Illustrative Elements for Member State Consultations on the Future of Water Governance
This paper presents illustrative substantive and implementation elements that Member States may wish to consider in developing a voluntary, non-legally binding and action-oriented global framework for water. It does not prejudge the name, legal status, institutional form or negotiated content of any future process or framework.
Water insecurity is increasingly a systemic constraint on sustainable development, climate resilience, food and energy security, public health, ecosystem integrity and stability. Important legal, policy and institutional instruments already exist, but the multilateral water landscape remains fragmented and lacks a continuous mechanism for political direction, implementation support, finance alignment, learning and review.
The 2026 and 2028 United Nations Water Conferences, especially the Interactive Dialogue E on Water in Multilateral Processes create a timely opportunity for Member States to establish a durable, voluntary and action-oriented framework.
This paper translates IUCN's earlier proposal for a global framework for water governance and action into an illustrative content architecture for Member State reflection and consideration. It draws principally on a non-binding and implementation-oriented logic, while adapting relevant lessons from other multilateral processes.
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