SWALIM Holds Mogadishu Open Day Event
For only the second time, on 4 October, 2016, SWALIM held an Open Day event in the federal capital of Somalia. The event was well attended, with some thirty participants from government, civil society and academia, as well as partners and representatives of sister aid agencies. Unlike previous Open Days, this time the majority of the presentations and discussions were carried out in Somali language, a change that was greatly appreciated by the attendees.
Among the participants at this event was the Director General of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture Mohamud Mohamed Mohamud, and the FAO Representative for Somalia, Richard Trenchard.
Mr. Trenchard opened the proceedings with many proud and generous words for the Somali Water and Land Information Management project (SWALIM). According to the FAO Representative, “SWALIM is a flagship project admired around the world” and has done some “incredible work” over the current phase of the project, the fifth since it was initiated in 2001/2. The current phase is scheduled to terminate in February 2017 and work is already underway to prepare another follow-on phase.
The MoA Director General, speaking in both English and Somali, praised the work carried out over the years by SWALIM and looked forward to many more years of support from this important FAO program. While lauding efforts to transfer skills and responsibilities to its Somalia counterparts, the DG cautioned against turning over SWALIM too quickly.