The TIGER initiative - esa.int · The TIGER initiative Outcome of the TIGER 2004 Workshop SP-1293 Project_tiger2 11/14/05 11:29 AM Page 1

The TIGER initiativeOutcome of the TIGER 2004 Workshop

SP-1293

Project_tiger2 11/14/05 11:29 AM Page 1

TIGER 2004 2nd TIGER Initiative Workshop on Earth Observation for

Integrated Water Resources Management in Africa

SummaryThis is a short report of a key workshopfor the CEOS TIGER Initiative. It marks theturning point at which TIGER evolvedfrom a well-meaning but vague intentionto become an action focused on clearuser needs and priority objectives. Morethan 140 African and internationalexperts considered the potentialcontribution of space technology forinforming water resources management inAfrica and possible strategies for a long-term programme of cooperation betweenthe TIGER initiative and Africangovernments, scientific institutions, privatesector and civil society.

Where and WhenThe meeting was convened from 8through 11 November 2004, at theinvitation of the Government of theRepublic of South Africa. It was held atthe International Convention Centre of theCouncil for Science and IndustrialResearch in Pretoria, South Africa, andattended by people from more than 50countries over three continents. CSIR,DWAF, ESA and UNESCO supported themeeting financially and logistically, withfurther support from CSA, NASA NOAAand EUMETSAT and all the presentersand participants.

TIGER 2004 2nd TIGER Initiative Workshop on Earth Observation for

Integrated Water Resources Management in Africa


Guest of honour Honourable B. P. Sonjica, Minister ofWater Affairs and Forestry of theRepublic of South Africa, who made amost significant contribution to themeeting and promised to promote TIGERfurther with AMCOW.

Previous ContextThis workshop followed on from TIGER2003 held in Rabat. In between, bothESA and CSA had launched ‘AO Callsfor Proposals’ for projects related towater management in Africa. About halfof the participants at the meeting werelinked to proposals submitted to theseAO, giving the meeting a most practicaledge.

What HappenedAs far as the organisers were concernedthe Workshop went extremely well. Theschedule was adhered to, the

presentations were of a remarkably highstandard and complemented each otherwell, and the resulting outcome andconclusions were most convergent andpractical. The first day set the scene. The secondday comprised 5 parallel workinggroups. The third day synthesiseddiscussions and worked on conclusionsand recommendations for the future ofTIGER. The 4th day was a trainingsession for project leaders (PIs). Three‘Round Tables’ held on the first daybrought forth interesting ideas andsubsequently provoked much pertinentdiscussion. A highly varied series of shortpresentations on the third daydemonstrated the urgent need and broadrequirement for initiatives like TIGER, withmany salutary lessons learned fromelsewhere.


The main findings from the workshop were:

1) Each country and region in Africa is committed to developing a strategy for delivering Integrated Water Resource Management. This cannot be achieved with out good access to satellite data and other modern information tools. TIGER shouldbe targeted on helping to meet the information needs of the many stakeholders in IWRM in Africa, at all scales from micro-watershed to transboundary basins.

2) A ten-year programme of support from the Space Agencies and development partners will be required to make much impact on this challenging problem.

3) Capacity building to enable decision makers to use modern data and information products effectively in IWRM will most probably be the major component in future TIGER activities.

4) For a number of reasons, most future workshops, project support and training activities would probably best be implemented at sub-regional scale.

4) The objectives of TIGER closely match those articulated by UN Water/Africa in the Africa Water Vision 2025, right down to the timing of the International Decade on ‘Water For Life’, 2005-2015.

The main outcome from the workshop was an agreed 10-year strategy document (seeAnnex 1) based on the Africa Water Vision 2025, targeting IWRM and with sustainedsupport promised from the CEOS space agencies.

NEXT STEPS MUST INCLUDE:

• Development of a 10-year plan for TIGER with clarified and prioritised needs

• Seeking support from development partners for implementation of the plan

• Supporting the many AO projects to realise their full potential in TIGER

• Raising awareness of TIGER and seeking broader stakeholder support

• Broadening the CEOS partnership to include other agencies active in IWRM

• Development of a transboundary strategy

• Action Plan for 2005

TIGER team, coming from so manycountries, that worked together to obtainthe results achieved … but many thanksto everyone who assisted, and lets see ifwe can do even better in 2005.

