WACWISA participates in development of solar irrigation curriculum
Ho, Jan 29, GNA- A team from the West African Centre for Water, Irrigation and Sustainable Agriculture (WACWISA) of the University for Development Studies (UDS) has attended a workshop to develop curriculum for Solar Powered Irrigation System (SPIS) in the country.
The four-day Curriculum Review Workshop, which ended in Ho, was also attended by other stakeholders drawn from other research and training institutions, and the private sector with the aim to enhance collaboration and cooperation.
It was a continuation of the curriculum development workshop on SPIS, which commenced last year in Accra, and the curriculum focused on development of both theory and hands-on aspects of SPIS.
This was in line with the German Development Cooperation; Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) Green People’s Energy Project, which was aimed at increasing the use of solar energy in irrigation of agricultural crops across the country.
The development of the curriculum formed part of activities under components of the project signed as a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between WACWISA-UDS and GIZ-Green People’s Energy Project, which is being implemented as a one-year project.
Under the MoU, WACWISA-UDS will undertake training of sector players in five regions; Northern, North East, Savannah, Upper East and Upper West.
WACWISA was established in 2019 by the UDS as a semi-autonomous centre of excellence to undertake cutting-edge research and training in irrigation, drainage, water resources management, sustainable agriculture, climate change, and food and nutrition security.
Currently, it has 138 students from 25 countries pursuing Master’s and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) programmes in Irrigation and Drainage Engineering and Environmental Management and Sustainability.
With a tagline “Building Capacities for Sustainable Solutions”, WACWISA build’s capacities of trainees and graduate students through short courses, Master’s, PhD and post-doctoral level programmes, as well as undertakes applied and advanced research, and develops sustainable localised technologies in water resources, irrigation, climate change, sustainable agriculture and food and nutrition.
WACWISA’s training and research programmes are enhanced through established partnerships with research institutions and industry partners within and outside the country.
The training system emphasizes quality and capacity building for students and places premium on practical skills and solutions to industry problems.
Meanwhile, the GIZ Green Energy People’s Project has also sponsored the establishment of a SPIS demonstration site for training and research purposes at WACWISA, which is located at the Nyankpala Campus of UDS.
