African civil society organisations and trade unions have planned to launch a continent-wide campaign for publicly funded, affordable water services from October 12-18, 2026, with a call for stronger government accountability and democratic control of water resources.

The campaign, organised by the Our Water Our Right Africa Coalition (OWORAC), will hold during the sixth Africa Week of Action Against Water Privatisation, themed “Reclaiming Africa’s Water Future: Public Water for All.”

However, a major highlight will be the unveiling of the coalition’s position paper, “Implementing the Africa Water Vision 2063: An OWORAC Coalition Position on Water Justice, Public Financing and Democratic Water Governance.”

The document examines gaps and opportunities in implementing the Africa Water Vision 2063 and proposes measures to strengthen public financing, accountability and community participation in decisions concerning water services.

OWORAC said the campaign would draw attention to challenges confronting public water systems across Africa, including inadequate public investment, deteriorating utility services, climate pressures, rapid urbanisation and the expansion of water privatisation.

The coalition is also seeking to bring the concerns of African communities into global policy discussions, as the campaign coincides with the yearly meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group.

Besides, it plans to challenge policies it believes encourage water privatisation and advocate publicly funded services to improve access to safe and affordable water.

Activities will include a hybrid international media briefing on Monday, October 12, at 11:00 a.m. West Africa Time, and an international webinar on prepaid water meters on October 14. Media engagements, community dialogues and discussions with policymakers and water authorities are also scheduled.

The webinar will examine the expansion of prepaid water meters and their implications for human rights and universal access to water, drawing on experiences from participating countries.

Speakers scheduled for the media briefing include Anne Maina of the Biodiversity and Biosafety Association of Kenya, Oumar Ba of Senegal’s Autonomous Union of Water Workers, Geoffrey Kabutey Ocansey of Revenue Mobilisation Africa, Ghana; Joseph Rahall of Green Scenery, Sierra Leone, and Akinbode Oluwafemi of Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa (CAPPA), Nigeria, among others.