In the neighbourhoods along the Juan Angola Canal, a downpour is rarely without consequences. Streets can flood within minutes, and the city has spent years trying to bring urban growth back in step with the landscape. With phase 3 of Water as Leverage, this should take shape for the first time, with detailed designs and implementation roadmaps for paving stones, culverts and mangrove restoration. Furthermore, these plans are genuinely bankable and ready to implement.

What is Water as Leverage?

Water as Leverage (WaL) is a Dutch approach that reverses the usual sequence: rather than having a technical plan first and then looking for support and funding, this approach brings together knowledge, governance, financing, and communities from day one. In multidisciplinary teams of Colombian, Dutch, and international experts, early sketches grow into concrete designs ready for further development.

“It’s the integrated perspective – physical system, ecology, economy, employment, and financing – that makes WaL truly unique,” explains Michel Zuijderwijk from Witteveen+Bos. “You’re not only designing for water, but also for the city and its residents.” Witteveen+Bos is the lead partner of the Roots of Cartagena team, which has been working within the Water as Leverage Cartagena programme.

What is the current status of the WaL Cartagena programme?

During phase 1 which started in February 2023, these two teams explored Cartagena’s bottlenecks and opportunities regarding water and climate adaptation. This produced an initial city outlook and a selection of hotspots where water, public space, and quality of life intersect. At the end of this phase, eleven concepts were on the longlist.

During phase 2, beginning at the end of September that year, this was narrowed down to five serious project candidates and technically underpinned to pre-feasibility. Five local design workshops with local stakeholders proved decisive: specific areas of the Juan Angola Canal were given the green light to continue towards a third phase, with nature-based measures and practical interventions that are easy to scale up.

Colombian delegation’s visit to the Netherlands: three lessons

As the kick-off for the third and final phase of this programme, a Colombian delegation visited the Netherlands to look at waterworks, nature-inclusive projects, and maintenance regimes, such as the Sand Engine near Kijkduin (beach nourishment as coastal protection), Benthemplein Water Square in Rotterdam (urban water storage), and the Marker Wadden islands (nature restoration built with dredged sediment). Wilmer Iriarte Restrepo, Cartagena’s Secretary of Infrastructure, named several key insights to take into the next phase:

• Link flood resilience to public space.
  “Look at flood resilience and public space as one entity. Maintenance thus becomes logical and you create pleasant places that residents actually use.”
• Let nature do the work.
  “From ‘sand motor’ to sluices: harness natural processes and the topography to filter and direct water. Not dogmatically, but flexibly: what works here may work differently elsewhere.”
• Keep solutions simple and scale them up.
  “Sometimes the best intervention is to give streets a little more slope and install a narrow gutter in the drainage system. Simple in itself, but if applied a thousand times, the cumulative impact is substantial.”

This down-to-earth view aligns with the WaL method: nature-based solutions where possible, hard interventions where necessary. “NBS are never one-size-fits-all,” says Zuijderwijk. “They are context-specific; that’s precisely why you always design together with the place in question.”

The next phase: feasibility studies for the Juan Angola Canal

One project has been selected within WaL Cartagena to proceed to feasibility studies in phase 3: the Juan Angola Canal. The WaL Project Proposal concerns flood resilience and quality of life, upstream and downstream, and is well aligned with local needs and plans. It roughly entails the following:

• Along Juan Angola, the bank would be gradually transformed into a continuous city park. The canal would be given room to breathe: it would be deepened and restored so that water can flow better. A footpath would connect places to linger and steps down to the water; in quieter sections, reed beds, riparian plants, and shallow sheltered zones will attract fish, birds, and insects. This gives rise to a place where flood protection coincides with a pleasant, green route through the neighbourhood.
• Higher up, on the slopes and in the streets, rainwater would be retained. Infiltration cells, green verges, and small storage areas give water time to percolate into the soil, while at strategic points, culverts lead the surplus to the canal in a controlled way. Replanting bare embankments binds the soil and slows erosion, so that less sand and silt reach the lower city. The result would be a chain of simple interventions that together calm the system and make the neighbourhood more liveable.

“I see a lot of methodological overlap between the WaL design and what the municipality is already doing,” says Iriarte. “From the characterisation of the micro-catchment to the idea of public space with footpaths and viewpoints: we’re on the same page. I also recognize innovative elements from the WaL team – for example, ideas related to biodiversity in the canal; we’d like to replicate those.”

