In 2008, Hatfield, in association with Strata360 (Montréal) was contracted to develop a River Awareness Kit (RAK) for the Orange-Senqu River basin. The Orange-Senqu RAK was finalized and presented to the project stakeholders in Maseru Lesotho in October 2009. The Orange-Senqu River Awareness Kit supports the objectives of the Orange-Senqu River Commission (ORASECOM) for addressing high-priority transboundary water management issues.
The Orange-Senqu River Awareness Kit is an information and knowledge management tool for the Orange-Senqu River basin, designed to support capacity development and the sustainable management of the environment and resources within the basin. The River Awareness Kit is a website and CD-ROM that addresses different aspects of transboundary water resource management in clear, non-technical language. Self-learning resources are supported by interactive tools, maps and videos. Capacity building programs enable an enhanced understanding of the key environmental, social, governance and management issues in the basin.
Features of the River Awareness Kit
The Orange-Senqu River Awareness Kit makes use of a diverse range of learning tools, engaging users through the use of visual, multi-media technology:
- Self-learning resources
- Interactive visualisation tools
- Maps
- Documents
- Quizzes
- Google Earth
The Orange-Senqu River Awareness Kit was developed using participatory processes, including focus groups, workshops and interviews. Sustainability is promoted through capacity development, awareness raising and outreach programs.
The intended audience for the Orange-Senqu RAK is the broad spectrum of stakeholders in the Orange-Senqu River basin, including government agencies, river basin managers, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and educational establishments, as well as the international community.
Funding was provided by the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by GTZ (German Development Cooperation) under the Transboundary Management in the SADC Programme.
The draft version of the RAK can be viewed on-line at: www.orangesenqurak.org
For more information, please contact the Orange-Senqu RAK Project Manager, Mr. Simon Hughes, at +1 604-926-3261.
About Hatfield's River Awareness Kits
Hatfield has pioneered an innovative approach to presenting environmental data and information and conducting training programs through developing interactive CD-ROMs. This interactive River Awareness Kit approach has been implementing successfully by Hatfield in a number of river basins around the world, including the Lower Mekong River Basin (Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam), the Nile River Basin (Sudan, Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, and Ethiopia), and the Athabasca River Basin (Alberta, Canada). Hatfield is currently developing RAKs for the Limpopo (Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, and Zimbabwe) and Kunene River basins (Namibia and Angola).
Hatfield’s River Awareness Kits can found on-line at www.riverawarenesskit.com. Further information can be viewed in our information flyer (PDF - 4.3 MB)
