Egypt's Water Resources and Irrigation Minister Hani Swailam met with South Africa's Water and Sanitation Minister Pemmy Majodina on the sidelines of World Water Week in Stockholm, the Egyptian Cabinet said on Thursday. Swailam congratulated South Africa and the African Union Commission on the successful organisation of the African Union (AU)-Continental African Water Investment Programme (AIP) Water Investment Summit 2025 in Cape Town, hailing its outcomes as a step towards a unified African voice on water financing. He welcomed the Cape Town Declaration as a comprehensive roadmap to mobilise water investments in Africa and address the continent's annual $30 billion financing gap. Talks covered follow-up measures to implement the declaration, with both sides agreeing to coordinate positions ahead of upcoming global events, including the Africa Financing Summit, the Africa Climate Summit, the G20 Leaders' Summit, and the African Union Summit. They also discussed joint preparations for the UN Water Conference 2026, where Swailam stressed Egypt's commitment to close cooperation with South Africa to ensure unified African representation. The two ministers further reviewed progress on the April 2024 memorandum of understanding on water resources management, including the work of a joint task force established to oversee its implementation. Swailam reiterated Egypt's keenness to deepen cooperation with South Africa under the agreement. Attribution: Amwal Al Ghad English Subediting: M.S.Salama
