G20 Presidency, is championing water as a Presidential Legacy Initiative by elevating water investments onto the G20 Leaders’ agenda for the first time on African soil. The Johannesburg G20 Summit in November 2025 is expected to note and endorse the Council as a landmark outcome, leaving a lasting legacy for Africa and the world.
Voices from the Dialogue
H.E. Jakaya Kikwete, Alternate Co-Chair of the Global Outlook Council and Former President of Tanzania, emphasized that with approximately 2.1 billion people worldwide still lacking access to safely managed drinking water, which is equivalent to about one in four people globally, this issue is a significant global challenge, as access to safe water is crucial for reducing illness, poverty, and improving economic growth. “400 million people in Africa having no access to clean drinking water, and 700 million with no access to good sanitation, we really need to work together to succeed in this endeavor”, said H.E. Jakaya Kikwete.
Hon. Pemmy Majodina, Minister of Water and Sanitation, South Africa:
“South Africa as G20 Chair believes that we cannot achieve the goals and priorities of G20 – solidarity, equality, and sustainability – if we do not prioritise water investments. Water is life. Sanitation is dignity. If we are to serve our people, we must invest in water. Water is the catalyst for social economic development. Water is for peace. So this is a very huge responsibility that we have.”
Global de-risking water investment facility essential for progress
During the dialogue, partners noted that a global de-risking mechanism was missing for water investment and agreed that this should be part of the Roadmap of the leaders in the G20-Global Outlook Council.
H.E. Abdulla Balala, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, United Arab Emirates:
“Water is underfunded, water is underprioritised and trust me, from where I’m coming from, we truly understand the value of water… throughout this journey of investing in water, we found out that the de-risking mechanism is not there.”
Dr. Pradeep Kurukulasuriya, Executive Secretary, UNCDF stressed that “…every scarce dollar of ODA must be used to de-risk and crowd in that investment, because without that, we are not going to get to the scale of investment required.”
Ms. Amaya Einola, Policy Officer, Sustainable Development Team, Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations informed the High-Level Dialogue that the EU was interested in G20 initiatives around water. “We’re here because we’re looking for vehicles like the G20 initiative for water investment… and one of the things we’re particularly keen to explore is nature-based solutions.”
At the same event, the UK Mission to the UN thanked Republic of South Africa for inviting the UK to join the Global Outlook Council. “We’re here because we’re looking for vehicles like the G20 initiative for water investment simply, and a huge thanks to South Africa for the invitation and thank you very much for inviting our Prime Minister to be part of this initiative. We want to understand it a little bit better and to see what the opportunities are in the next months, and to look forward to the UAE–Senegal 2026 UN Water Conference next year.”
Prof. Celeste Saulo, Secretary-General, WMO announced that, “last week we launched the global state of water resources… the results are exciting. First, 2024 was not only the warmest year on record, it was also very dry… only one-third of the global river basins behaved normal. That means more than 60% behaved abnormally… This means that bridges, dams, all your infrastructure has been built on a basis of a world that no longer exists.”
Speaking on behalf of the Joint Secretariat for the Global Outlook Council, Alex Simalabwi, CEO of GWPO and Executive Secretary of GWP, who also led the Secretariat for the G20 AU-AIP African Water Investment Summit, welcomed the proposal from the Dialogue on the need for a global de-risking water investment mechanism to unlock the initial pipeline of USD 10–12 billion from the Summit. “The G20-Global Water Investment Platform (GIP), already launched by G20 Chair H.E. Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa, is a good starting point and we will build on this to refine the Roadmap for the Global Outlook Council.”
From the left: H.E. Nardos Bekele Thomas, CEO – AUDA NEPAD, Mr. Alex Simalabwi, CEO of GWPO and Executive Secretary of GWP
Next steps
The dialogue reaffirmed immediate priorities:
- Delivering the Cape Town Declaration to the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Johannesburg, November 2025.
- Confirming membership of the Global Outlook Council on Water Investments.
- Advancing the USD 10–12 billion investment pipeline into bankable deals ahead of COP30 in Brazil and the 2026 UN Water Conference, hosted by the UAE and Senegal.
The Global Outlook Council on Water Investments will operate from 2025 to 2029 with a Joint Secretariat led by UNCDF, WMO, GWPO, and supported by Oxford University and other partners including regional development banks and the private sector.