Climate-Resilient Urban Water Services: How the Urban Water Catalyst Initiative Transforms Utilities

Water ressources, drinking water supply and wastewater management are under severe pressure worldwide as a result of climate change, pollution, ageing infrastructure and the need for expansion. In cities, municipal water suppliers are primarily responsible for this. However, they are usually unable to provide reliable supply for a rapidly growing urban demand. ·This is further aggravated by climate risks affecting the business technically and financially. As a result, there is a massive shortfall in access to services (SDG 6) and in adaption to climate change (SDG 13).

The Catalyst Initiative helps to close these gaps. It is a global initiative with initial funding from Germany, the Netherlands and the Stone Family Foundation, that addresses this challenge by mobilising private local capital for critical investments: It supports urban water utilities to make the essential transition to repayable domestic financing, enabling them to become climate-resilient while leaving no one behind. The Catalyst Initiative offers a unique package of technical and financial assistance to reform-minded utilities to support their transformation into well-performing, financially sustainable and climate-resilient service providers.

The session will showcase how the Catalyst Initiative integrates climate resilience into utilities’ business models, investment planning and financing strategies and to discuss the opportunities of climate finance to complement public sector funds and commercial finance. The results of the session will be taken to the UN Water Conference in December 2026 and will help to enrich the interactive dialogue F on ‘Investments in Water’.