The meeting aimed to chart a transformative roadmap for the sustainable management of the continent’s vast environmental resources and rich biodiversity (including forests, water bodies and wildlife) through data-driven, science-backed solutions and approaches.
The Technical Assistance team and the JRC staff represented two components of the ArcX programme at the meeting: the Biodiversity and Forest Component and the Transversal Component.
During the meeting, the governance of the ArcX programme was established. The Technical Assistance team reviewed the anticipated interactions between stakeholders and discussed the advantages they would gain from these collaborations.
Lessons learnt from Biodiversity and Protected Areas Management Reference Information System (BIOPAMA-RIS), which was the precursor of the Biodiversity and Forest component, were presented as well as the JRC’s involvement in the implementation of the Biodiversity and Forests component of the programme. Time was dedicated also to the presentation of the latest version of the Integrated Management Effectiveness Tool (IMET), which was developed under the BIOPAMA programme and widely adopted in Africa to improve the use and appropriation of planning monitoring-evaluation tools at the conservation site and central administration levels.
The Africa Knowledge Platform was showcased during the meeting. The platform is the infrastructural backbone of the programme providing geospatial data access, dissemination and sharing as well as a comprehensive suite of Decision Support Systems to bridge the science-policy gap.
The meeting is a cornerstone in the implementation of the RCoEs for the Green Transition programme, and lays the foundation for the work to be carried out over the coming year.
