AMCOW -African Ministers Council on Water

The African Ministers' Council on Water (AMCOW) was formed in 2002 in Abuja Nigeria, primarily to promote cooperation, security, social and economic development and poverty eradication among member states through the management of water resources and provision of water supply services. The Mission of AMCOW is to provide political leadership, policy direction and advocacy in the provision, use and management of water resources for sustainable social and economic development and maintenance of African ecosystems. AMCOW has become a Specialized Technical Committee for Water and Sanitation in the African Union Commission.

Within a relatively short period, AMCOW has moved from being an idea to becoming a developed mechanism that embodies the collaboration and commitments shown by African governments, civil society groups, development co-operation partners, financial institutions and the United Nations. The February 2004 Extraordinary Session of the Heads of State and Government of the AU, held in Libya, adopted the Sirte Declaration by which the Africa’s leadership expressed support for AMCOW for its role in spearheading efforts to address Africa’s water policy challenges. Consequently, at the African Union Summit of Heads of State and Government special session on water and sanitation, which was convened in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, in June 2008, AMCOW was asked to develop an implementation strategy and reporting mechanism for the Sharm el-Sheikh commitments on water and sanitation.

AMCOW serves as the apex inter-governmental body on water and sanitation issues in Africa and is composed of all 54 African Ministers responsible for water affairs on the continent. The institutional structure of AMCOW today consists of several political and technical entities at the regional and sub-regional levels, working together to achieve the objectives for setting up the institution. The structure is outlined in the AMCOW Handbook accessible on www.amcow-online.org and comprises the AMCOW Governing Council, the Executive Committee, the Technical Advisory Committee and the Executive Secretariat.

The AMCOW Governing Council serves as the principal intergovernmental body on water affairs in Africa and consists of all the 54 Ministers responsible for Water Resources in the continent. It meets at the General Assembly of Ministers which holds every two years with last edition held in Cairo, Egypt on May 14th 2012.

The Executive Committee comprises 15 Ministers —three members elected from each of the five sub-regions of Africa on a rotational basis and include the President of the Council and sub-regional Vice Presidents. The AMCOW Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) comprises 25 technical experts, 5 each from the five sub-regions of Africa, on a rotational basis. The sub-regions decide which countries and experts are to become members of the Committee. The TAC provides technical support to the Executive Committee and the Governing Council. The Secretariat, based in Abuja, Nigeria, is headed by an Executive Secretary and is responsible for implementing and following up actions on the decisions of the Council.