ACE
Impact
Pre-identified
Regional Development Challenge
Coastal
Degradation
Terms
of Reference
Guidance
Proposals that
respond to the Coastal Degradation Pre-identified Regional Development
Challenge should address the following Terms of Reference(ToRs) in the
appropriate section of the proposal.
While it is unlikely that a single proposal can address all of the ToRs,
the proposal should make a substantial, credible effort to respond in a way
that presents a cohesive, integrated program of education, research and
partnership activities that aligns both with the ToRs and with the goals of the
ACE Impact project.
Background
The West African
coastal areas (WACA) are home to almost one-third of the countries’ population.
Rapid urbanization and net migration to the coast increase the demands on the
land, its resources, and the services its ecosystem provides to people. The
coastal population – especially the poor, who livelihoods depend on the quality and quantity of natural resources
- is increasingly vulnerable to the effects of climate change.
The sandy coastal areas
are eroding at many locations, and the highest rates of retreat (in the order
of 10 meters per year or more) occur near river mouths and harbor jetties (e.g.
in the most urbanized areas). The situation is further compounded by the lack
of coordination of anti-erosion solutions, at local, national, and
international levels. The shoreline is subject to: severe recession due to
construction of major infrastructure interrupting sediment flow; degradation of
natural formations serving as buffers against the sea (mangroves); extraction
of sand from dunes and the multiplication of dams on rivers; and poorly
designed and inadequately managed groynes, seawalls, and breakwaters that
deprive these fragile coastal areas of important sediment deposits.
Countries adopting
Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) require a set of institutional and
technical competencies - from civil engineering to land-use planning, and
multi-sectoral coordination. It is
important that West and Central Africa build the capacities (in the public and
private sphere) to lead and coordinate these technical studies and to develop
national strategies.
Terms
of Reference
I.
The selected Africa Center of Excellence
in Coastal Degradation will consider the following skills related aspects of
the Development Challenge
1. Coastal
engineering (design of adaptation solutions for coastal risk reduction)
2. Forestry
engineering for nature-based solution
3. Maritime
meteorology and oceano-hydrology modeling
4. Natural
capital accounting
5. Coastal
zone land-use planning
II.
To address the skills needs, long-term
degree programs available through the Center should include:
|
Master’s
Degree Programs |
|
1. M.S.
in Coastal and Marine Engineering and Management |
|
2. M.S.
in Maritime Meteorology |
|
Ph.D.
Programs |
|
1. Ph.D.
in Coastal Engineering |
|
2. Ph.D.
in Coastal Zone Management |
III. To
address professional trainings needs, short term courses should include:
|
Short
Term Courses |
|
1. Coastal
Structure |
|
2. Use
of Nature-based Solutions for Disaster Risk Management (DRM) |
|
3. Use
of Remote Sensing for Coastal Area Monitoring and Management |
IV. The
selected Africa Center of Excellence in Coastal Degradation will undertake an
applied research program that includes the following themes:
|
Applied
Research Themes |
|
1. Impact
of Eco-systems in the Region on Risk Reduction |
|
2. Future
Weather and Sea-conditions Forecasting |
|
3. Integration
of the Values of the Eco-systems in National Budgets and Planning |
|
4. Application
of Economics Natural Capital Approaches for Nature-based Solutions to attract
Private Enterprise |
|
5. Poverty
Co-benefits of Eco-system based DRM Measures |
|
6. Prediction
of Changes in Sediment Balance Because of Human Interventions (dams, groynes,
ports) |
|
7. Sediment
Management and Co-benefits |
V. The
selected Africa Center of Excellence in Coastal Degradation will have an
established network of core industry/sectoral partners identified in the
proposal, including:
1.
Engineering companies
2.
Port and infrastructure management
companies
3.
Representatives from the tourism sector
4.
International organizations with
significant activities focused on coastal degradation.
VI. The
selected Africa Center of Excellence in Coastal Degradation will have an
established network of academic and/or research institute partners identified
in the proposal, including:
1.
Regional universities that maintain active
education and/or research activities focused on coastal degradation
2.
Recognized global universities that
maintain active international research collaborations focused on coastal
degradation.