Water for All: The Road to the UN Water Conference 2026, remarks by H.E. Ville Tavio, Minister for Foreign Trade and Development
Roundtable by Centre for Peace Mediation of the Finnish MFA and the Embassy of United Arab Emirates on the UN Water Conference 2026, 9th September 2026
Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,
We are brought together by water, which, as we all know, is essential to life. At the same time, there is more urgency than ever on the global water agenda.
Sustainable management and governance of water resources across sectors, and consequently the realization of the human rights to water and sanitation, can only be achieved if countries and other actors such as private companies work together.
I would like to commend the UAE for taking the responsibility of bringing the important water agenda forward, as the committed host of the 2026 UN Water Conference, together with your co-host Senegal.
I would also like to thank you, Assistant Minister Balalaa, and your team for your commitment and efforts to make this conference a success.
The 2026 UN Water Conference takes place at a decisive moment. This was highlighted also by the Presidents of Finland and the United Arab Emirates, on the occasion of the official visit of President Stubb to Abu Dhabi last November: the presidents jointly affirmed their commitment to tackle global water challenges, to emphasize stronger international cooperation, and to view the 2026 UN Water Conference as a critical platform to advance global water efforts.
As water is a major international question today, it needs solid global systems and structures that we can rely on.
Holding regular and clearly mandated intergovernmental UN water conferences responds to this call.
Since the 2023 UN Water Conference, which was the first one in almost 50 years, significant progress on the global water agenda has been achieved.
I have been closely following the development of the water agenda, including by attending the 10th World Water Forum in Indonesia.
Finland remains fully committed in contributing to the global water agenda, and in supporting in making the upcoming Abu Dhabi conference a success.
At the 2026 UN Water Conference, Finland has the honor to co-chair the Interactive Dialogue “Water for Cooperation”, together with Zambia.
We are currently finalizing our Flagship Initiatives under our Interactive Dialogue. I would especially like to mention the 100 Parties Initiative, which has received very good attention and support. It aims to encourage new members to join, or to sign an expression of interest of joining the 1992 UN Water Convention, also known as the Helsinki Convention, in order to raise the number from the current 59 members to one hundred.
The Conference serves as a crucial opportunity to promote rules-based water cooperation. For us, success within our Interactive Dialogue means transforming water cooperation from a technical challenge into structured, rules-based transboundary cooperation, grounded in science and inclusive governance.
Successful water cooperation depends not only on agreements, but also on trust, knowledge, deployment of technologies, and sustained engagement. Science, diplomacy and partnerships across the sectors must work together to transform shared challenges into shared opportunities.
Dear audience,
Finland is known as a country with thousands of lakes that have excellent water quality. Everyone can drink water from the tap, and the water that you get from the tap is clearly of better quality than the water you could get from bottles.
We are always willing to share our domestic and development cooperation experiences globally. Our private sector and academia have plenty of know-how that can be beneficial in many environments. The Finnish Water Forum is a central organization on this, as it brings our water sector knowledge and organizations together.
We are looking forward to Abu Dhabi, where we are preparing to participate with a truly multistakeholder delegation representing a wide range of actors across the Finnish society.
We are also looking forward to working closely with all partners, to ensure that the 2026 UN Water Conference delivers concrete progress and lasting impact.
Thank you.