H.E. Kocou Armand HOUANYE, the NBA Executive Secretary, leading a delegation from the Transfrontier Basin Organisation (TBO), visited the Headquarters of the West African Development Bank (BOAD) and the ECOWAS Investment and Development Bank (BIDC), both located in Lomé, Republic of Togo, on the afternoon of Thursday 19th and the morning of Friday 20th, February, 2026, respectively.

For the occasion, the NBA Executive Secretary was accompanied by: (i) Mr. Ibro ADAMOU, the Technical Director of the Executive Secretariat, and (ii) Mr. Seyni SEYDOU, the Regional Coordinator of the Programme for Integrated Development and Adaptation to Climate Change in the Niger Basin (PIDACC/NB 2019-2027).

H.E. Kocou Armand HOUANYE, the NBA Executive Secretary, was received in audience by Mr. Abdoulaye DAFFE, Vice-President of the BOAD, accompanied by three (3) of the Bank’s Directors in charge of: (i) Infrastructures and the Digital Economy, (ii) Agriculture and Agro-Industry, and (iii) Sustainable Development Financing.

After expressing his deep gratitude to the Vice-President of the West African Development Bank (BOAD) for the warm welcome extended to him and the members of his delegation, the Executive Secretary of the Niger Basin Authority (NBA) stated the purpose of the meeting, which was to strengthen regional cooperation between BOAD and NBA in order to advance the integrated development priorities in the Niger Basin, which covers a significant part of the WAEMU region. Indeed, five (Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali and Niger) of the eight member countries of BOAD are also members of the NBA, which comprises nine member countries.

The Executive Secretary, through the Vice-President, Mr Abdoulaye DAFFE, formally invited BOAD to join the NBA Partners’ Advisory Committee for supporting the financing of the implementation of the 2026-2030 Strategic Plan (SP), structured around four main areas, the first of which focuses on the implementation of regional structural investments for water security, climate resilience and sustainable development in the Niger Basin. The NBA Executive Secretary also took the opportunity to highlight NBA’s interest in benefiting from BOAD’ support in mobilising the resources needed to improve the navigability of the Niger River and its tributaries.

In turn, the Vice-President of BOAD reassured the Executive Secretary that the promotion of large regional investments for water security and sustainable and resilient socio-economic development in the Niger Basin fully falls in line with the priorities of his Institution for financing development. Taking the floor after the Vice-President, the various Directors of the Bank in attendance took turns to talk about possible areas of collaboration between BOAD and NBA, including:

- Silting control and improvement of the navigability of the Niger River and its tributaries;
- Development of water infrastructures;
- Adaptation to climate change, and;
- Restoration and preservation of the Niger Basin ecosystems.

Following the discussions, both Parties expressed their willingness to revive the regional cooperation that was previously initiated. To this end, each Party immediately appointed a Focal Point in order for them to work together on the following steps, taking into account the preparation of a large investment projects portfolio for the Niger Basin.

Before concluding, the Executive Secretary expressed his wish to see BOAD take part in the next Ordinary Session of the NBA Council of Ministers in the fourth quarter of 2026, and in the next meetings of the NBA Partners’ Advisory Committee. On his part, the Vice-President concluded by stating that the request for BOAD’s support to NBA has been well understood and that the Bank’s governing bodies and Experts are available for this purpose.

At the Investment and Development Bank of the Economic Community of West African States (EBID), H.E. Kocou Armand HOUANYE, the NBA Executive Secretary, was received on the morning of 20th February, 2026 by Mr. Manzamesso Charles TCHALLA-PALI, Director of the Institution’s Public Sector Operations Department, accompanied by his colleagues, including Mrs. Maimouna SIDIBE, Head of the Basic Infrastructures Division.