What the Netherlands has learned from the WaL Cartagena programme

Barbara Swart, coordinator of bilateral cooperation on water and climate adaptation at the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management (IenW) and lead within Partners for Water, sees in WaL Cartagena exactly what the Netherlands is aiming for with international cooperation: impact on the ground and learning from each other. “It’s great to provide and to collect knowledge,” says Swart. “But above all, we want to see that this knowledge is used: that Cartagena’s residents benefit directly. WaL is integral and inclusive; it is developed together with the communities. That makes it stronger.”

On an earlier visit to the city, she and her team saw the enormous opportunities here. It’s a coastal city where water and climate challenges, public space, and social development converge. That makes the area eminently suitable for projects that not only reduce flood risks, but also regreen neighbourhoods, improve health and quality of life, and strengthen local ownership. Because the city also prioritises these aspects and financiers have been engaged from day one, this paves the way for tangible results in the short term and a scalable route to larger water infrastructure.

She emphasises that this cooperation is a two-way street. “We’re still ‘Nederland Waterland’, a country reclaimed from the water,” says Swart, “but in other regions, extreme rains, heat and drought have been going on longer and are more severe. We can learn from that. A striking example is the principle that water and soil are considered in spatial decisions. The Netherlands and Colombia embedded this in policy around the same time. Then you want to know how it works in practice. Who achieves results faster, and why?”

Financing: early at the table, but with local ownership

From the start, financiers and development banks have been at the table to test whether a design will be bankable later. Swart: “Here we have an intermediary role: bringing parties to the table and hearing their ideas. But ownership lies in Cartagena. The city must determine whom to partner with and how the link to national budgets will work. We’re not the leading party. (…) The most important thing is to produce concrete, bankable packages which financiers can commit to.” Financing resilient urban projects is usually challenging, due to fiscal restrictions in governments, both local and national, emphasises Zuijderwijk.

Final phase

Meanwhile, work continues apace. “In the short term, the municipality would like to push at least one section of the canal design quickly through the approval process,” says Zuijderwijk. “A challenge, but doable. Immediately after, we would elaborate the longer-term measures: hydrological model, impact calculations, environmental frameworks, and the financing mix.” Phase 3 is being shaped with our partners at the municipality, says Swart. “We want to deliver early results and set out the vision and elaboration for the larger water infrastructure project that can be implemented later.”

Participation as a design decision-maker

Social dialogue will be crucial in the period ahead. Iriarte sees an opportunity here. “In phase 3 we can establish methods and forms of social consultation that allow us to systematically gather residents’ ideas, knowledge, and concerns. Neighbours sometimes disagree – you must keep an eye on that. It could be about something small, like where a bridge should be. But that’s where a good solution begins, by accommodating the different parties.” This ties in with one of the aspects Swart finds so inspiring in Colombia: “Embedding indigenous and local knowledge. We have participation in the Netherlands too, but in Colombia you see how self-evident it is that communities co-decide. It works, and it translates into simpler maintenance and tangible ownership.”

What is ultimately at stake?

For Cartagena: fewer floods, more shade and greenery, better access to water and public space, and less sediment washing into the lower city. For the Netherlands: practical knowledge about scaling up nature-inclusive solutions in a tropical coastal city, about financing climate adaptation projects, and about embedding management in community structures. Regarding global cooperation, there is another ambition. “In 2023 we agreed the Water Action Agenda at the UN Water Conference,” says Swart. “This means we need to take action. We talk a lot, but ultimately, it’s about visible results. Because of the effects of climate change the urgency has grown, and I would love it if we could demonstrate what WaL has delivered in concrete terms at the next conference in 2026. This requires a joint acceleration now. To get there, all partners – Cartagena’s authorities, communities, Dutch and international funders, and the WaL consortium – need to accelerate delivery now.”

This year, Mozambique and the Netherlands mark 50 years of cooperation in water and agriculture – a long-term partnership built on solidarity and shared learning. To reflect on this milestone, Maarten Gischler (Ministry of Foreign Affairs), Richard Bahumwire (SDU Beira) and Gerard Vos (FOUNT) share their perspectives on how decades of collaboration have evolved from technical assistance to a partnership for urban climate resilience, and what lies ahead in the decades to come.

It’s 1975. Mozambique has just gained independence. The country faces a collapsed economy and a shortage of skilled professionals. To fill the gap, the government invites foreign experts – known locally as cooperantes – including Dutch engineers specialised in water and irrigation. These Dutch cooperantes help to establish systems that would shape Mozambique’s water management for decades.

Over time, this technical assistance evolved into something much greater: a true partnership.

From technical assistance to partnership

“I think we started from the idea that we knew how everything should be done, because our water infrastructure is so well organised in the Netherlands,” reflects Maarten Gischler, Delta Coordinator at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and long-time advisor to the Dutch water programme in Mozambique. “Over time, we learned to really start listening to what is happening locally, to enable local leadership, and to focus on long-term processes rather than quick results.”

