Egyptian Minister Hani Sewilam held high-level meetings in New York to prepare for the 2026 UN Water Conference and strengthen global water governance.
Egyptian Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Hani Sewilam met UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed on the sidelines of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. They discussed preparations for the 2026 UN Water Conference, where Sewilam serves as co-chair of the “Water for the Planet” dialogue alongside Japan. The talks focused on developing large-scale flagship initiatives with clear financing mechanisms and a central UN role in monitoring long-term implementation.
Sewilam also met German officials, who co-chair another dialogue. He presented Egypt’s proposal for a roadmap to integrate water issues into the Rio Conventions on climate change, biodiversity and desertification. Both sides agreed on the need to strengthen UN coordination across water, climate, food security and energy.
In addition, Sewilam reviewed plans for the ninth Cairo Water Week in October and participated in a ministerial preparatory meeting hosted by the United Arab Emirates and Senegal. He welcomed the launch of a platform for flagship initiatives and called for coherence among the 2023, 2026 and 2028 UN Water Conferences.