Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation Hani Swailem met on Wednesday Rita Schwarzelühr‑Sutter, German State Minister for Environment and Climate Protection, to discuss preparations for the UN Water Conference 2026 and the roadmap towards the 2028 meeting in Dushanbe. The talks, attended by Egypt’s Ambassador Mohamed El‑Badri, focused on shaping strong, actionable outputs and ensuring continuity across multilateral water processes.
Swailem stressed the importance of moving from separate interactive dialogues to a collective vision for the 2026 conference, highlighting the need for mature, pioneering initiatives that can serve as building blocks for 2028. Egypt and Germany discussed the “Water House” proposal, designed to unify conference outcomes under interconnected themes, with Swailem emphasising that success depends on linking it to a limited number of genuine flagship initiatives.
He pointed to Egypt’s support for proposals such as a roadmap to integrate water into the Rio Conventions, which could connect climate, biodiversity and desertification tracks. Swailem underlined that Cairo Water Week in October 2026 will be a key milestone, with a high‑level session on 26 October dedicated to the UN Water Conference, bringing together dialogue co‑chairs and the international water community.