The long-term involvement of Dutch experts fostered deep trust between Mozambican institutions and the Dutch Embassy. What began as sector-wide technical assistance gradually developed into sustainable, integrated water management – where governance, land management and finance all form part of the same equation. Nowhere would this become more evident than in Beira. Here, a 25-year vision for urban resilience would turn lessons into practice.

Beira’s masterplan becomes reality

By the early 2010s, Beira had emerged as a focal point. The city’s port was economically vital, growing 10 to 15 percent annually under a concession to a Dutch port operator since 1997. However, the port city was increasingly threatened by floods and rising sea levels.

Gischler: “When a Dutch mission visited in 2010, the city’s late mayor made a decisive request: ‘It’s great that you’re looking at the port, but half our city is under water time and again. We need a plan for that.’” That call led to the Beira Masterplan 2035, developed with support from Partners for Water and the Dutch Embassy. After being approved in 2014, it became more than a document. “The plan became a living chessboard,” recalls Gischler. “The late mayor laid that map on his table in the city hall, and projects were chess pieces that could move, connect and synergise.”

The results span new infrastructure, improved governance, better service delivery and more financial resources. “Neighbourhoods that once flooded for weeks now see water recede within days,” says Gischler. “The city’s cadastre system was digitalised, enabling property tax collection that grew from €600,000 to €2 million annually. That’s empowering for a city government. Being able to collect your own money and having an accountability relationship with citizens.” But infrastructure alone wasn’t enough to build climate resilience. It also required addressing other long-standing national challenges.

Why financing blocks resilient housing

When Cyclone Idai struck in 2019, followed by Cyclone Eloise in 2021, the storms exposed Beira’s deeper vulnerability. “Seventy percent of houses were damaged,” Gischler recalls. “It showed us that resilience is not just about drainage and dikes, it’s also about the homes people live in.”

One of the root problems for resilient housing? “Financing,” explains Richard Bahumwire, CEO of Sociedade de Desenvolvimento Urbano da Beira (SDU Beira), the municipal land development company. “Across Mozambique’s 34 million people, only about 600 mortgages have ever been issued.” Interest rates hover around 25 percent, and banks consider low-income households too risky. Without access to credit, people build informally – often in unsafe areas. “Self-built homes dominate the landscape,” Bahumwire adds. “They are affordable, yet extremely vulnerable. If roofs keep blowing off, you can’t call a city resilient.”

SDU Beira – a public-private company established in 2018 and fully owned by the Municipality of Beira – was set up to carry out the city’s Masterplan 2035. In response to the cyclones, it shifted its focus toward developing climate-resilient housing. The company started with the preparation of flood-prone land for construction. “Beira is like Rotterdam,” Bahumwire explains. “It lies below sea level. so if you want to build, you first need land that doesn’t flood.”

But how do you build affordable homes when potential buyers can’t access loans? “Local private developer Casa Real became a pioneer in tackling this challenge,” shares Gischler. In partnership with the Municipality of Beira, which secured the land and land titles, Casa Real has built, sold or rented around 150 affordable, climate-resilient homes since 2018 in the Inhamízua neighbourhood. “When Cyclone Idai struck, the first batch of ten houses was put to the test, and all subsequent homes benefited from improved cyclone-resilient design. Casa Real also experimented with different financing models, both for construction and for end-users.”

Maraza: breaking the financing deadlock

This year marked a breakthrough. The first stone was laid in Maraza, an integrated affordable housing project aiming to build 25,000 homes in Beira following the 150 homes in Inhamízua. With support from Partners for Water and the Dutch embassy, three hectares of land were raised by two metres, and essential infrastructure was installed. Casa Real then built eight pilot homes, merging their private-sector experience with the municipality’s public-sector initiative. “It’s just the beginning,” explains Bahumwire. “The journey of a thousand miles starts with one step.”

A revolving fund model that scales

“The eight houses prove more than concept – they also demonstrate a new financing model,” explains Gerard Vos from FOUNT, a Dutch impact investment advisory firm that helped to structure the financing. He continues: “Partners for Water provided a grant and loan to SDU Beira, which loaned funds to local developer Casa Real to build the homes. Once residents move in and prove they can pay their monthly instalments, GAPI Bank and the International Labour Organization (ILO) refinance the completed houses through a separate affordable housing facility.”

Residents enter “rent-to-buy” arrangements: monthly instalments at lower interest rates than commercial banks offer, with flexible schedules suited to irregular incomes. “When GAPI and ILO refinance the homes, SDU can reinvest that money in the next batch of houses,” explains Vos. “That’s how you scale.” He adds: “The model reduces risk for developers, makes housing accessible for buyers, and creates a sustainable investment cycle – all without traditional mortgages.”

