Ghana’s former President, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has called for a new continental framework to drive cooperation and justice in the management of Africa’s water resources.
Delivering the inaugural address at the 2025 International Conference on Water, Peace and Security in Nairobi on Monday, Mr. Akufo-Addo, who serves as a patron of the conference, outlined a bold vision for an “African Water Peace Initiative” to bring coherence and political momentum to the continent’s shared efforts in water governance.
The former President reflected on the persistent challenges in implementing existing frameworks, stressing that water, peace, and security must move beyond rhetoric to actionable cooperation.
“Water, peace and security are not just mere concepts. They are actionable and can bring enormous benefits to Africans,” he said. “It is time to invest deliberately in African capacity, research and innovation to manage sustainably our resources.”
Mr. Akufo-Addo cited the Inga Dam project in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which has an estimated potential capacity of 44,000 megawatts, as a prime example of what continental cooperation can achieve.
He emphasized that if the long-standing financing hurdles could be resolved, the project could become the world’s largest hydropower facility and power the continent’s development.
He also underscored the importance of dialogue and collaboration in resolving the long-running Nile River dispute between Egypt and Ethiopia, noting that mutual understanding could unlock immense socio-economic benefits for the countries involved.
The former President concluded his remarks with a strong call for justice in water access, allocation, and governance, insisting that “peace cannot flow where inequality runs deep.”
