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inancing

ooperation

The RWSSI is in line with the bank’s emphasis on inclu-

siveness and is an effective means for building resilience

and climate proofing against drought.

Cooperation with multilateral organizations

AfDB views collaboration with other multilateral

organizations as important for supporting joint

country-level and regional activities, eliminat-

ing duplication of efforts and avoiding conflicting

approaches. Within the framework of the bank’s

collaboration agreements with the United Nations and

the World Bank, the water department has developed

joint working arrangements with several agencies,

notable among which are those with UNHABITAT,

the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and

the Water and Sanitation Programme (WSP) of the

World Bank .

Water sector cooperation between AfDB and UNICEF

focuses on the RWSS subsector, leveraging the respec-

tive comparative advantages in the following areas:

• supporting continental and regional initiatives

• access to sanitation (including water, sanitation and

hygiene in schools)

• sustaining services and behaviours

• monitoring and knowledge management.

The working arrangements include regular cross-polli-

nation meetings and joint plans at country level.

Looking ahead

Transforming Africa’s economic fortunes in a way

that includes the poor can only be achieved through

extensive long-term cooperation among the various

actors. AfDB will therefore continue to pursue its

multilevel and multifaceted cooperation and collabo-

ration strategy through:

• participing in global and Africa-wide sector dialogue

• engaging with various partners in the development

and execution of its lending operations at regional

and country levels

• cooperating with donors through special purpose

trust funds

• partnering with other multilateral organizations.

• collaborating with unique knowledge institutions

that help governments accelerate reforms that

ensure sustainable water resources management

in support of long term national development and

economic growth.

The bank is also enhancing its efforts to help African

countries create the enabling environment that will attract

private sector financing to bridge the financing gap.

Collaboration with other organizations is a dynamic

process making it necessary to engage in continuous

reassessment in meeting joint objectives and aspira-

tions. AfDB therefore welcomes the opportunities

availed by the International Year of Water Cooperation

to renew its commitment to cooperation as an essential

element of the international development agenda.

AfDB collaboration with SADC - Shared Watercourses Support Project (Buzi River

Basin, Mozambique)

Image: Sweco

cooperation and coordination among basin states, and supporting

strategic and investment planning and resource mobilization in

basin development organizations. AWF support for strengthening

the African Network of Basin Organizations is a good example

of this work. The facility also contributes towards AfDB’s efforts

to create a favourable environment for effective and sustainable

investments and promoting water sector knowledge. In addition

to traditional partnerships with governments and donor agencies,

AWF’s financing procedures provide opportunities for increas-

ing cooperation with private operators, financiers, professional

networks, academia, NGOs and civil society.

AfDB is cooperating with a number of donors including

France, Switzerland, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Italy

and Burkina Faso through the RWSSI Trust Fund in order to

add a quality dimension to the RWSSI through focused support

for the ‘softer’ aspects of RWSS implementation. The trust fund

addresses issues such as:

• improving RWSS governance and enabling environment

• ensuring that projects and programmes to be funded have

the requisite institutional arrangements and capacities for

sustainable service delivery

• providing a platform for knowledge management,

communication and sharing good practice at the regional and

national levels

• selectively and strategically providing investment funds for

rural water supply and sanitation for fragile and post-conflict

African states.