From 8 to 10 June 2016 the Mékrou Project Manager, in support to GWP-WA team represented by the WACDEP Programme Manager and IUCN participated in the Extraordinary Council of Ministers of the Volta Basin Authority held in Cotonou, Benin. The meeting allowed to introduce and adopt the concept note of the project developed jointly by IUCN and GWP-WA on "Conserving and restoring a functioning ecosystem in the Volta Basin." A resolution of the the VBA Council of Ministers was taken to adopt this initiative.
The GWP Technical Committee has launched three new Technical Focus Papers and introduced a Background Paper. This took place at an event in Stockholm on 28 August. The event was live streamed and a recording of this will be available shortly.
The populations of Ramitenga harvested on August 25, 2015 the corn grown on the demonstration site of the drip irrigation project. The quantity harvested has suffered damage caused by migratory birds that decimated almost 30% of the crops. According to the WACDEP Regional Manager, "the demonstration site was at that time the only place where birds could have something to eat, which accentuated their aggressiveness despite all the actions undertaken by project beneficiaries to hunt them."
The Regional Training on International Water Law for improved trans-boundary water management in Africa started on 6 June 2016 at Africana Hotel in Kampala, Uganda and was officially opened by Mrs. Florence Adongo, Director of Water Resources Management at the Ugandan Ministry of Water and Environment
The Tanzania Water Partnership (TWP) was launched in Feb 2004 as the 8th Country Water Partnership (CWP) in the Southern African Sub Region. By then, it was called CWP. However, there were only a few activities that were registered between 2004 and 2013. Sporadic efforts to keep and sustain the partnership did not yield much success and hence dormancy dominated most of this period.