Enabel and AB InBev sign strategic collaboration agreement to advance sustainable development

Brussels / Davos, April 2026 – Enabel, the Belgian agency for international cooperation, and AB InBev, the world’s leading brewer, are entering a long-term strategic collaboration to accelerate sustainable development across agricultural value chains, advance the circular economy, and strengthen water stewardship and climate resilience in partner countries.

The agreement, formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed at the Belgium House during the World Economic Forum in Davos, builds on several years of constructive dialogue and joint initiatives. It marks the beginning of a deeper, structured partnership between a public cooperation actor and a global private sector leader sharing a common ambition: to cocreate impactful, locally anchored solutions that benefit communities, enterprises, and the environment.

Through this collaboration, Enabel and AB InBev aim to leverage their complementary strengths. AB InBev brings extensive operational experience, innovation platforms such as the 100+ Accelerator, and vast agricultural supply chains, notably in Africa where the company sources crops such as barley and sorghum from thousands of smallholder farmers. Enabel contributes its longstanding country presence, technical expertise, and strong networks across governments, civil society, and development partners.

Initial opportunities for collaboration are under development in Mozambique, Uganda and Tanzania. Joint project development focuses on three priority areas:

• Sustainable agriculture: Improving yields and supporting and upskilling farmers and cooperatives, including trainings and other labour upskilling activities.
• Water stewardship: Protecting watersheds, enhancing community access to clean water, and promoting responsible water management.
• Energy & Emissions: Bottle recycling, aggregation hubs and transport solutions for waste management, glass recovery and recycling systems, renewable energy projects, low-carbon logistics, and local resilience initiatives.

These efforts demonstrate the value of building bridges between public and private actors to achieve sustainable, inclusive growth.

“If we truly want to deliver human, economic, and environmental impact, we must work more closely together and combine our strengths. This partnership with AB InBev embodies the kind of pragmatic, future-oriented collaboration that international cooperation needs today. By aligning our missions and leveraging our respective networks, we can accelerate sustainable transformations that create real opportunities for communities, starting with the farmers and young people who are central to our programmes,” said Enabel’s CEO Jean Van Wetter.

“Public-private collaboration is key to delivering impact at scale. Through our partnership with Enabel, we’re bringing together our expertise and networks help build resilience in local value chains and unlock lasting opportunities for farmers and communities,” says AB InBev’s Chief Sustainability Officer, Ingrid De Ryck.

The signing of the MoU reflects a broader shift toward innovative, cross-sector alliances in international cooperation, demonstrating Belgium’s leadership in forging partnerships that combine public purpose with private sector capabilities. Enabel and AB InBev will continue developing country-level plans in the coming months, with Uganda identified as one of the first priority geographies.