Two very intense days of debates and planning have just closed at CIHEAM Bari.
The 2nd Stakeholder Forum and Annual Partnership Meeting were held on May 13th and 14th, and aimed to present mid-term outcomes and chart future activities for the collaborative project focused on sustainable water and soil management in East Africa and Egypt.
Organized by the CIHEAM Bari, in cooperation with AICS Cairo, the meeting hosted nearly 60 participants from Italy, Egypt, Ethiopia, Finland, Kenya, the Netherlands, Sudan, and Uganda, and gathered mid and high-level representatives from national and local public authorities, universities, research institutes, and value-chain extension services. Among the notable attendees were international project partners and Stakeholder Forum members such as the Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa (ASARECA), the Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE), the International Soil Reference and Information Centre (ISRIC), the Italian National Research Council (CNR-IPSP), Heliopolis University (HU), the Water Research Centre of Khartoum University (WRC), the Water and Land Resources Centre of Addis Ababa University (WRLC), and the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO).
The event opened with welcome addresses from Maurizio Raeli, Director of CIHEAM Bari, who thanked all participants for their continuous commitment in carrying out the project’s activity plan. He also emphasized the importance of the European Union’s support for such cooperation and stressed CIHEAM Bari’s increasing engagement in research and cooperation with North and Sub-Saharan African countries in the different sectors of agriculture.
Martino Melli, Director of AICS Cairo highlighted the importance of this meeting to achieve project milestones and assure a smooth project administrative and financial management. After an overview of the meeting objectives presented by CIHEAM Bari a significant highlight was the presentation of the four booklets titled “From the Selection of the Best Management Practices to the Identification of Scenarios” who provided the Members of the Stakeholder Forum and all the partnership with updated data, crucial feedback by the farming communities in the study areas, objectives and indicators for the implementation of the best agricultural management practices.
Participants engaged in sharing and reviewing the outcomes of local meetings held in the previous months, discussing the use of the project modelling toolbox, and participating in country-specific working groups to outline future scenarios. The day concluded with a vibrant networking buffet in the Campus Garden, featuring a traditional Pizzica dance and music performance by the Apulian group “Tamburellisti di Torre Paduli,” providing an opportunity for informal interaction and cultural exchange among the participants.
On the second day, CIHEAM Bari representatives presented the activities conducted from the 1st Annual Meeting to date, detailing main results, encountered problems, and variations to the work plan. This session allowed partners to take stock of the project’s progress, address issues, and set deadlines for technical, administrative, financial, and communication management aspects. The discussions also laid out the work plan for the upcoming year, particularly focusing on capacity-building activities at selected sites and feasibility studies with local stakeholders, which will provide critical data for the project’s modelling phases.
The participation of young researchers from the study area countries and their interaction with European and African research institutions is a vital component of the project as this exchange fosters collaboration and enhances the research capacity of both regions, contributing to the overall success of the project. The 2nd Stakeholder Forum and Annual Partnership Meeting marked a significant milestone for the WATDEV project partners, reinforcing their commitment to advancing climate-smart water management and sustainable agricultural practices in East Africa and Egypt.
Funded by the DeSIRA Program of the European Union (DG INTPA), WATDEV aims to address and mitigate the problems caused by climate change in East Africa and Egypt by boosting research and innovation in water and soil management. AICS (Italian Agency for Development Cooperation) is the project Coordinator and the CIHEAM Bari (the Italian headquarters of the International Centre of Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies) is the project scientific and technical Lead Partner.