MoFA Advances Global Water Action and Partnerships During Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2026

The United Arab Emirates advanced its global water diplomacy efforts during Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) 2026 with a series of high-level engagements led by His Excellency Abdulla Balalaa, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Energy and Sustainability.

H.E. Abdulla Balalaa spotlighted investment, youth leadership, and agrifood resilience as key elements to address global water issues, ahead of the 2026 UN Water Conference.

Throughout the week, H.E. Balalaa convened stakeholders across government, industry, finance, youth networks, and civil society to shape tangible contributions and gather global momentum ahead of the upcoming 2026 United Nations Water Conference, which will be co-hosted by the UAE and Senegal in late 2026.

H.E. Balaa also met, on the sidelines of the week, His Excellency President Bassirou Diomaye Faye of Senegal, who also participated in the event organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), in collaboration with Masdar and the Global Climate Finance Centre (GCFC), the high-level dialogue titled “Next Drop: Water Investments and Innovation.” The dialogue also brought together high-level participants, ministers of water and energy, as well as CEOs and senior leaders from financial institutions, multilateral development banks, commercial banks, philanthropies, and technology and innovation companies. Discussions focused on strategies to unlock capital and scale technology to enhance global water resilience. 

The session explored regulatory and policy innovation, finance and investment architectures, and emerging technologies, building on a series of UAE-led consultations following the July 2025 adoption by consensus of the six interactive dialogue themes. These include the introduction of a dedicated theme on “Investments for Water: Financing, Technology and Innovation, and Capacity Building.”

“Water is no longer just a development issue – it is a fundamental economic risk and opportunity. We need to move from fragmented projects to systems change. That means long-term de-risked investments, better governance, and better utilization of innovative technologies through enhanced public-private collaboration,” H.E. Balalaa stated. 

The Ministry further advanced its engagement around water issues by co-hosting a closed-door high-level roundtable on Water and Agrifood Systems in partnership with the Eurasia Group, which examined the interlinkages between water, food security, and climate resilience. 

In his intervention, H.E. Balalaa highlighted:
“Water is the future of food. As we look ahead to the 2026 UN Water Conference, it’s clear we need a new model for water-agriculture cooperation – one that balances risk, drives innovation, and centers climate resilience. The UAE is committed to building these bridges.”

These engagements reflect the UAE’s steadfast commitment to inclusive, action-oriented global cooperation in the lead-up to the 2026 UN Water Conference. Outcomes of the ADSW dialogues will inform the upcoming High-Level Preparatory Meeting for the 2026 UN Water Conference, to be held in Dakar on 26–27 January, as well as the UAE’s national and multilateral roadmap, advancing shared priorities across investment, governance, youth leadership, and food–water systems.