Water for Ukraine: #WASHinWAR Strengthens Partnerships in the Netherlands

From 7 to 12 September 2026, a delegation from the Caritas Ukraine WASH team conducted a working visit to the Netherlands focused on water security, early recovery, and practical solutions for restoring Ukraine’s water infrastructure during the ongoing war. The programme included expert workshops in Rotterdam and Delft, strategic meetings with Cordaid in The Hague, and dialogue with representatives of the Dutch government, international organisations, the water sector, and businesses. One of the key objectives of the visit was to expand international partnerships around #WASHinWAR and explore models that can already today combine humanitarian response with long-term and sustainable recovery.

In Rotterdam and Delft, the Caritas Ukraine team worked alongside Ukrainian and Dutch experts with experience in restoring water infrastructure and operating in crisis contexts. The discussions focused on a practical question: how, while the war continues, to move beyond emergency interventions towards more sustainable infrastructure solutions that combine humanitarian response, early recovery, and resilience. Particular attention was given to strengthening the professional capacity of WASH teams, modern water resource management, and engaging technologies and expertise from the Dutch water sector.

“We need to view humanitarian response not as a series of separate projects, but as an integrated system in which emergency assistance, recovery, and resilience are interconnected. What we do today to address urgent needs should also lay the foundation for long-term recovery and help communities and critical infrastructure become more resilient to future challenges,” says Tetiana Yatsiuk, Head of the WASH Programme at Caritas Ukraine.

Water for Ukraine: From Contacts to Practical Partnerships

An important part of the visit was the “Water for Ukraine: Strengthening Partnerships for Recovery and Resilience” meeting, organised on 11 September by Caritas Ukraine, Cordaid, Lifeline Ukraine and VNG International, in cooperation with the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, and the Ministry of Economy and Environment of Ukraine.

The meeting created a platform for direct dialogue between Ukrainian and Dutch stakeholders on Ukraine’s needs, partnership opportunities, and financing mechanisms for the recovery of water infrastructure. Participants included Joost Klarenbeek, Special Envoy for Ukraine at the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as representatives of RVO, Netherlands Water Partnership, ZOA, Dorcas, Netherlands Red Cross, VEI, WorldWaterNet, WaterWorx, and other partners from the humanitarian, expert, and private sectors.

The discussion focused on how to connect Ukraine’s understanding of community needs with Dutch technical expertise, the capacities of public institutions, and private-sector solutions. Participants also discussed business engagement in recovery, the development of new partnerships, and potential financing instruments.

Separate strategic meetings were held with the Cordaid team. The parties discussed the possibility of gradually moving from cooperation within individual projects towards a broader partnership in early recovery, WASH, resilience, joint fundraising, private-sector engagement, and advocacy. One potential direction for further cooperation is the development of #WASHinWAR as an international platform for partnerships, expert exchange, and advocacy, bringing together Caritas Ukraine, partners from the Caritas network, public institutions, technical experts, and businesses around water security and Ukraine’s recovery.

“We deeply value our partnership with Cordaid and the openness of our Dutch colleagues towards Ukraine. This visit once again demonstrated that effective recovery cannot be achieved by one sector alone. Our task is to build connections between government, civil society, the expert community, and business, so that Ukraine’s needs can meet international expertise, technologies, and resources and be transformed into concrete solutions for communities. This is exactly the approach we want to continue developing through #WASHinWAR,” says Olha Sydii, Coordinator of the #WASHinWAR advocacy campaign.

The visit to the Netherlands confirmed that there is significant international interest, expertise, and potential for new partnerships around the recovery of Ukraine’s water infrastructure.

In 2027, Caritas Ukraine plans to continue developing #WASHinWAR as an open international platform for partnership and advocacy, bringing together the experience and capacities of partners from the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, the United Kingdom, and other countries around a shared goal — protecting the right to water and supporting the sustainable recovery of Ukraine’s water infrastructure.