Work as team; CSIR Director urges govt agencies
The Director of the Water Research Institute of the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Dr Mike Osei-Atweneboana, has asked government agencies to refrain from working in silos but team up instead to push the country’s development agenda forward.
He said certain key sectors within the country’s development agenda, particularly the water, energy and food sectors were extremely critical and that it would be disadvantageous for agencies working in those areas to function in isolation.
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Addressing participants in a workshop on Water-Energy-Food (WEF) project in Accra, Dr Osei-Atweneboana said Ghana’s development agenda would suffer retrogression unless institutions with focus on development worked as a team.
“The CSIR has always pushed for agencies to work in partnership and has also stressed the importance of team work. Working in silos is never a good thing,” he said.
About the workshop
The workshop which was on the theme, “Enhancing the sustainability and resilience of African cities using WEF Nexus Approach”, was attended by stakeholders from the water, energy and food sectors to deliberate on ways to give the sectors, a boost.
It also offered a platform for the attendees to develop an approach on ways to coordinate the activities of the various agencies and institutions under the WEF.
Participants were divided into groups and tasked to discuss, analyse and review the different projects under the WEF.
Pay attention
Dr Osei-Atweneboana stressed the need for priority to be placed on sectors such as water, energy and food, indicating that without them, no meaningful development could be achieved.
He said the government had over the past years done extremely well in pushing resources to WEF as part of its agenda to accelerate the country’s economic development.
The Director of the Water Research Institute said the CSIR was focused on ensuring that projects that would enhance the country’s growth were pursued.
Project
A Project Coordinator with WEF, Dr Fati Aziz, presented an overview of projects under WEF and said it was pertinent for stakeholders to discuss the possible ways to implement the WEF Nexus Approach.
He said the WEF Nexus Approach emphasised the linkages among water security, energy and food to national development.
“These three are necessary for the benefit of human well-being, poverty reduction and sustainable development,” Dr Aziz said.
He said as the world’s population increased, demand for basic services had also risen giving way to the growing desire for higher living standards and the need for more conscious stewardship of vital resources necessary to achieve those services.