From pilot to blueprint

“Affordable housing will be a game-changer for Beira,” says Bahumwire. “The city is growing, the port is expanding, industries are coming… people will need safe, affordable homes close to work.” The dream is ambitious: 25,000 homes in Maraza, transforming flood-prone land into safe, vibrant communities. But realising this vision requires proof that the model works at scale. “A track record is vital,” explains Vos. “You need to show investors: we’ve built, we’ve sold, we’ve refinanced. Meanwhile, the project is capturing payment data which is crucial for banks. Do that a few times and larger parties will say: okay, now we’re interested.” Bahumwire adds: “The Ministry has already asked us to present our model, because it is interested in scaling it to other Mozambican cities.”

Climate resilience requires system change

In Beira it became apparent that everything is connected when building a climate-resilient city. As Bahumwire states: “It’s not just about building resilient houses and water infrastructure, it’s about changing the system.”

For the Netherlands, Beira represents a learning laboratory. “What began as technical assistance has become a partnership of equals,” reflects Gischler. “The successes in Beira show that long-term, patient collaboration works.”

Fifty years of partnership have built trust, knowledge and system change. The foundation is laid. The proof of concept is nearing delivery. Now comes the scale-up, showing that climate-resilient cities are not only about infrastructure, but also about system change. And ultimately, about giving people a place to live, thrive and stay safe.

Partners for Water recently supported the development of a Serious Game in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta, a region under severe water pressure. Led by Deltares, The Water Agency, and Can Tho University, the project used interactive gaming to help farmers, students, and policymakers understand the real-life consequences of groundwater use. The game has since evolved into an educational and policy tool across Vietnam.

In the fertile plains of Vietnam’s Mekong Delta, where rice paddies stretch to the horizon and millions depend on agriculture for their livelihoods, an environmental crisis is unfolding beneath the surface. Groundwater depletion, saltwater intrusion, and land subsidence threaten the very foundation of the region’s agricultural economy.

To address the problems, in 2018 the Vietnamese government implemented new national legislation prohibiting all groundwater extraction, even for domestic use, to maximize aquifer protection in vulnerable areas.

“But you can’t prohibit something essential to farmers like groundwater and not come up with an alternative” explains Niels Mulder, a hydrogeologist specialising in groundwater and subsurface systems at Deltares.

Rather than relying on conventional approaches to environmental education and awareness, this sparked a groundbreaking collaboration between the Dutch research institute Deltares, The Water Agency, and Can Tho University. Together they developed an innovative solution: a serious game that transforms complex environmental science into engaging, hands-on learning experiences.

From research to reality

The project originated in an unconventional request from the RVO (Netherlands Enterprise Agency) via local Vietnamese partners who recognized that traditional policy communication wasn’t working. A game could provide an easy, accessible way to invite farmers to a session or meeting, and give them insight into the problem.

“We brought board games with us to a cafe and played them for a few hours. We were particularly inspired by ‘Terraforming Mars’, a game about making Mars habitable”. The team deliberately avoided digital solutions, despite their potential for precise calculations. “We wanted people to sit at a table together, in order to get a dialogue,” explains Trang Dinh. He facilitated the sessions at Can Tho University and is the country coordinator at Deltares for the Mekong region.

The physical board game format enables interpersonal dynamics that digital alternatives cannot replicate. For instance, player 1 can say to player 2, “you are now going to extract a lot of groundwater which has consequences for me”. They then find out that the only way to ‘win’ the game is by collaborating, explains Marta Faneca from Deltares. She played an important role in conceptualizing how gaming could bridge the gap between scientific knowledge and practical understanding.

It was also clear from the beginning that instead of providing a groundwater model, the game should give insights into the economic differences between, for instance, growing bananas or nuts. Initially the earnings will be higher, but then the game will show the enormous amounts of water needed. Where will this water come from? It needs to be stored. Can you store it yourself, or should neighbouring farmers be involved?

Everyone was excited. Trang explains: “even after the game was finished, people carried on talking. This outcome exceeded the team’s initial expectations and demonstrated the game’s effectiveness in generating motivation for sustainable practices.”

Policy implementation

The educational approach is designed to empower choice rather than prescribe specific solutions. So the game presents broad categories of interventions – water efficiency improvements, surface storage solutions, and managed aquifer recharge systems – while allowing players to explore their applicability to different situations.

The game’s development involved extensive testing with three distinct audiences, each bringing different perspectives and learning needs.

