Initiated under WOTRO UDW’s DELTAP project, where a Do-it-Yourself (DiY) methodology was developed to construct water filters in rural Bangladesh, the proposed project aims to extend this DiY framework to the African continent by focussing specifically on access to DiY handwashing stations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to increasing urbanisation in African deltas, overconsumption and pollution are affecting safe water supplies, hampering achievement of United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6. A consortium of KNUST (Kumasi, Ghana) and TU Delft, propose a novel, bottom-up and participatory approach where end-users are activated with the necessary tools and knowledge to build their own handwashing infrastructure. This iWash methodology can be used as a design tool to increase local capacity for Water Hygiene and Sanitation (WASH). Running in 2020-2023 the project will focus on preventing the spread of COVID-19, however, also beyond this pandemic, improved handwashing facilities will contribute to reducing child mortality and sexual violence. Learning from the lessons in Bangladesh, the consortium shall set-up a research trajectory where Ghanaise-NL student teams will research, practice and validate the DiY methodology by organising community workshops and set-up DiY labs. The iWash project will kick-off with a webinar series between the consortium, African partner organisations (NGOs, academia) and WOTRO UDWs DELTAP team in Bangladesh. Ghana will be the focus country of this project, but collaboration with other UDW partners in Africa is anticipated (e.g., Aquashare in Mozambique).

To help cocoa farmers better manage their crops, it?s necessary to have a reliable weather forecast based on data from on-the-ground weather monitoring stations. Currently this data is unavailable in large parts of Africa. In this project a self-supporting climate observation system will be deployed in Ghana, based on low-cost, high-precision, weather sensors, sending information to a web-based data server using cellphone technology. These innovative weather stations will measure meteorological and water resource variables, which will subsequently be communicated to farmers via mobile information services. The combination of these two innovations: low-cost weathers station combined with mobile information services will foster economic development and food security by enabling local smallholders to better manage their limited resources and increase productivity. Furthermore, this data combined with current satellite-data will help fill the gaps in current hydrological models, improve meteorological forecasts and provide more insight into the water cycle, while modernizing agriculture in Ghana.

This proposal for an international, trans-disciplinary study on the biofuel feedstock, Jatropha curcas, has been initiated by our team members in Ghana and Ethiopia, in response to the needs of local stakeholders, and in light of the dearth of policies to guide the development of the biofuel industries in both countries. The effects of Jatropha curcas cultivation and production on the lives and livelihoods of local and rural farmers in Africa have generally not been considered and are not well understood. Yet, land across Africa continues to be acquired to establish plantations for biofuel production. In Ghana and Ethiopia in particular, this has resulted in several conflicts and land use changes, including increased threats to food security and forest conservation. In spite of these conflicts, biofuels and other alternative fuel sources have enormous potential to serve both development and conservation interests by offering a sustainable solution to local energy needs if the opportunities and constraints facing their production are addressed in a fair and equitable manner, and in consideration of local livelihood and land tenure objectives. There is a lack of knowledge for informing policy in this field. Without evidence-based research, both Ghana and Ethiopia have failed to develop policies to mitigate conflicts and enhance cooperation on biofuels. Without adequate policies, it will be difficult to ensure the cultivation and production of biofuels in the future occur in a manner that is effective, sustainable, and just for all stakeholders. We aim to contribute knowledge to the emerging global dialogue on the implications of industrial biofuel production in general, and in regard to Jatropha curcas in particular. We will do so by focusing on the socio-economic implications of Jatropha curcas for local people in regard to their land rights, livelihoods, food production and participation in governance. An inductive, comparative, qualitative approach using case studies is appropriate in the context of this topic since the purpose of this research is for the discovery, exploration, and deeper investigation of this relatively new area. A major focus of this project will be on the generation of knowledge through high-quality research. Ghana and Ethiopia (and other developing countries) will be provided with the tools and perspectives for evidence-based policy development and practice. We also aim to develop the capacity of local institutions and individuals in Ghana and Ethiopia to enable a cooperative and supportive institutional environment for the production and processing of Jatropha curcas.

City regions in LMIC are expanding and so are the food security problems of their poorer inhabitants. The nutritional properties of seafood make it vital to the health and food security of millions of poor urban consumers. This project studies the food systems that service low-income consumers in selected city regions of South Asia (India) and West Africa (Ghana), with the aim of improving their quality and scope. These food systems – in which women entrepreneurs often play an important role - derive produce from small-scale as well as industrial (distant water) fisheries, which possess various degrees of environmental sustainability. The project gathers relevant fisheries and food security expertise, pilots new business approaches and investigates their relevant policy environments. The governance lessons gained from the two regions are generalized and fed into the international debate on fish-related food security.