FREXUS project // Cooperation in the Lake Chad Basin between the Frexus project and the Lake Chad Basin Commission
Workshop with the executives of the Lake Chad Basin Commission on the LCBC-GIZ collaboration framework for the implementation of the Frexus project according to the operational planning axes.
Participants at the opening of the workshop.
The Frexus project "Improving Security and Resilience to Climate Change in Fragile Contexts through the Water-Energy-Food Security Nexus", in collaboration with the Lake Chad Basin Commission (LCBC) organized on September 21, 2021 in N'djamena, a validation workshop of the Frexus project operational planning. The LCBC is one of the main implementing partners of the Frexus project in Chad.
This Frexus project, implemented by GIZ, is jointly financed by the European Union and the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The project is implemented in three countries of the Sahel, namely Niger, Mali and Chad, and aims to work towards a peaceful resolution of social tensions and conflicts in fragile areas between population groups that are caused or exacerbated by climate change. Therefore, the project works towards a more conflict and climate sensitive management of land, natural resources and ecosystems in the targeted communities, considering the needs of vulnerable groups through the application of the water-energy-food security Nexus approach at local, national and transboundary levels. In this context, it aims to enable authorities and communities in fragile areas facing the consequences of climate change to address these issues in a peaceful, cooperative and integrated manner.
The objective of this project is in line with the mission of the Lake Chad Basin Commission relating to the management and rational and equitable exploitation of the waters of Lake Chad and other natural resources of the Lake Chad Basin, as well as the promotion of transboundary peace and security. In Chad, the Frexus project is being implemented in the Kanem region.
This validation workshop was held in the context of the overall orientation of the Frexus project on the strategic planning of the CBLT. It was attended by about twenty participants including the Technical Director of the LCBC, the GIZ Project Manager in support of the LCBC, the technical advisors of the Frexus project as well as the Directors and Technical Experts of the Observatory Directorate and the Natural Resources Management Directorate of the LCBC.
The main objective of the workshop was to present the Frexus Project's approach and operational planning in relation to the CBLT's strategic intervention axes and work plan.
The Technical Director of the CBLT officially opened the workshop. At the opening of the workshop, the Technical Director (TD) of the LCBC thanked the European Union and the German Cooperation for their support to the LCBC in the framework of the Frexus Project. The TD also encouraged the participation of all LCBC experts to support the implementation of the Frexus Project within a well-defined and clarified framework of collaboration, and to keep in mind its intervention in the basin to allow for an effective implementation of the activities.
After presenting the objectives of the Frexus project, the project team presented the operational planning of the project and the main indicators. The workshop continued with a series of presentations on the LCBC observatory and its decision support tools as well as the state of knowledge on climate risks in the Lake Chad basin. These presentations were followed by debates and discussions on the intervention of the Frexus project and the interest of the LCBC in the Frexus project approach.
Workshop participants proposed in-deep discussions between CBLT experts and Frexus project leaders around the following topics:
- Frexus project support to the CBLT in its ongoing activities for the peaceful management of natural resources around Lake Fitri
- Alignment of the Frexus tool development activities with decision support tools already in use at CBLT.
The workshop concluded with a note of satisfaction from the participants and the adaptation of some of the Frexus project's operational planning activities for better integration with the strategic direction of the LCBC. A summary note including the main conclusions of the workshop was drafted and will be used as a support to update the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that already exists between the CBLT and the Frexus project.
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