UNESCO Council Approves Resolution to Accelerate a Global Water Education Indicator

October 31, 2026 – Council members of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP) have approved a resolution to speed up the development and implementation of a Water Education Indicator. The decision came during a special two-day Extraordinary Session of the IHP Council. The indicator is meant to assess current water-related human capacity at country level, with the ultimate goal of identifying future needs.

Council members stressed the relevance of the effort for addressing global water challenges. Knowing where skills and knowledge are strong, and where they are missing, is a first step toward closing the gaps.

Why an Extraordinary Session Was Needed

The session was led by IHP Chairperson Cristiane Collet Battiston and IHP Secretary Abou Amani. It was called to fine-tune the formal text of the resolution.

That step reflects the reality of running a science-policy programme. The IHP Council has 36 member states and is the programme’s highest decision-making body. Each word in a resolution needs agreement, so careful negotiation is part of building a mandate that governments will support.

The Case for Measuring Water Knowledge

Martijn van Staveren, representing the Netherlands UNESCO WMO Water Committee, set out the logic behind the proposal. He told the session: “Without knowing which water knowledge, expertise or capacity is lacking, it is difficult to effectively contribute to addressing SDG6. A Water Education Indicator ultimately aims to identify such gaps.”

SDG 6 calls for clean water and sanitation for all. Delivering it depends on engineers, hydrologists, planners, regulators, teachers and community managers. Without a common way to measure the available skills, governments and donors cannot easily see where training and education investments are most needed.

Who Is Leading the Work

UNESCO, IHE Delft and Cap-Net will lead the development of the indicator, and their work will now gain pace. IHE Delft is the UNESCO-IHE institute for water education, and Cap-Net is the capacity development network for water.

The indicator is designed to complement other efforts on water education and capacity development inside UNESCO and the wider UN Water Family. These include the Capacity Development Initiative and links with the Interactive Dialogue on Investments for Water at the UN 2026 Water Conference.

Who Backed the Resolution

The Kingdom of the Netherlands submitted the resolution. China, France, Germany, Peru, Romania, Senegal and Slovenia co-sponsored it. Ambassador Sander Cohen, the Netherlands’ Permanent Delegate to UNESCO, and Stein van Oosteren, Attaché at the Permanent Delegation, also took part in the negotiations.

The co-sponsors come from several regions, which suggests broad interest in treating water education as a shared global priority.

Briefs: Key Facts at a Glance

What was approved. A resolution to accelerate the development and implementation of a Water Education Indicator.

What it measures. Current water-related human capacity at country level, to identify future needs.

Who decides. The IHP Council, made up of 36 member states, is the highest decision-making body of UNESCO’s IHP.

Who leads the work. UNESCO, IHE Delft and Cap-Net.

Who proposed it. The Netherlands, co-sponsored by China, France, Germany, Peru, Romania, Senegal and Slovenia.

Where it connects. The Capacity Development Initiative and the Interactive Dialogue on Investments for Water at the UN 2026 Water Conference. That conference now runs 8–10 December 2026 in Abu Dhabi.
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Conclusion: Why Water Capacity Matters

Water security is often discussed in terms of infrastructure, finance and climate. This decision is a reminder that people are the other half of the equation. Dams, treatment plants and monitoring networks only work if there are trained professionals to design, run and govern them.

A Water Education Indicator could help in several ways. It could give governments a clearer picture of their own strengths and shortfalls, helping them plan training and university programmes. It could help donors and development banks direct capacity funds to where they matter most. It could also give the UN system a common reference for tracking progress on water education alongside other measures of progress toward SDG 6.

Much depends on the details still to be worked out, including which data will be collected, how countries will report, and how results will be used. If the work stays practical and inclusive, the indicator could become a useful tool for linking water knowledge to water policy as international attention turns to Abu Dhabi and beyond.