Change of dates: ODINAFRICA Scientific Symposium - Contribution of Ocean Data and Information to Sustainable Development Areas in Africa.

The dates for the ODINAFRICA Scientific Symposium have been changed to 30 November - 02 December 2011. The symposium, which is organised by the Ocean Data and Information Network for Africa (ODINAFRICA), in collaboration with the Centre de Recherche Océanographique de Dakar Thiaroye (CRODT) and the Direction des Pêches Maritimes (DPM) will be held in Saly, Senegal.

BACKGROUND

Integrated management of coastal and marine resources and environment is essential for balancing competing needs of different sectors and industries such as fisheries, tourism, mining (including oil and gas), shipping and navigation e.t.c. Reliable, up to date data and information is required for understanding the ecosystem, and forecasting the effects of environmental change. This knowledge can then be applied to improve livelihoods of coastal communities, and mitigate or reverse undesirable trends or effects.

The African Coastal countries and international partners have initiated an increasing number of activities in recent years to address coastal and marine resource management in an integrated manner. These have generated substantial amounts of data, information and related products. However, though most of this information is in the public domain, many marine scientists, resource managers, decision makers and other stakeholders, have not been able to access and utilize it for their work.

The symposium will provide a forum for presentation of the results of these initiatives, and discussions on how the data and information generated has been used, or can be accessed and utilized in support of development and management of the coastal and marine areas.

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