University students, particularly those without water resources backgrounds, approached the game with curiosity but a limited understanding of groundwater consequences. The game provided these students with their first tangible experience of how individual decisions create collective environmental problems. They gave the developers an open-minded insight into the use of the game.

Another audience, government officers, brought extensive technical knowledge but played with extreme caution. Trang: “They already have a lot of knowledge about the groundwater problem, and they play the game very carefully from the beginning. They almost never make mistakes”.

This observation of these three distinct audiences led to crucial insights about policy implementation and how different groups engage with environmental challenges.

Expanding impact

The game’s evolution from initial testing at Can Tho University in November 2023 to featuring at Hanoi’s UN Youth Festival in August 2025 demonstrates both its educational effectiveness and its scalability. Over three hour-long sessions, young participants from diverse backgrounds played the game, creating an inclusive environment that transcended language barriers.

Participants rated the experience an impressive 4.8 out of 5, with many commenting that it was “harder than expected” because it required balancing profit with sustainability. This difficulty was not a design flaw but a feature: it accurately reflected the real-world challenges faced by farmers and policymakers in managing competing economic and environmental priorities.

The development team discovered that successful implementation required constant adaptation to local contexts. The solution was to empower facilitators to modify game parameters in real time. Eight professional games are now circulating among universities, provincial departments, and communities, supplemented by locally produced versions using printed materials and Lego pieces. Another advantage is that no expensive technology is needed and the games can easily be adapted to local languages and contexts.

Learning by playing

“The project is finished. But that does not mean the game is over,” explains Niels Mulder. He feels it would be helpful to integrate this type of ‘learning by playing’ into higher education because it makes complex environmental systems tangible. Vietnam’s Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment sees the potential for integrating the game into policy consultation processes for new water resource regulations.

The Water Agency and Deltares are scaling up these efforts, developing training for new facilitators, adapting the game for different regions, and creating digital versions in order to reach broader audiences. However, they recognize that the physical board game format offers irreplaceable benefits: face-to-face interaction, collaborative problem-solving, and the tangible nature of gameplay that digital simulations cannot replicate.

Trang’s firsthand observations reveal how games can transform traditionally difficult conversations into engaging collaborative experiences. The game successfully introduced both familiar and novel water management technologies. “Drip irrigation is popular with farmers,” Trang noticed, “and managed groundwater recharge is new to them. Explanations about how alternative techniques can help save water were very welcome.”

Turning Insight into Impact

Investing in Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR), taking water from channels or rivers, and purifying it to appropriate standards is becoming more attractive in the long term. But this approach requires infrastructure investment and technical expertise. The process is more labour-intensive than simply drilling deeper wells and needs proper planning as it’s not an overnight solution. The goal is for everyone to benefit: both individual farmers and the broader community.

Government incentives can encourage farmers to adopt sustainable practices and offer solutions to reduce groundwater dependency. Players often ask for more information after playing, indicating genuine interest, and the game successfully raises awareness about how individual actions affect the broader delta ecosystem.

Most importantly, The Rethinking Groundwater Use Serious Game demonstrates that learning about environmental challenges need not be abstract or disengaging. It can be immediate, collaborative, and even fun, creating memorable experiences while still conveying crucial scientific concepts and fostering the systemic thinking needed for sustainable futures. As Marta Faneca concludes: “maximizing profit alone leads to a loss for everyone, not only regarding water, but also the environment and quality of life”.

In Ghana, many families still lack reliable access to safe drinking water. In order to make contaminated water drinkable, it is often boiled on top of open fires – a practice that harms health, contributes to deforestation and releases greenhouse gases. With support from Partners for Water, Dutch organisation Element15 has introduced an alternative: BAR filtration systems that provides clean water straight from the source, while reducing CO₂ emissions through an innovative carbon financing model.

An innovative solution financed by carbon credits

Element15’s BAR filtration systems allow families to drink water safely and directly from the source – without the need to boil it on burning wood. This benefits both the villages where the systems are installed and the global climate.

What sets this project apart is its financing model. Because boiling water is no longer required, significant greenhouse gas emissions are avoided. These emission reductions are converted into certified carbon credits – units that companies can purchase to offset their own emissions. Element15 sells these credits and uses the income to keep the systems running, carry out maintenance and expand to new communities.

Tracing carbon credits

Each filtration system is equipped with a digital IoT water meter that records precisely how much carbon is saved. On the online platform, anyone can trace where a credit originates from, the specific village, the filtration unit and which meter. All credits are independently verified and meet international standards such as the Gold Standard, a globally recognised certification for carbon credits from projects that meet certain environmental and social standards.

