Nile river awareness kit project supports sustainable management of the Nile River
Jun 07, 2006
The Nile River Awareness Kit (RAK), a multimedia education and awareness-raising tool about the resources of the Nile River, was presented in the joint donor and ministerial session at the Council of Ministers (Nile COM) meeting in Bujumbura, Burundi on May 3rd, 2006. Ministers from nine African countries, as well as multilateral and donor agencies attended the presentation.
The Nile COM presentation was followed by a Regional Workshop to present the Nile RAK CD-ROM to participants in Cairo, Egypt on May 6th, 2006. Approximately 65 participants attended the regional workshop, including the Honourable Minister for State of the Environment in Egypt, delegates from the Ministry of Irrigation, Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) officials, Ambassadors from Nile basin countries, donor and development partners, and representatives from nine countries. The Honourable Eng. Maged George, Minister of State for Environmental Affairs stated:
“The Nile RAK CD ROM will go a long way in partially fulfilling the information requirement for sustainable management of the resources and the environment in the Nile basin. Within the context of sustainable development, the NRAK brings into the knowledge of the public and the decision makers the pressures and trends in the environment and on the natural resources and this should stimulate actions to reverse negative trends.”
Over 100 participants from the NBI, government, civil society, and academia participated in national training workshops held in Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda between May 9 – 15, 2006. During workshops participants were trained in the use of the Nile RAK-CD, and how to deliver the RAK as a training program within their respective organizations. The participants described the Nile RAK CD as an important output from the NBI.
Over the next year, the project team will be finalizing the CD-ROM and conducting training, dissemination and outreach activities throughout the basin.
About the Nile RAK Project
The Nile RAK project, a two-year project initiated in March 2005, is designed to promote the sustainable management and use of the environment and resources within the Nile. The project utilizes participatory processes to gather input from project stakeholders during all phases of the project including: design, implementation and evaluation. The main deliverable of the project is a multimedia and interactive CD-ROM learning tool that encourages knowledge and awareness regarding the environmental resources and management of the Nile Basin. Earth Observation-based applications (satellite data), training programs and maps are integral components of the project and provide decision makers with an improved capability to understand and manage the environment within the basin.
The project is being implemented by a collaborative partnership between the Nile Transboundary Environmental Action Project (NTEAP) of the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI), and a project team lead by Hatfield Consultants Ltd (Hatfield). The project is supported by Strata360 and the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations and funded by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) under the Tiger Initiative, an international initiative designed to promote sustainable management of water resources in Africa.
Participants Nile RAK Regional Training, Cairo Egypt
Head Table Nile RAK Regional Presentation
For more information, please contact us:
Grant Bruce
Vice-President
HATFIELD CONSULTANTS PARTNERSHIP
E-mail: hcp@hatfieldgroup.com
Tel.: +1 604 926 3261
Toll-Free: 1 866 926 3261
