{"id":31645,"date":"2026-04-13T07:55:52","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T05:55:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/?post_type=news&#038;p=31645"},"modified":"2026-04-13T07:55:52","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T05:55:52","slug":"water-forward-to-launch-at-imf-world-bank-spring-meetings","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/news\/water-forward-to-launch-at-imf-world-bank-spring-meetings\/","title":{"rendered":"Water Forward to launch at IMF, World Bank Spring Meetings"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"x_elementToProof\" data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">Limited coordination between institutions and fragmented financing have slowed progress, but a new global initiative aims to change that.<\/div>\n<div data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"x_elementToProof\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"x_elementToProof\">On April 15, leaders will launch Water Forward, a global effort designed to strengthen water security by scaling partnerships, mobilising investment and turning water systems into drivers of jobs and long\u2011term prosperity.<\/div>\n<div class=\"x_elementToProof\">The launch will take place on the margins of the 2026 International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Group Spring Meetings in Washington, where finance ministers, central bankers, development institutions, private sector leaders and civil society convene to address urgent global economic challenges.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"x_elementToProof\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"x_elementToProof\">Organisers say Water Forward will focus on coordinated reforms that unlock funding, improve governance and accelerate delivery, particularly in water\u2011stressed and vulnerable regions. The initiative reflects a growing view that water security is not only a humanitarian or environmental priority, but a core economic foundation.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"x_elementToProof\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"x_elementToProof\">By aligning policy, investment and partnerships, Water Forward aims to help countries translate water resilience into stronger growth, higher productivity and more inclusive opportunity.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"x_elementToProof\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"x_elementToProof\"><\/div>\n<div>&#8211;WorldBank\/ChannelAfrica&#8211;<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":31646,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"news-type":[44,26],"class_list":["post-31645","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-finance","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"Water supports an estimated 1.7 billion jobs worldwide across agriculture, industry, energy and services, yet unreliable access continues to hold back growth and productivity in many countries.","published_date":"","news_description":"Water supports an estimated 1.7 billion jobs worldwide across agriculture, industry, energy and services, yet unreliable access continues to hold back growth and productivity in many countries.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/31645","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/31645\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31647,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/31645\/revisions\/31647"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31646"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31645"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=31645"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}