Impact for people and planet

The outcomes are significant. Families gain access to safe drinking water without the health risks of wood fires. Women and children spend less time collecting firewood, freeing up hours for education or income-generating activities. Deforestation is reduced, CO₂ emissions are cut and local employment is created through training for system installation and maintenance.

Earlier this year The Dutch government programme Partners for Water granted it lasts subsidies within the current programme (2022 – 2027). However, we remain committed to supporting innovation and collaboration in water security and management. To help partners move forward, we have created an overview of alternative funding opportunities — not only for developing new ideas, but also for scaling up existing projects. These funding opportunities support Dutch water solutions – from funding green infrastructure to grants for water conservation, small-scale water projects, and other international water solutions. In this way, we continue to strengthen impact beyond our own subsidy programme.

Partners for Water (PfW) aims to enhance water security internationally in long-term cooperation with local partners and the Dutch water sector. For the support of the early stages of water innovations, the programme (2022 – 2027) has granted subsidy to 68 water-related innovation projects, executed in 31 countries on 5 continents. By supporting feasibility studies and pilot projects, Partners for Water aims to pave the way for further development: upscaling the water innovations.

Water innovation funding opportunities beyond the Partners for Water

Many innovations start strong with initial support but struggle to maintain momentum or grow further once funding runs out. Creatingpathways for scaling and sustaining these initiatives can mean the difference between short-term success and long-term impact. By expanding the range of financing options and giving our partners the ability to grow beyond the initial stages, Partners for Water empowers Dutch companies and organisations to continue making a difference in water management and sustainability for years to come.

Funding options for projects not selected by Partners for Water

The programme encounters many initiatives with huge potential and impact but often do not meet the specific criteria required to secure PfW funding. By listing a broad spectrum of alternative financing options, we can ensure that project partners have access to the financial resources they need, even if they don’t align with PfW’s specific eligibility criteria.

Contents guide: overview of funding opportunities for international water projects

This overview is divided into three sections, each focusing on different sources of funding available for water-related projects, these categories are: Dutch, EU, and other international funding sources.

A living document

At Partners for Water, we are fully aware of the fact that this overview is not complete and that information might be outdated or not fully correct. The majority of the information gathered for this overview will come from desk research, drawing on publicly available sources. If you see any room for improvements, please contact my colleague Bram van der Wielen with suggestions or updates. Your input will help us keep this document accurate and up to date. We will update this concept version before the end of 2025. We hope that this overview will help you find the way to alternative funding.

From 24–28 August 2025, Stockholm hosted World Water Week. During this leading annual gathering of the international water community, thousands of experts, policymakers, businesses and civil society came together to exchange knowledge and shape action. Under the theme Water for Climate Action, discussions highlighted water as the foundation of climate resilience. For the Government of the Netherlands, a strategic partner of World Water Week, it was a key moment to share expertise, build partnerships and shape the global agenda.

During this week, the focus was on local and international water and climate management. But before speaking about systems, policies and progress, it’s important to pause and recognise water itself. Not merely as a resource, but as a presence that sustains every being. As Taylor Galvin, member of the Brokenhead Ojibway Nation in Canada, reminded us during the opening of World Water Week 2025: “Science offers us statistics, data and charts, but we must also humble ourselves, carry the rhythms and heart of Mother Earth, and honour the water.”

The Netherlands at World Water Week

World Water Week (WWW) 2025 provided the Netherlands with a key platform to showcase its expertise in water management and security, while strengthening international cooperation. The Dutch delegation contributed through high-level panels, the Water & Business programme and multiple partner sessions.

At the core of this presence were three key themes: the hydrological cycle and global governance, the water–food–energy–biodiversity nexus, and business stewardship. Together, these messages aimed to accelerate progress on the Water Action Agenda launched at the 2023 UN Water Conference, and to prepare for COP30 in 2025 and the UN Water Conference in 2026.

“I am proud to see how the Dutch water sector is contributing to a water-secure world, and to witness how our expertise is valued worldwide,” reflected Dutch Water Envoy Meike van Ginneken. “Sharing this knowhow is part of our soft power in bilateral relations. Equally, by working abroad, Dutch organisations learn, grow and innovate.”

The international water agenda

“Global water governance is not an end in itself, but a means to provide people with clean drinking water, food security and protection against floods,” explained van Ginneken during the High-Level Panel Water’s Pathway in Global Processes, organised by the Netherlands and Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI). Throughout the week, participants emphasised that water forms the foundation of our collective future. Not as a separate theme, but as a global common good.

The true strength of the week was rooted in the presence of so many international stakeholders collectively looking ahead. As van Ginneken emphasised: “Now is the time not only to talk about global governance, but to put it into practice by linking knowledge, convening power and concrete action.”

