Baku: The Baku Climate Action Week 2026 (BCAW2026) featured a roundtable titled Baku Dialogue on Water for Climate Action - From Commitments to Implementation: Advancing Water Centered Climate Action Towards COP 31.

According to Azerbaijan State News Agency, Mukhtar Babayev, Representative of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan on Climate Issues and President of COP29, addressed the event, highlighting the increasing challenges and urgency in water management due to climate change. He noted that droughts are persisting longer, heavy rains and floods are intensifying, and water resource availability is becoming less predictable. Additionally, water demand is rising across various sectors including agriculture, urban centers, industries, and energy systems.

Dmitry Mariyasin, Deputy Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), emphasized the growing importance of the water agenda since 2024. Vivek Shah, from the Freshwater Ecosystems and Wetlands Division of the United Nations Environment Program, pointed out that the primary goal of the Baku Dialogue initiative is to help define shared priorities for the international community and partners concerning the water and climate agenda leading up to COP31.

The roundtable continued with discussions among participants.