Water Management & Maritime

Other side of the globe, similar challenges, common solutions
©Rijkswaterstaat

The Netherlands is known worldwide for strong engineering and innovative solutions in overcoming water challenges. Whether it is coastal protection or clean drinking water, we work with other countries around the world – including New Zealand and the Pacific Island countries.

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Bilateral cooperation

Henk Ovink at Water New Zealand event
Henk Ovink, the Dutch envoy for International Water Affairs at Water New Zealand conference.

The Netherlands and Aotearoa New Zealand share common challenges when it comes to water and climate change. It is important that we keep sharing knowledge and experience between the Dutch and New Zealand water sectors, knowledge institutes, and government agencies. Our combined expertise covers all different types of topics: from dredges to droughts, from river flooding to canal management.

The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands facilitates these connections and bilateral exchanges. Examples from recent years include:

  • The attendance of the Netherlands Water Envoy, Meike van Ginneken, to the annual WaterNZ Conference in Christchurch in 2025;
  • Input from the Deltacommissie on the Dunedin City Council’s adaptation programme for South Dunedin in 2023;  
  • And water study tour to the Netherlands for a delegation from the Ngāi Tahu Iwi (Māori tribe from the South Island) in 2018.

Flood management and coastal protection

Dutch dredging in New Zealand
Dutch dredging in Christchurch.

The Dutch water sector works with New Zealand to find innovative solutions to our shared challenges. For example, Dutch Dredging maintains more than 5 ports around New Zealand and was involved in work the Pacific Island state Samoa. You can also see DAMEN hopper dredgers at work in Napier and Otago Ports, and tug boats in the Marlborough, Wellington Ports, and Auckland Port – some all-electric! Royal Haskoning DHV works on protecting one of New Zealand’s most vulnerable coastlines in Coromandel and Deltares has been involved in various consultancy and advisory projects in other parts of the country.

Water cooperation in Fiji, Samoa and the South Pacific

A meeting with Regional Pacific NDC Hub, discussing our shared commitment to explore joint efforts in water-related initiatives, including water security, wastewater treatment, and integrated water resource management, in August 2025.

Water management is an important topic of collaboration between the Netherlands and several Pacific Island countries. Together, we can find innovative solutions for water management, as rising sea levels cause issues for coastal management.

Examples from recent years include:

  • In 2024 and 2025, the Netherlands Embassy in Wellington supports the Pacific Water and Wastewater Association (PWWA) in organizing the 16th Pacific Water Conference and 9th Pacific Ministerial Water Forum in the Solomon Islands;
  • The ongoing work on the Ba River, where Dutch Disaster Risk Reduction and Surge Support – (DRRS), is helping to reduce the risk of flooding.
  • There is a growing community of Pacific alumni bringing back cutting-edge expertise from Dutch based education institutions like IHE Delft Institute for Water Education, for which the Netherlands gives out special scholarships for Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Their knowledge and leadership are helping to shape sustainable futures for the Pacific.