Hydrological cycle

Henk Ovink, former Dutch Water Envoy and founding commissioner of the Global Commission on the Economics of Water, highlighted how the hydrological cycle has become disrupted. In several sessions, he and other Dutch speakers stressed that the entire system – blue, white and green water – must be recognised and valued as a global common good.

“More than half of our precipitation comes from plants and trees through transpiration. When you take those away, you take away the very source of rain.” He added: “We have to understand the full picture of the hydrological cycle, or we will never provide solutions that really work.”

Water–biodiversity–food–energy nexus

In a session about the interconnection between water, biodiversity, food and energy, Ovink underlined: “Without a stable water cycle, food security is impossible. Biodiversity loss increases the vulnerability of agriculture and energy supply.”

In order to find holistic solutions, we must integrate water management, land use and ecosystem restoration. The Netherlands contributed by hosting sessions that focused on these approaches. As Liliane Geerling from the Netherlands Enterprise Agency reflected: “This week saw valuable conversations and collaboration between knowledge institutes, landscape architects, NGOs and Indigenous representatives, mainstreaming biodiversity and advancing integrated, landscape-based approaches.”

Yet participants stressed that engaging beyond the water sector is vital in order to drive change across the nexus. “COP30 offers an important opportunity to take this forward.”

Water and business stewardship

“Water stewardship is not just about managing risk. It is about taking responsibility across the value chain,” said Joana Barata Correia of IKEA during the Water & Business programme. Together with other multinationals, she showed how companies are making water use more transparent and setting ambitious targets. Organised by the Dutch government and SIWI, the programme made clear that water has shifted from being an environmental issue to a critical business risk.

For the Netherlands, it was an opportunity to demonstrate how public–private cooperation can drive systems change. Inge de Boer from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs underlined a shared consensus: “Business cases must be broader. Not just financially, but also socially and ecologically. At the same time, investors need predictable frameworks. Without stable policies, sustainable choices are impossible.”

Voices of Indigenous communities

“I may be a student, but I carry knowledge that is thousands of years old. Knowledge that predates science as a discipline itself,” said Taylor Galvin (Brokenhead Ojibway Nation) during the opening session of WWW. Her words captured the urgency of including Indigenous voices. “I don’t want to be here as just a measurable outcome. I’m not a box to check. Our knowledge is what will protect the water, because we’ve been doing it far longer.”

This call echoed in Dutch contributions, with sessions on landscape-based and Nature-based Solutions showing how biocultural values can shape water management. As Geerling reflected: “Indigenous sessions reminded me that water governance is not only about models, infrastructure, or finance. It is also about values, respect, and rights.”

Future perspectives

It is evident that climate and water resilience go hand in hand. “The climate has already changed. Now we need adaptation,” stressed van Ginneken, “And Dutch water expertise can support recovery and climate adaptation”.

Looking ahead to COP30 and the UN Water Conference in 2026, it’s clear that water can no longer be treated as a separate theme. For the Netherlands, this means building cross-sectoral and cross-boundary bridges in diplomacy and policy, scaling up innovative approaches such as Nature-based Solutions, and creating space for more inclusive voices. To repeat van Ginneken’s words: “Let’s not talk about water governance – let’s do it.”

In Nyeri County, Kenya, a team of Dutch and Kenyan partners is testing a water technology innovation that could transform local fish farming. Supported by Partners for Water, the Affordable Recirculating Aquaculture System pilot project (A-RAS-2) is led by the Food Systems and Poverty Alleviation (FOSPA) Foundation in Africa, in collaboration with FOSPA-Kenya and Systemic Consultancy. The project addresses Kenya’s severe protein deficit and the recurring challenges of drought. Project leads Katrine Soma and Charles Mbauni share how it works.

A systems approach

At its core, A-RAS-2 offers small-scale fish farmers a water-efficient, nutrient-reusing, solar-powered alternative to traditional ponds. The pilot project aims to demonstrate that these systems can produce up to 25 times more fish while using only 2–5 percent of the water required in conventional ponds and providing manure for the farmer’s mixed farming systems.

But A-RAS- 2 is more than just a new water technology, it adopts a systems approach built on a deep understanding of the local food system and its interlinked challenges. Beyond addressing farmer’s needs, the project strengthens multiple links in the chain. It stimulates local entrepreneurship in producing technology components and fish marketing and improves consumers access to affordable, nutritious food. On a wider scale, it contributes to climate-neutral, resource-efficient food production with the potential to save over 216 million cubic metres of water per year across Kenya.