Thanks are due to so many people forhelping to make this workshop a success,with clear tangible outcome and goodprospects for the future. It would bedivisive to distinguish any members of the

Findings, Outcome and Next Steps



1 The Africa Water Vision for 2025In view of the growing challenges Africafaces in relation to the possibledevelopment constraints of waterresources for the continent’s development,the United Nations Economic Commissionfor Africa, the Organisation of AfricanUnity, the African Development Bank andUN Water/Africa jointly developed along-term vision and programme of actionwhich is to provide for the equitable andsustainable use of water for socio-economic development of the continent.The “Africa Water Vision for 2025”,endorsed by the African MinisterialConference on Water (AMCOW) and bythe Heads of State of the African Unionat the Extraordinary Summit on Waterand Agriculture at Surte, Libya, inFebruary 2004, serves as a basis forlong-term national, sub-regional andregional policies and programmes ofaction.

The framework for achieving this visioncalls for strengthened governance ofwater resources and considers the abilityto generate and receive knowledge andinformation to be critical success factors inview of growing water scarcity due tonatural phenomena and human factors. The paucity of information on waterresources is considered a key limitation atnational, sub-regional and continentallevels. This developmental constraint islinked to limited physical access anddegraded and sparse monitoring networksas well as inadequate capacities for thecollection, assessment and disseminationof data on water resources fordeveloping, planning, implementing andconducting water resources management.

Space and “Water for Life” “TIGER” - STRATEGIC PLAN for Africa 2005-2015


2 TIGER - space technologies for bridging the water information gap

On the basis of the challenges and issuesarticulated in the context of the WorldSummit on Sustainable Development, theEuropean Space Agency launched aninitiative aiming at supporting Africandevelopment efforts with pertinent space-based information for water resourcesdevelopment and use. Since its initiationin 2002, the programme has benefitedfrom the association of other spaceagencies, including those of Canada,Japan and the United States, as well asthe space- and water resources-relatedprogrammes of UNESCO and the UnitedNations.Over the past two years, the TIGERprogramme has launched the spacetechnology option in the African waterdevelopment discourse, organising andcontributing to international conferencesi.a. PANAFCON in Addis Ababa,AFRICAGIS in Dakar, and dedicatedTIGER events in Paris, Pretoria, Rabat and

Salzburg, and initiated concrete pilotprojects focusing on food security, aquifermanagement, epidemiology and wetlandmonitoring. These pilot projects, launchedby the European Space Agency and sooncomplemented by 4-7 additional projectssupported by the Canadian SpaceAgency, will provide early demonstrationsof the capacity of space systems’contribution to integrated water resourcesmanagement. The results of these projectswill help building a constituency forTIGER in general and for internationaldonor agencies in particular. The successof the TIGER initiative will largely belinked to its capacity to help deliver anAfrican Vision 2025 for watermanagement.In order to further define structures,programmes and partnerships ofcooperation for the application of spacetechnology for water resourcesmanagement in Africa, African institutionswere invited to submit concrete proposalsfor pilot projects which would provide

leadership in the implementation ofcontinent-wide programmes. The 95project proposals submitted by more than300 African experts deal with aquifermanagement and hydrogeology, withriver basin management for agricultureand food security, with wetlands, lakesand coastal zone management as well aswith hydrological modelling, the

problems of floods, and water issuesrelated to health. They will form the firstwave for TIGER’s programme for humanand institutional capacity building forspace-based information to water


resources management. 3 Mainstreaming space technology for

African water managementThe successful implementation of theTIGER programme will need to beintegrated with existing structures atregional, sub-regional and nationallevels. AMCOW and its TechnicalAdvisory Committee will providevisionary leadership. The RegionalEconomic Groupings that have watermanagement development programmescan further ensure the integration of Earthobservation into sub-regionalprogrammes if they do not yet have thesetechnologies supporting the programmes. Ministers for water resources, the existingnational focal points within the nationalwater administrations and river basinauthorities in Africa are currently the corestructural element in the implementationof integrated water resourcesmanagement. To implement the TIGERprogramme, their efforts will have to belinked with and harmonise the efforts ofall other sectors. There is a need for a