At the EBID, the NBA Executive Secretary, after expressing his sincere thanks to the Director of the Institution’s Public Sector Operations Department for the warm welcome extended to his delegation, briefly presented the Niger River Basin and the purpose and mission of the NBA, which comprises nine (9) member countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Niger, Nigeria and Chad) from West and Central Africa, and the Sahel. He then focused on the priorities consolidated in the NBA’s Strategic Plan (2026-2030 SP), which are structured around four (4) main areas:

- Large investments for water security in the Niger Basin;
- Restoration and preservation of ecosystems in the Niger Basin;
- NBA’s effective governance; and;
- Promotion of innovative and sustainable mechanisms for NBA’ action with a view to establishing and making operational the Regional Climate Change Adaptation Fund in the Niger Basin (RCCAF/NB) as part of the implementation of PIDACC/NB.

The Director of the Public Sector Operations Department expressed the EBID’s interest and willingness to formalise and implement a Framework Cooperation Agreement with the NBA on investments related to the priorities of the 2026-2030 Strategic Plan of the Transboundary Basin Organisation (OBT).

Before adjourning the meeting, each of the two Parties was asked to designate a Focal Point to very soon reach an agreement on a draft Framework Cooperation Agreement defining the priority areas for EBID’ support to the NBA, for the direct and indirect benefit of the more than 180 million inhabitants of the Niger Basin.

As part of the support and advocacy mission to Benin to expedite the implementation of the Programme for the Integrated Development and Adaptation to Climate Change in Benin (PIDACC/BN-Benin), on the morning of Wednesday, February 18, 2026,

In Cotonou, H.E. Kocou Armand HOUANYE, Executive Secretary of the Niger Basin Authority (NBA) and his delegation were granted an audience by Mr. Robert Masumbuko, Resident Representative of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Country Office in Benin, in the presence of his staff, including Ms. Jamila HEDHLI, Senior Country Program Officer for Benin.
In the afternoon of the same day, the NBA Executive Secretary held a working session with partners of the PIDACC/NB-Benin Component and the European Union Delegation (EUD) to Benin (EUD-Benin). The NBA delegation was accorded a gracious reception by both institutions.

Through the Resident Representative of the AfDB Country Office in Benin, the NBA Executive Secretary reiterated the Authority’s profound gratitude to the AfDB Group, its President, and its partners, for their unwavering support throughout the preparation and financing phases of the PIDACC/NB.

The NBA Executive Secretary subsequently articulated a series of actions required from the AfDB, in conjunction with the relevant Beninese national authorities, to:

- speed up the implementation of the PIDACC/NB-Benin Component;
- achieve a significant improvement in the Programme’s performance in Benin by the end of June 2026, and;
- sustain this positive trajectory to ensure high-level performance and the achievement of impactful results in strengthening the resilience of populations and ecosystems in the Beninese portion of the Niger Basin, ahead of the revised PIDACC/NB Programme closure date of December 31, 2027.

The discussions also addressed the prospects for Phase 2 of the Programme. In response, the Resident Representative of the AfDB Country Office affirmed the Bank’s commitment to a diligent appraisal of all substantiated requests submitted by the national authorities concerning measures aimed at accelerating the implementation of the PIDACC/NB in Benin. The Senior Country Programme Officer for Benin further reassured the NBA Executive Secretary and his delegation that measures would be taken to prioritize and expedite the review of all requests related to the implementation of the PIDACC/NB in Benin.

At the EU Delegation in Benin, the Mission was received by Mr. Jean HUCHON, Programme Officer in the Cooperation Section, and Mr. Christian Frigaard RASMUSSEN, Head of the Investment and Green Deal Section.

The NBA Executive Secretary expressed the Authority’s profound gratitude to the EU Delegation in Benin and the entire European Union Commission (EUC) for their pivotal role, in synergy with the African Development Bank (AfDB) and other technical partners, in financing the PIDACC/NB. He also underscored the efforts directed towards:

- the significant acceleration of the pace of Programme implementation by June 2026 ending;
- the creation, by decision of the NBA Summit of Heads of State and Government, of the Regional Climate Change Adaptation Fund in the Niger Basin and its effective operationalization, and;
- the initiation of the formulation process for the Programme Phase, scheduled to commence at the start of the second half of 2026.

