Events
The African Water Facility, in collaboration with the African Development Bank and the Association of European Development Finance Institutions (EDFI), hosted a high-level event focused on unlocking investment opportunities for Africa’s water and sanitation sector on 18 March 2025 in Brussels, Belgium.
The joint event brought together development finance institutions, private sector investors, and philanthropic organizations to explore funding solutions for Africa’s water and sanitation challenges.
The African Water Facility and the Water and Sanitation Department of the African Development Bank showcased their initiatives and investment-ready projects, emphasizing a track record of driving sustainable water and sanitation initiatives on the continent. Over the last decade, the Bank has invested $6 billion in water and sanitation projects in African countries and plans to scale this up to $12 billion by 2030. The African Water Facility has a 20-year record of making a difference, having provided grants for almost 150 projects in 52 African countries, benefiting over 25 million people.
A key takeaway from the event was the recognition that public funding alone cannot meet Africa’s growing water and sanitation needs. Discussions underscored the importance of engaging with the numerous European Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) present at the event, private sector investors, as well as leveraging blended financing mechanisms to scale up investment to achieve universal access to water and sanitation on the continent. The African Water Facility emphasized the role of bankable projects in attracting private sector financing, with a focus on long-term sustainability and impact-driven outcomes.
The event was attended by over 50 stakeholders with 20+ investors, including European DFI’s such as the Danish Investment Fund for Developing Countries (IFU), Proparco, SOFID, Swedfund, Norfund, Italy’s National Promotional Institution CDP, and BIO Invest. The European Commission and multilateral development banks like the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank were also present.
The African Water Facility’s expertise in preparing bankable water and sanitation projects, combined with the African Development Bank’s continued leadership in financing and governance, will be instrumental in achieving a water-secure future for Africa. As a next step, the Facility will engage bilaterally on the expressions of interest which were received at the event, and on the basis of the List of Investment Opportunities presented.
RESOURCES
- African Water Facility's List of Projects
- Key takeaways (below)
- Event photos
Documents: