Meeting of the Project Steering Committee, 7 March 2006

The WIO-LaB Project Steering Committee meeting was held at Diani, Mombasa, Kenya on 7 March 2006, and was officially opened by Dr. Kennedy Ondimu, the Director for Research and Planning Division of the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), on behalf of the Acting Director-General of NEMA of Kenya. The meeting was attended by National Focal Points, the Chairs of the Municipal Wastewater Management (MWW) and Physical Alteration and Destruction of Habitats (PADH) Regional Task Forces, representatives of UNEP/GEF, UNEP/GPA and the Nairobi Convention Secretariat, as well as representatives of Non-Governmental Organizations such as WWF, IUCN and WIOMSA, the private sector represented by the Kenya Association of Hotel Keepers and Caterers, as well as representative of the World Bank/GEF Southwest Indian Ocean Fisheries Project (SWIOFP). For the first time also, a representative from the Somali Liaison Office attended the meeting as an observer.

The main objective of the 2^nd meeting of the WIO-LaB Project Steering Committee was to review the progress made in regard to the implementation of agreed activities in the year 2005 and to consider and approve activities planned to be implemented in the year 2006. The Steering Committee was generally satisfied with the progress of project implementation and the work plan for the year 2006 including the budget presented by the WIO-LaB PMU were approved.

The Steering Committee also deliberated on the demonstration projects that were selected during the 2^nd Joint meeting of the MWW and PADH Regional Task Forces held in Comoros in October 2005. In this regard, the Steering Committee directed WIO-LaB Project Management Unit (PMU) to proceed with the finalization of seven priority demonstration projects. The Steering Committee was also briefed on the progress made in the implementation of fast track demonstration projects for Tanzania that were approved during the First Steering Committee meeting held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania in April 2005. The members of the Steering Committee were also briefed on the partnerships that were established by the project, particularly in regard the demonstration projects. It was noted that a number of partners have expressed their interest to support the implementation of some of the demonstration projects and it was advised that countries should be linked up with such potential donors.

The Steering Committee was also briefed on the Training and Educational Needs Assessment that is being conducted by the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association (WIOMSA) on behalf of the WIO-LaB Project. It is expected that the outcome of the assessment would be targeted Training and Educational Programmes that would be implemented in the WIO Region by the WIO-LaB Project. The Steering Committee was also briefed on the design and implementation of the small-grants programme, as well as the proposed programme for support to the National Focal Point Institutions.