On the same occasion, the NBA Executive Secretary informed the partners of the EU Delegation in Benin and the EU Commission of the forthcoming resumption of the NBA Partners Advisory Committee meetings. He extended a formal invitation for their active participation in its operation. He concluded by issuing a compelling call for strengthened cooperation between the EU Commission and the NBA for:

- increased structural investments designed to guarantee water, food, energy, and environmental security in the Niger Basin;
- a stable, secure, peaceful, and resilient Niger Basin, and;
- a significant improvement in the living conditions of the more than 180 million people living in the Niger Basin .

Following the meetings with the Representative of the AfDB Country Office and the EU Delegation Partners of the PIDACC/NB-Benin, the Executive Secretary expressed renewed confidence in a substantial improvement in the Programme’s performance.

This will ensure that the formulation of Phase 2 of the Programme commences in strict alignment with the timeframe desired by the Niger Basin Authority’s Governance Bodies.

The Executive Secretary of the Niger Basin Authority (NBA) was granted an audience by the Beninese Minister of Energy, Water and Mines, NBA’s Supervising Minister: Presentation of the outcome of the mission to accelerate the implementation of the PIDACC/NB project, February 16-20, 2026, in Benin.

On the morning of February 19, 2026, His Excellency, Kocou Armand HOUANYE, Executive Secretary of the Niger Basin Authority (NBA), was granted an audience by Mr. José TONATO, Minister of Energy, Water and Mines, and the NBA Supervising Minister in the Republic of Benin.

A meeting full of promise

Following a series of meetings held in Benin from February 16 to 20, 2025, with key stakeholders and partners as part of the support and advocacy mission aimed at expediting the implementation of the Programme for the Integrated Development and Adaptation to Climate Change in the Niger Basin (PIDACC/NB) within the Beninese portion of the Basin, the Executive Secretary of the Niger Basin Authority (NBA) was hosted by the NBA Supervising Minister.

The crux of the high-level talks

During the audience, the Executive Secretary conveyed his profound appreciation and highest consideration to His Excellency Mr. Patrice Athanase Guillaume Talon, President of the Republic of Benin. He further commended the NBA Supervising Minister for the decisive strategic and political patronage which continues to facilitate NBA’s mandate in both Benin and across the entire Niger Basin. He then commended the exceptional leadership of the NBA Supervising Minister for the significant progress recently achieved in the implementation of the PIDACC/NB-Benin project.
The NBA Executive Secretary and the Supervising Minister focused their deliberations on the measures required to ensure optimal performance of the PIDACC/NB-Benin project by the June 2026 milestone. Particular emphasis was placed on leveraging existing emergency procedures in Benin, to enable the commencement of construction and rehabilitation works for PIDACC/NB-Benin multi-purpose water infrastructure projects as quickly as possible, targeting March 31, 2026 deadline.

NBA Supervising Minister’s commitments and directives for the successful implementation of the PIDACC/BN-Benin

In response to the advocacy presented by the NBA Executive Secretary, the Supervising Minister expressed his strong support and reiterated his commitment to working with his colleagues towards: (i) the commencement of the operational phase of the multi-purpose water infrastructure works no later than March 31, 2026; (ii) the significant improvement of the performance of PIDACC/NB-Benin by the end of June 2026, and (iii) the achievement of the expected results of the implementation of Phase 1 of PIDACC/NB for Benin by the new closing date of the Programme, 31 December 2027. To this end, the Authority has mandated his staff to submit an emergency roadmap. The short term implementation of this roadmap is designed to substantially bolster the performance of PIDACC/NB-Benin. The NBA Supervising Minister also directed his staff to convene members of the Programme’s Steering Committee and Experts from the National Coordinating Unit of the PIDACC/NB-Benin to a meeting on the implementation of the emergency roadmap by the end of February 2026.

