GMES and Africa Draws Lessons from MESA Sustainability Meeting

A stakeholders meeting on the sustainability of the achievements of the Monitoring for Environment and Security in Africa (MESA) is underway at the African Union Commission Headquarters in Addis Ababa. The meeting discussed lessons learned, sustainability mechanisms and exit plan for the MESA project.

At the opening of the two-day meeting, the Director of Rural Economy and Agriculture at the African Union Commission told the gathering of stakeholders that the MESA project is winding down and that its sustainability relies on the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security and Africa (GMES and Africa).

Space Science Expert and GMES and Africa Coordinator, Dr. Tidiane Ouattara, underlined the fact that GMES and Africa is a continuity of the previous Earth Observation projects in Africa, including PUMA, AMESD and MESA, and noted that GMES and Africa is supposed to build on the achievements of MESA.

GMES and Africa is the successor of the MESA project, and is the final product of the longstanding cooperation between Africa and Europe in the area of space science & technology, which is one of the key priorities of the long-term EU-Africa Joint Strategy.

Participants at the meeting include officials of the African Union Commission, the European Union, Regional Economic Communities of Africa, specialized institutions involved in the implementation of the MESA project, including JRC, as well as UN agencies.

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HW/BM/AF