The National Water Initiative is an intergovernmental agreement between the Australian, state and territory governments. It aims to improve the management of the nation's water resources and provide greater certainty for future investment.

The agreement was signed at the 25 June 2004 COAG meeting by all governments (with the exception of Tasmania, which signed the agreement in 2005, and Western Australia, which signed the agreement in April 2006).

At its heart, the initiative sets out the basis on which water resources are to be shared to support resilient communities, healthy ecosystems and economic development.

Ten years on, this intergovernmental agreement has delivered significant benefits to Australia—benefits that have flowed to individual water users, communities, industries and the environment.