ADDIS-ABEBA-Press Release – World Water Day 2026: Advancing Gender Equality through Water and Sanitation in Africa

                                                   

 

INFORMATION & COMMUNICATION DIRECTORATE

Press Release No:  048/2026                                              Date:  23 March 2026
Venue: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

 

World Water Day 2026: Advancing Gender Equality through Water and Sanitation in Africa

Each year, World Water Day, coordinated by UN-Water, serves as a global call to reflect and act on the urgent need for sustainable water management. In 2026, the theme “Water and Gender” places a necessary spotlight on the critical intersection between water, sanitation, and gender equality. For Africa, this theme resonates strongly with the African Union Commission’s Theme of the Year: “Assuring sustainable water availability and safe sanitation systems to achieve the goals of agenda 2063.”

“When we invest in water, we invest in women and girls and the whole community. Too many still walk long distances to fetch water. This must change. Water is life, dignity, and the foundation of health, education, resilience, and opportunity for all Africans. » H.E. Moses Vilakati, Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment from African Union Commission.

Across the continent, water and sanitation are powerful drivers of health, dignity, economic growth, and social equity. Yet women and girls continue to bear a disproportionate burden of water insecurity. From walking long distances to collect water, to facing risks related to inadequate sanitation facilities, their daily realities highlight the urgent need for inclusive and gender-responsive solutions.

World Water Day 2026 calls for a transformative, rights-based approach that recognizes safe water and sanitation as fundamental human rights and essential enablers of gender equality. This aligns with the African Union’s 2026 theme of the year which also seeks to focuses on gender equality in water and sanitation, emphasizing that empowering women and girls in water governance accelerates progress toward Sustainable Development Goal 6.

Women are key agents of change. When their voices are included in decision-making processes, water services become more responsive, equitable, and sustainable. Investing in women’s leadership in water management, at community, national, and transboundary levels, can unlock more effective and lasting solutions to the continent’s water challenges.

As Africa advances toward the aspirations of Agenda 2063, ensuring sustainable water availability and safe sanitation systems remains central to the continent’s transformation. World Water Day 2026 reminds us that this transformation cannot be achieved without gender equality at its core. The path to a water-secure future is inseparable from the pursuit of gender equality, and together, they form the foundation of a healthier, more just, and transformative Africa.

For further information, please contact:

Ms. Diana Chacha | Communications and Knowledge Management Officer | Directorate of Sustainable Environment and Blue Economy | African Union Commission | E-mail: chacha@africanunion.org | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Ms. Teresa Ndanga | Water and Sanitation Communication Officer | Group Water Partnership Southern Africa (GWPSA) | E-mail: teresa.chirwa-ndanga@gwpsaf.org | South Africa

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