The AUDC Project at the Heart of the Digital Transformation of African Water Utilities
On the occasion of the 23rd International Congress and Exhibition of the African Water and Sanitation Association (AfWASA), held in Yaoundé in February 2026, AfWASA, in collaboration with GWP, hosted a strategic panel dedicated to the digital transformation of public water utilities in Africa, in connection with the Africa Utility Data Collaborative (AUDC) project.
This vision, championed by AfWASA in partnership with Athena Infonomics and the German Water Partnership, aims to position data as a strategic lever for improving the performance of African water and sanitation operators. The discussions highlighted the persistent challenges faced by many utilities, including fragmented information systems, poor data quality, and limited analytical capacities, all of which hinder strategic decision-making and access to financing.
The AUDC provides an innovative response through a cohort-based program, the recruitment of data specialists within utilities, rapid digital maturity assessments, and the deployment of an Integrated Data Management System (IDMS) tailored to each specific context.
At the conclusion of the panel, five utilities, SEG (Guinea), NWSC (Uganda), LWB (Malawi), STÉ (Togo), and STE (Chad), formalized their commitment through the signing of a binding agreement, demonstrating their strong determination to fully embrace the data revolution at the core of the sustainable modernization of Africa’s water sector.
