Change Story
All systems symposia: building connection and shaping change
Convening nation builders to build stronger systems, institutions, and lasting public services
All Systems Connect 2023
The bigger picture
Water and sanitation do not exist in isolation. They affect public health, education outcomes, economic productivity, climate resilience and public trust in government. Progress depends on ministries, local governments, utilities, finance institutions and communities working together.
We believe that collective action is a prerequisite of building the resilient systems behind these services. It also requires systems leadership that helps recognise who has a role to play and the ability to create, or block, change.
How we worked
In our symposia our role is to convene, connect and hold the space for collective action. We bring together governments, development partners, utilities, financiers, researchers and practitioners to confront difficult questions together: why services fail, what makes systems credible and investable, and what kind of leadership is needed to make change last.
This is one chapter in a longer story. Since our first symposium in 2019, All Systems has grown into a continent-spanning conversation – convening more than 250 leaders in Accra, Ghana in 2022 and returning to Rwanda in 2026 to focus on financial credibility and investable systems with the Republic of Rwanda and Africa Minister's Council on Water.
We know that the world is fragmented, but that the issues that we face are all connected. We still, and that's perhaps a bit of a surprise, we still have a hard time making those connections from a systems perspective, but there is a necessity to do that
Henk Ovink, Special Envoy, International Water Affairs, Government of Netherlands
At the close of the Ghana symposium in 2022, Dr Tanko Yussif Azzika of the African Ministers Council on Water put it plainly: “We are obliged by this slow progress to deeply reflect on the necessary actions that we need to take in our governance and management systems,” he told participants.
At the 2023 symposium in The Hague, Henk Ovink, then Special Envoy for International Water Affairs, Government of the Netherlands, said: “We know that the world is fragmented, but that the issues that we face are all connected. We still, and that's perhaps a bit of a surprise, we still have a hard time making those connections from a systems perspective, but there is a necessity to do that.”
WHAT CHANGED
When we started organising our symposia, talking about systems strengthening was new. We operated in a very infrastructure-focused environment. Over time, systems strengthening has moved from a niche discussion to a language that governments, financiers and regulators now share – and a recognised agenda for action.
Yet the work is far from finished. The real test lies in how countries translate these commitments into stronger institutions and better services.
WHAT’S NEXT
The question now is how quickly we can strengthen systems together – and how we can grow the mindset, behaviours and leadership needed. Through All Systems and our wider convening work, we'll continue to bring people together across sectors, countries and perspectives to ask the difficult questions, build shared commitment and accelerate systems change. If you’re ready to partner with us, get in touch.
All Systems Go 2022