The audience was held in the presence of the Minister’s staff, notably: (i) the Minister’s Chief of Staff, Mr. Agnidé Emmanuel LAWIN; (ii) the Secretary General of the Ministry, Mr. Kanon Basile ADJO; (iii) the Technical Advisor for Water, Mr. Adolphe M. DEGNIDE ; (iv) the Director General of Water, Coordinator of the National Focal Structure (NFS), PIDACC/NB-Benin Strategic Coordinator, Mr. Saïd Kolawolé HOUNKPONOU, and (v) the PIDACC/NB National Coordinator, Mr. Adamou WOROU WARA B.

For this occasion, the NBA Executive Secretary was accompanied by: (i) Mr. Ibro ADAMOU, Ag. Technical Director of the Executive Secretariat, and (ii) Mr. Seyni SEYDOU, PIDACC/NB Regional Coordinator.

The Niger Basin Authority was represented by Mr. Walter Bamidele OLATUNJI (Hydrologist Expert) in this year edition of Pan-African Dialogue on Transboundary Water Management and Investment convened by the African Union Commission (AUC) in collaboration with AMCOW and AUDA-NEPAD and co-hosted by the Global Water Partnership Africa Coordination Unit (ACU), UNDP Africa, GIZ and GEF IW: LEARN in Addis Ababa from 17th to 18th February, 2026.

The two days event dialogue was highly resourceful, interactive and collaborative with representatives and technical experts from the Africa Union Member States, Regional Economic Communities (RECs), River and Lake Basin Organizations (RBOs), Development Partners, and Civil Society, Women and Youth Networks, and the Private Sector with the primary purposes to:

i. Provide a technical exchange platform for peer learning and capacity strengthening through case studies from projects and initiatives across Africa;

ii. Outlines practical means of action to inform the first phase of the implementation plan of the Africa Water Vision and Policy 2063;

iii. Discuss the issues for developing a continental initiative that responds to the needs identified by the 2025 Addis Ababa Dialogue;

iv. Consolidate shared technical priorities, lessons learned, and actionable recommendations that can be fed into Africa’s collective engagement in global processes, including preparation for the UN 2026 Water Conference.

It is worthy to note that during the plenary 2 – case study cluster 1: Governance and Cooperation Mechanisms, one of the panelists, Mr. Walter Bamidele OLATUNJI, emphasized that robust Transboundary Water Governance Structures are essential for effective management of shared waters and the protection of ecosystems.

According to him, they provide a framework for cooperation, collaboration, decision-making and conflict resolution among countries and stakeholders, ensuring equitable access to water resources and its sustainable use. He then made a reference to Niger Basin Authority Governance Framework and Institutional arrangements which entail: The NBA Water Charter and its annexes, the constituted Summit of Heads of State and Government which is the highest decision-making body in the Basin, the Council of Ministers, the Technical Committee of Experts, National Focal Structures, the Executive Secretariat, the Regional Coordinating and National Coordinating Units of Users of Natural Resources in the Basin that ensure stakeholder participation at the lowest level. This Governance structure of NBA ensures that decisions are inclusive, transparent and reflect basin-wide priorities. According to Mr. Walter Bamidele OLATUNJI, the Niger Basin Authority is a transboundary organization where cooperation has translated to equitable use of water resources, peace and prosperity.

At the end of the two days dialogue, participants made some recommendations to key thematic areas that include; (1) Governance and Cooperation, (2) Climate Resilience and Investment. Significantly, one of the proposed priority actions stated that a platform to facilitate learning should be organized by AUC, using the Niger Basin Authority Water Charter on Governance and Cooperation frameworks as a learning model for other RBOs in the continent.

The forum concluded with a reminder that Water and Sanitation is at the Centre of Agenda 2063: the Africa We Want! Water is an enabler for Africa’s socioeconomic transformation and the outcomes of this dialogue shall be presented in the forthcoming UN Water Conference 2026 at United Arab Emirates in December, 2026. The Dialogue was declared closed by the representative of the UNDP.