multi-sectoral initiative to resolve waterissues in Africa. Focal points andAdvisory Groups which are multi-sectoralcan lead and implement the cooperationarrangements with the pertinent spaceagencies and donor organisations, butalso the capacity building in wateragencies, research institutions anduniversities, the private sector and civilsociety, including the user communities atlocal level. Space-based data and maps assumeadditional political significance in thecontext of Africa’s trans-boundary surfaceand ground water systems. Themethodologically objective quality ofspace-based information assumes anadditional political significance in effortsof promoting cooperation in thedevelopment and use of sharedresources. The strengthening of dataprocessing capacities of trans-boundarywater administrations will require theestablishment of focal points in suchinternational river basin authorities.


4 Implementing the TIGER programme in Africa

Participating space agencies will, to theextent and within the time framesapproved, provide satellite data andservices to African water institutions freeof charge.The application of space technology inAfrican water management will havebroad institutional implications, includingin particular the capacity building andretention of experts in publicadministrations, scientific institutions, theprivate sector and civil society. Relatedinstitutional development programmesmust be facilitated in partnership withinternational donors and, whereappropriate, in conjunction with theprivate sector. In addition, it is expectedthat the private sector, particularly AfricanSMMEs, will play a facilitator role in theprovision of information services to theadministrations, thereby contributing tocreate wealth, employment and newbusiness opportunities. The national focalpoints will assume a driving role in the

implementation ofthese programmes. Asmuch is expected from thefocal points, and in light of theirstrategic role in the implementation of theTIGER programme, attention will be paidto providing assistance in fulfilling theirmandate.The development of staff and expertcapacity will be initiated in a first phasethrough sub-regional programmes whichare to be continued at national and locallevels involving the respectivegovernmental and non-governmentalexperts. “Train the trainer” programmeswill aim at the creation of sustainableAfrican institutional developmentcapacities and complement the African

WaterInformation

Clearing House(AWICH) which has been

initiated by UN Water/Africa andendorsed by AMCOW. In view of the fundamental institution-building quality of the TIGER programmeit was considered indispensable to designthe respective programmes of cooperationfor a period coinciding with the UnitedNations Decade “Water for Life” 2005-2015. Accordingly, a 10 YearImplementation Plan will be developedwithin the coming six months.


5 2005 – Launching TIGER’s 10-Year programme

Special gratitude is due to theHonourable B. P. Sonjica, Minister ofWater Affairs and Forestry of theRepublic of South Africa, who, as thehost of the TIGER 2004 Workshop, hascommitted herself to promoting thesupport of space applications for Africanwater management at the earliestconvenience within the framework ofAMCOW. With the support of AMCOW andNEPAD, the TIGER programme willinitiate sub-regional conferences during2005 with the participation of nationaland river basin focal points as well asrepresentatives of scientific institutions,civil society and the private sector. Thesemeetings are to provide governments andpartners with opportunities for sharedanalysis of needs and programmeformulation. In certain cases, cooperationin training programmes and regionallyfocussed data processing capacities may

emerge. Where it is cost-effective, thesemeetings will be scheduled jointly withongoing AWICH sub-regional workshops. The projects already underway, those thatwill be initiated soon and the projectproposals submitted for implementationby African experts and institutions will beintegrated into national institutionaldevelopment and capacity buildingprogrammes. Capacity building effortswill be jointly supported by UNESCO,space agencies represented through theCommittee of Earth Observation Satellites(CEOS) and other relevant partners.With the aim of attaining long-term

institutional sustainability, the TIGERprogramme will support programmes andactivities that will provide awareness andknowledge of space technologies’contribution to African watermanagement at all levels of governance. The innovative quality of the TIGERprogramme will require specialcommunication efforts and developmentof long-term cooperation between African

partners, the TIGER programme andnational, regional and internationaldevelopment and donor institutions as well as the private sector.


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The TIGER initiative - esa.int · The TIGER initiative Outcome of the TIGER 2004 Workshop SP-1293 Project_tiger2 11/14/05 11:29 AM Page 1