The final Conference Statement of The World Conference on Drowning Prevention 2025 has been released, capturing three days of global dialogue, evidence-sharing, and collective commitment to reducing drowning worldwide. Held in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, the event brought together more than 500 experts from over 50 countries under the banner Waves of Change: Charting a Course to Safer Waters.
The statement reflects the necessity to accelerate drowning prevention action with nearly 300,000 people dying from drowning each year. Read the statement in full, here.
The statement highlights several major milestones from the conference, including the release of the WHO Global Status Report on Drowning Prevention, and the unveiling of the first Global Strategy for Drowning Prevention. It also reflects on the opening keynote address delivered by the Egyptian the Minister for Sport and Youth and the Egyptian Diving and Lifesaving Federation (EDLF), which included the launch of Egypt’s new National Water Safety Strategy.
Insights from the plenary panels spanned a variety of themes, including youth leadership, building equitable partnerships, addressing occupational drowning, and strengthening swimming, water safety, and self‑rescue skills. A strong emphasis on equity, community leadership, and multisectoral collaboration runs throughout the statement.
In its call to action, the statement outlines 18 priority commitments for the global community – from prioritizing community leadership to embedding drowning prevention within national health and development systems. It urges countries and organisations to elevate youth voices, noting that the drowning burden is disproportionately borne by those under 25 years of age.
The closing message is clear: drowning prevention is a collective effort, and progress depends on shared leadership, inclusive partnerships, and sustained global coordination.
In the time between now and WCDP2027, conference organisers encourage everyone to increase collaboration, create new knowledge, reach further into the communities most vulnerable to drowning, form new partnerships, especially with those not yet engaged in drowning prevention, and capitalise on this exciting time to be committed to eliminating drowning.
View the Conference Statement here