The Executive Secretariat of the Niger Basin Authority, through the “Improving IWRM, Knowledge-based Management and Governance of the Niger Basin and the Iullemeden-Taoudeni/Tanezrouft Aquifer System” NB-ITTAS Project” in conjunction with the NBA National Focal Structure of Burkina Faso, organized a regional workshop from 22 to 24 September 2025 in Ouagadougou, to support the member countries of the Niger Basin Authority (NBA) in adopting new regulations aimed at reducing pollution.

The opening ceremony was chaired by Mrs. Martine DIALLO/KONE, Project Manager, representing Mr. Roger BARO, Minister of Environment, Water and Sanitation, Supervising Minister and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Niger Basin Authority. Before delivering her speech, two speeches were made successively by Mrs. Nadège Flora DU BARRY/BATIONO, Director General of Water Resources (DGRE), Coordinator of the NBA National Focal Structure of Burkina Faso, and Mr. Kocou Armand HOUANYE, Executive Secretary of the Niger Basin Authority.

This regional workshop follows several key milestones, including the validation of study reports and Addendum No. 1 on the regulation of pollutant discharge standards in the water bodies of the Niger Basin, as part of Annex No. 1 to the Niger Basin Water Charter, relating to environmental protection. After March 2025 in Abidjan, where a regional technical and operational capacity building of stakeholders took place, the Ouagadougou meeting is a decisive step for the effective integration of these texts into national legislation for the reduction of water pollution in the Niger Basin.

The presentations and discussions held during the regional workshop also covered the Guidelines for the discharge of pollutants into the waters of the Niger Basin, as well as the Strategy for collecting, sharing, and transmitting data on water quality in the Niger Basin.
At the end of the three-day regional workshop, participants made a series of recommendations for the next steps of the process, including the following:
- Adoption of Addendum No. 1 on pollutant discharge standards in the Niger Basin by the next NBA Council of Ministers;
- Effective sharing, by countries, of water quality data on the Niger River Basin with the NBA Executive Secretariat;
- Consistency of the countries’ legislative and regulatory texts with NBA texts, in particular the addendum on pollutant discharge standards in the Niger Basin.

The regional workshop led to, among other things: (i) proposing a process for adopting and integrating Addendum No. 1 on pollutant discharge standards into national legislation; (ii) defining mechanisms for establishing a favourable legal and regulatory framework for reducing water pollution in each of the nine NBA member countries; and (iii) formulating recommendations for the adoption of these standards by the NBA Council of Ministers at its next Ordinary Session.

This workshop illustrates the willingness of the Niger Basin countries to strengthen environmental governance and apply the polluter-pays principle in order to sustainably preserve water resources in the face of increasing pressures related to industrial activities.