Water BOOST Enabling Innovation for Future Ready Cities 2025

Fieldwork was carried out in two phases (Figure 3), comprising an explorative stage and a validation stage across six cities. Full details of the scope, methods and participants are provided in Section 1.3. Together, these cities offered a rich testing ground to explore how enabling environments function and what systemic factors support or hinder innovation. While local contexts vary, a set of recurring constraints emerged, including disconnected actors, limited early-stage support and misaligned incentives. Understanding enabling environments for water innovation requires more than desk-based research. It entails close collaboration and learning from the individuals and institutions that shape water systems on the ground. To ensure that this project remained grounded in real-world dynamics, a co-design process was built around extensive stakeholder engagement across multiple global contexts. In total, 138 stakeholders from 73 organizations were consulted through semi-structured interviews. Interviews were recorded, transcribed and systematically analysed; findings were triangulated with literature and sector reports. Their insights shaped every stage of the work, from refining the conceptual framework to validating emerging patterns and needs. To reflect the diversity of the water innovation ecosystem, participants were grouped into six stakeholder categories, ranging from utilities and regulators to entrepreneurs, investors, researchers and civil society organizations. Table 2 provides an overview of these categories and their definitions.1.5 Stakeholder engagement and co-design Stakeholder categories and definitions used to analyse water innovation ecosystems TABLE 2 Stakeholder categories Definition Public utilities and large private concessionairesPublic service providers and private companies operating under long-term concession agreements, delivering water services on behalf of public authorities Policy-makers and regulators Institutions responsible for developing, enforcing and overseeing water governance frameworks, policies and regulations Innovators and entrepreneurs Start-ups, technology providers and established water-sector companies with dedicated innovation or research and development (R&D) teams Investors and accelerators Entities providing financial support, seed funding, venture capital and acceleration services (e.g. mentorship, networking and capacity-building for start-ups) to innovators and service providers Academia and research institutions Universities, think tanks and research centres generating knowledge, developing new technologies and informing policy and practice through scientific research and capacity- building Civil society organizations NGOs and community-based actors that drive advocacy, accountability and equity in water service delivery Source: World Economic Forum Water-BOOST: Enabling Innovation for Future-Ready Cities 12