Rome Water Dialogue 2026
Hybrid Event, 12/10/2026 - 16/10/2026
The impacts of climate change, land degradation and growing water scarcity are among the greatest challenges to achieving zero hunger and global food security. With agriculture accounting for over 72 percent of global freshwater withdrawals, the way in which water is used and managed in agrifood systems is central to agricultural production and food security, climate resilience and more broadly to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals.
As part of the World Food Forum 2026 under the theme “Innovate today. Nourish tomorrow”, the Rome Water Dialogue is a global platform dedicated to advancing Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) to strengthen food and water security worldwide, promoting an integrated approach that connects water, land and soil management. It brings together a wide range of stakeholders, including policy makers, practitioners, representatives from academia, the private sector and the youth, to showcase and advance innovative solutions for resilient agriculture.
Join us in Rome or online to shape the future of water and food security. Registration to participate on-site closes on 7 October 2026.
Register here
The High-level Dialogue, which will take place on 14 October 2026, will focus on the Global Dialogue on Water Tenure. It will feature water tenure within national contexts to improve water governance and support more equitable, transparent, and sustainable allocation of water resources for water and food security.
Technical sessions, to be held on 12 and 13 October, will focus on innovative solutions for land restoration, drought management, and irrigation modernization. These sessions will also address the enabling conditions and financing needed to scale up solutions that nourish people and the planet—today and in the future.
Programme
Full agenda will be available soon
💧 Strengthening governance of water tenure through innovation and inclusive dialogue
Monday, 12 October 2026, from 9.00 to 10.30 (UTC+2), Red Room, FAO headquarters, Rome, Italy, and online.
This session aims to share the methodology of water tenure assessment for improving water accounting for more equitable, transparent, and context-appropriate allocation of water resources at local level.
It will present pilot assessments conducted in selected countries, as well as the outcomes of regional water tenure dialogues in Colombia and Thailand. The session will also help lay the foundation for the High-level Rome Water Dialogue taking place on 14 October.
This session will be available in English.
Draft agenda
| Time (UTC+2) | Session segment |
|---|---|
| 09:00-09:05 | Opening |
| 09:05-09:15 | Water tenure assessment and water accounting: Innovative tools to support water governance |
| 09:15-09:35 | Building Principles of Responsible Governance of Water Tenure from the field: Evidence from local assessments and sectoral and regional dialogues |
| 09:35-10:05 | Stakeholder perspectives: Benefits of water tenure for food security and climate resilience |
| 10:05-10:25 | Interactive discussion |
| 10:25-10:30 | Wrap-up and key takeaways |
💧 Restoration of degraded agricultural lands: Innovation from policy to practice for water and food security
Monday, 12 October 2026, from 10.30 to 12.00 (UTC+2), Red Room, FAO headquarters, Rome, Italy, and online.
The session will showcase innovative approaches to restoring agricultural lands to support sustainable agrifood system transformation and water security. Through successful case studies, it will also explore enabling policies, investment, innovation, capacity development and sustainability.
This session will be available in English.
Draft agenda
| Time (UTC+2) | Session segment |
|---|---|
| 10:30-10:50 | Opening |
| 10:50-11:30 | Panel discussion: Sustainable management and restoration of agricultural lands and soils |
| 11:30-11:45 | Demonstration: Innovative tools and guidance for avoiding, reducing and reversing land and soil degradation |
| 11:45-12:00 | Closing remarks |
💧 Innovation, planning and investment in drought and irrigation
Tuesday, 13 October 2026, from 9.00 to 12.00 (UTC+2), Red Room, FAO headquarters, Rome, Italy, and online.
This session will explore how to transform national drought strategies into actionable, investment-ready portfolios that can attract diverse financing mechanisms, including the application of IRMA (irrigation potential and needs mapping) and other data-driven tools. By linking strategic policy frameworks with targeted investment opportunities, the session will highlight innovative ways of leveraging technology and analytics to unlock more effective and scalable drought-resilience solutions.