From research to practice

For nearly a decade, social scientist Katrine Soma has studied Kenya’s food systems with a particular focus on fish. She works at Wageningen Social and Economic Research and is the chair and founder of the FOSPA-Africa Foundation in the Netherlands. Working closely alongside her is Charles Mbauni, chairman of the Nyeri Fish Farmers Cooperative Society and co-founder and chair of FOSPA-Kenya.

“I have worked in Kenya since 2018, researching bottlenecks in the fish food system,” explains Soma. “Through FOSPA-Africa, Charles and I combine research and implementation hand in hand.”

Mbauni adds: “As chairman of the cooperative, I saw first-hand the challenges in water use, fish growth and costly technology. That is how the idea of an affordable recirculating aquaculture system was born.”

Transforming challenges into innovations

“Kenya, like much of the Horn of Africa, faces chronic food insecurity, mostly driven by climate change and recurring droughts,” says Mbauni. “Protein is in particularly short supply. When drought strikes, traditional sources such as beef and sheep are no longer sustainable due to their high water footprint.”

Recognizing this, the government launched the ‘Eat More Fish’ campaign to promote fish consumption,” explains Soma. Mbauni adds: “Demand for fish is high and far exceeds local production. In fact, 70 per cent of fish consumed in Kenya is imported.”

Against this backdrop, A-RAS offers a breakthrough. “Traditional ponds are about 300m2 and stock no more than five fish per cubic metre, producing around 280 kilograms per pond,” notes Mbauni. “By contrast, A-RAS can reach densities of nearly 200 fish per cubic metre, producing more than 7,000 kilograms in the same space.”

“This is an enormous difference,” says Soma. “It means more fish, more protein, and at the same time we release land and water for other purposes”.

Practical, affordable and circular water technology

The technology is both innovative and pragmatic. “Recirculating aquaculture systems are usually expensive,” says Soma. “We focused on affordability – using local materials, cheaper or second-hand parts and high quality components where essential.” The result is a mix of simple tanks and advanced yet affordable water management.

“The tanks are made locally and in a simple yet durable manner,” explains Mbauni. “At the same time, the air and water pumps are high quality and supplied by Dutch entrepreneurs.” A settling tank filters solid waste, which is reused as fertiliser. A nitrification tank with microorganism removes nitrogen. Different oxygenation technologies are being tested, including nano and microbubbles.

Mbauni continuous: “Each system has six tanks with fish at different growth stages, allowing farmers to maintain a steady income throughout the year. This enables them to reinvest in quality feed essential for water and fish health.”

Soma concludes: “In the end, it is high-tech translated into practical, affordable solutions. And because the system runs on solar energy for water recirculation, it is climate neutral,”

Consortium and partners

The pilot project builds on a feasibility study carried out by FOSPA-Africa together with AquaFarmingConsult and Wageningen University & Research, supported by Partners for Water.

In this second phase, the consortium consists of FOSPA-Africa, FOSPA-Kenya and Systemic Consultancy. FOSPA-Africa brings together research, implementation and technical and financial expertise to refine the water technology and develop accessible business models for scaling.

Engaging stakeholders

From the start, farmers have been at the heart of the project. Mbauni represents a cooperative of around 1,000 fish farmers whose feedback informs every stage of the process. To ensure diversity, five farmers were involved in both the feasibility study and the pilot, among them women, young farmers and a disabled farmer.

“Working with the cooperative means we know immediately what works and what doesn’t,” says Soma. “Farmers tell us: this is a good idea, that is not. This direct communication saves time and ensures solutions are truly practical and acceptable.”

This bottom-up approach goes beyond farmers. In Kibera, Nairobi’s largest informal settlement, local leaders, consumers and women vendors co-created solutions for fish distribution. “Our solution is not an external, foreign thing,” says Mbauni. “It’s embedded in the community, where people trust and support each other.”

Next steps

To advance the project, the consortium has built a new A-RAS-2 facility in Nyeri County. “This enables gathering of reliable data and refining oxygenation technologies, with the first results expected next year,” says Soma.

On this basis, the project aims to scale up across Kenya, moving from fish production to a complete food system with feed, fingerlings, processing and training hubs. “We’re developing financing models to make the systems accessible for small-scale farmers,” notes Mbauni. “The long-term goal is to turn proven pilots into a nationwide movement, with potential expansion to neighbouring countries such as Uganda and Ethiopia.”

Innovation in progress series

The Partners for Water 5 programme (2022 – 2027) follows several projects that received the Partners for Water subsidy from start to finish. Over the next few years, these projects will take you on their journey of testing the feasibility or application of innovative solutions to enhance water safety and water security abroad. You’ll be able to gain insights into their processes, collaborations with local partners and their potential solutions; as well as their struggles, challenges and their lessons learned. Discover all projects.