Transforming land-based resource management: the role of GMES and Africa Support Programme
Hailu Wudineh
17 October 2017
Extreme weather events, climate change, land degradation, droughts and floods severely affect the Earth, and Africa is severely impacted by these environmental challenges.

 
As a result land based natural resources among others are at risk. Ultimately, the socioeconomic development of its people are threatened. Improved environmental and natural resources management, earth observation technologies play a significant role, in improving the socioeconomic conditions of the people of Africa.
 
GMES & Africa Support Programme uses Earth Observation and space technologies to generate information services for sustainable development of African people and sustainable environmental and natural resource management. Earth Observation derived information through the GMES & Africa support programme will transform land-based resource management in Africa, for "the Africa we want".
 
GMES & Africa Support Programme builds on achievements of  its precursors (PUMA, AMESD, and MESA Projects) and broaden the use of Earth Observation to serve multiple needs in terms of sustainable management of environment, climate and natural resources. The Climate Data aspect of GMES & Africa also inline with the  objective of  WMO programme  called Global Framework for Climate Service (GFCS).   

GMES & Africa is administered by the Human Resource, Science and Technology Department of the African Union Commission. It ensures continuity of past investments on the use of Earth Observation data in Africa (i.e. PUMA, AMESD and MESA). 
 
GMES & Africa Support programme aimed at improving African policy-makers' and planners' capacities to design, implement, and monitor national, regional and continental policies and to promote sustainable management of natural resources through the use of Earth Observation data and derived information. 
 
A unique feature of GMES & AFRICA is a Pan African Programme.  Beneficiary Countries of the GMES & Africa Programme are 55 African States. GMES & Africa Support Programme is supported by the African Union and the European Union Commissions with a budget of around 22,5 million Euros. The time frame of implementation of GMES and Africa is from 2017 to 2020.

More information:
 
Image of Africa from Space
 

HW, HK, BM
 

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