IHP-IX 2.5. Strengthened capacities of water-related education professionals to identify gaps in sustainable water management and support Agenda 2030 targets.

Capacities of skilled professionals and technicians at water-related tertiary and vocational education strengthened to identify the main gaps for sustainable water management towards providing appropriate tools to governments and societies to address those gaps and the Agenda 2030 targets. 1. Full development and promotion of the new water education indicator and web-based observatory for SDG 6. 2. Development of methodology and practical guide for the identification of capacity gaps and needs in the tertiary and vocational education agents (professionals, teachers, technicians etc.), prepared by core group of UNESCO Water Family members, and intersectoral dialogue and consultation at country level to identify and address the gaps and needs, including training of trainers, and country-level implementation of toolkits and e-learning modules. (Refer to output 2.4.) 3. Capacity building to bridge education-policy gaps in water and sustainable development by equipping professionals and technicians with relevant tools and knowledge.
4. Establishment of a UNESCO water family educational platform open to the Member States and partners to enhance learning opportunities and sharing of good practices and lessons learned, also valorizing Ecohydrology Demo sites, MAB Biosphere Reserves and other UNESCO designated sites. 5. Expanding and upscaling the NEPAD/EU Human Capacity Development project in Africa, in partnership with EU Joint Research Centre (JRC) and AMCOW.

Contributing Action Number

CA4.19

Primary Entry Point

4: Accelerate progress and transformational change

Additional Entry Point(s)

1: Lead and inspire collective action

2: Engage better for countries

5: Account through joint review and learning

Output(s)

Output 1.1: Water and sanitation issues are a strategic leadership priority for the UN System

Output 2.2: Diverse stakeholders and partnerships are mobilized by the UN system to support countries’ progress on water and sanitation

Output 4.3: Institutional and human resources capacity development support that responds to national needs and priorities is provided by the UN system, contributing to a skilled water and sanitation workforce

Output 4.5: Governance of water and sanitation is improved through UN system support, including with emphasis on the needs of developing countries

Output 5.2: Progress on water-related goals and targets are reviewed through joint learning and exchange among all actors with support from the UN system

SDG 6 Target(s)

Cross-cutting work on SDG 6

SDG target 6.A: Expand international cooperation and capacity-building

SDG target 6.B: Support stakeholder participation

Water-related work on other SDGs

Type of Engagement

Normative support (e.g. development of normative guidance, guidelines and standards)

Data collection and analysis

Implementation (e.g. direct support and service delivery, pilot or larger scale)

Capacity development and technical assistance

Geographical Scope

Global level

Regional, transboundary and sub-regional (multi-country) level

Country-level (national, subnational and local)

More information

https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000384615

https://openlearning.unesco.org/

Leading Entity

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

United Nations System-wide Strategy for Water and Sanitation

The Contributing Actions are key initiatives supporting the United Nations System-wide Strategy for Water and Sanitation, aligning individual and joint efforts across UN entities and partnering organizations to advance global water and sanitation goals. These actions are integrated into the Collaborative Implementation Plan (CIP) Results Framework 2025-2028, which provides a structured approach to achieving system-wide impact through coordinated UN efforts.
The Priority Collaborative Actions outlined in the framework focus on enhancing water security, improving governance, strengthening climate resilience, and accelerating progress on sanitation and hygiene. By fostering system-wide collaboration among UN agencies, these actions help drive policy coherence, knowledge sharing, and innovative solutions to address the world’s most pressing water challenges.