This session will be available in Arabic and English.
Draft agenda
| Time (UTC+2) | Session segment |
|---|---|
| 09:00-09:05 | Welcome and opening remarks |
| 09:05-09:25 | Ministerial panel on drought resilience and irrigation development |
| 09:25-09:55 | Introduction presentations: Repositioning drought within national investment agendas, systemic drought resilience and FAO's investment methodology |
| 09:55-10:15 | Technical panel discussion: FAO in-country partnerships and national drought portfolios |
| 10:15-10:25 | Chatbot with Drought Platform: Follow the money, what drought finance data tells us |
| 10:25-10:40 | Walking coffee and Q&A |
| 10:40-10:55 | Introduction presentations: FAO's IRMA approach and official tool launch |
| 10:55-11:20 | Technical panel discussion: Irrigation infrastructure for drought-resilient agriculture and food security |
| 11:20-11:35 | Lightning speeches: Planning irrigation for maximum impacts |
| 11:35-11:45 | Q&A |
| 11:45-12:00 | Closing remarks |
💧 High-level Rome Water Dialogue - Global Dialogue on Water Tenure: Innovative water governance for food and water security
Wednesday 14 October 2026, from 9.00 to 12.00 (UTC+2), Plenary Hall, FAO headquarters, Rome, Italy, and online.
The High-level Rome Water Dialogue will discuss insights from national and regional water tenure dialogues and gather multi-stakeholder feedback to inform the refinement of draft water tenure principles and collective commitments for the next steps of the Global Dialogue on Water Tenure, as mandated by the Committee on Agriculture (COAG).
Interpretation in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish will be available.
Draft agenda
| Time (UTC+2) | Session segment |
|---|---|
| 09:00-09:25 | Welcome and opening remarks |
| 09:25-09:30 | Introductory presentation: The road towards the principles on responsible governance of water tenure |
| 09:30-10:30 | Ministerial panel discussion |
| 10:30-10:35 | Cultural performance |
| 10:35-10:55 | Outcomes of the regional dialogues |
| 10:55-11:02 | Presentation on the draft principles of responsible governance of water tenure |
| 11:02-11:42 | Stakeholder panel discussion: Principles of responsible governance of water tenure, policy innovations and stakeholder feedback |
| 11:42-11:55 | The next steps of the Global Dialogue and Q&A |
| 11:55-12:00 | Closing remarks |
💧 Youth Assembly Session
Thursday, 15 October 2026, from 14:00 to 15:30 (UTC+2), Ethiopian Room, FAO headquarters, Rome, Italy and online.
The session will underscore the importance of youth in advancing sustainable water management in agrifood systems, where agriculture is the largest freshwater user. It will highlight youth-led innovation, the inclusion of local perspectives, and intergenerational dialogue as key elements of resilient water governance. The session will connect young people with policymakers to help shape future water solutions.
This session will be available in English.
Draft agenda
| Time (UTC+2) | Session segment |
|---|---|
| 12:00-12:10 | Welcome and opening remarks |
| 12:10-12:40 | Youth perspectives on water management and leadership |
| 12:40-13:00 | Spotlighting initiatives and youth-led innovation for water management |
| 13:00-13:20 | Interactive discussion |
| 13:20-13:30 | Wrap-up and key takeaways |
💧 Rome Water Dialogue: Exhibition
From Monday, 12 October 2026, to Friday, 16 October 2026, Atrium, FAO headquarters, Rome, Italy.
Building on the success of previous Rome Water Dialogue exhibitions held during the World Food Forum, the 2026 exhibition will highlight innovative solutions for the integrated management of water, land and soil resources.
Register here to attend on-site or online
Contact
Related links
- Rome Water Dialogue 2025
- High-Level Rome Water Dialogue on WASAG 2024
- Rome Water Dialogue 2023
- Rome Water Dialogue 2022
- Land and water website
- World Food Forum
Videos
💧 FAO's Water Journey: 80 years of dedication to advancing water resources management for food security and nutrition
