The national workshop, held in Koudougou, brought together some 40 participants from the Burkinabe portion of the Volta Basin: representatives of user organizations, local stakeholders, technical experts, and project partners. The workshop resulted in:
- The amendment and validation of the national report on user mapping and characterization;
- The discussion and adoption of the work plan and capacity-building program;
- The validation of the lists of co-opted organizations representing different uses and territories;
- The adoption of the statutes and internal regulations, amended in a participatory manner.
At the end of the workshop, the National User Coordination was officially established, with the setting up of its governing bodies according to an inclusive and representative approach. A bureau of sixteen (16) members was elected, headed by Mr. Eloi NOMBRE, president of the National Federation of Cashew Producers, appointed as the first president of the Coordination.
This structuring marks the beginning of the process of official recognition by the administrative authorities, in accordance with the objectives of the REWarD project. It aims to ensure the active participation of users in the integrated management of the basin's natural resources, in line with the principles of inclusive governance, sustainability, and resilience.
These actions are taking place within the framework of the implementation of the project “Reversing the Trends of Ecosystem and Water Resource Degradation in the Volta River Basin (REWarD - Volta River Basin)”. This project was developed in close collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the Volta Basin Authority (VBA), the Global Water Partnership West Africa (GWP-WA) and national stakeholders.
The REWaRD – Volta River Basin project, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF), aims to reverse the trends of natural resource and ecosystem degradation in the Volta Basin by promoting transboundary governance, integrated natural resource management, and community resilience.
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