The ceremony held at the Department of Park and Wildlife Management, attracted volunteers from the four identified cells in Bonto, Bintang – West Coast Region, Tendaba, Bomako – Lower River Region, officials of DPWM, MWT, SWC, consultant/trainers and ERI among others.
The project was co-funded by European Union through NAOSU - National Authorising Officer Support Unit, Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs -The Gambia, within the framework of the GCCA+ Climate Resilient Coastal and Marine Zone Project for The Gambia.
At the phasing-out ceremony of the European Research Institute component of the CONNECTING project, Lamin Kuru Kongira, director of Makasutu Wildlife Trust (MWT), assured that Makasutu Wildlife Trust and Sahel Wetland Concern would always support whenever the need arises.
He dilated on the importance of project, which he said, has given special attention to building the capacity of the concerned rural population to monitor, protect and conserve biodiversity to sustainably manage the remaining natural resources by undertaking education campaigns and providing intensive training in monitoring the River Gambia Coastal Areas.
Kongira outlined that the overall objective of the project is to enhance effective collection and transmission of data on environmentally significant events and biophysical parameters to the National Environment Agency (NEA) in order to help coastal communities along the Gambia River to adapt to impacts of climate change.
Kawsu Jammeh, director of Sahel Wetland Concern (SWC), expressed gratitude to all partners and sponsors of the project, noting that the project is now phased-out but they’ve to find another way or to continue the monitoring.
‘A lot of activities were not done but the project was meant to set a stage’ and urged every trained volunteer from Bomako, Bonto, Tendaba and Bintang cells at WC and LR Regions for the Coastal Observer Network for Monitory the Effects of Climate Change along The Gambia River to see how best they can continue with what they have started.”
Samba Jawo, Country Coordinator for the European Research Institute (ERI), thanked the partners, volunteers and all those who had in one way or another made the project possible particularly co-funders - European Union through NAOSU - National Authorising Officer Support Unit, Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs, The Gambia.
Jawo also applauded the trainers and coordinator of the project, further assuring of their future collaboration to achieve meaningful result.
Binta Sambou, a Wildlife Conservation Officer on behalf of the Department of Parks and Wildlife Management, reminded that climate change has affected not only The Gambia, but the whole earth in so many ways.
“Even if you have not seen it you have heard it and been impacted directly or indirectly. I thank MWT and SWC, who were coordinating the project with the ERI and in an extension the consultant and trainers for a job well done.”
To the volunteers, she urged them not to relent in their laurels to make the project a successful one. “Your interest and passion to the work matter most. You can write, take pictures, be good observers and so on that’s how you move on while equipment and other things follow as support.”
Jatto Sillah, a lead consultant, Alpha O Jallow, a trainer both encouraged volunteers to be steadfast and make good use of the new knowledge they have acquired through the Connecting project.
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