Biofuels project

HOORC Associate Professor Dr Donald Kgathi attended the launch of the European Union supported project, Competence Platform on Energy Crop and Agroforestry Systems for Arid and Semi-arid Ecosystems - Africa (COMPETE) in Munich on March 1st and 2nd, 2007. Professor Kgathi talked about new developments in bioenergy in Southern Africa in the context of the larger interests of the group, made up of 20 European and 23 non-European partners - 11 partners from 7 African countries, 3 regional African policy and financing bodies (African Development Bank; Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network of Southern Africa; UEMOA - Biomass Energy Regional Program), 9 partners from Latin America and Asia - and the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO). The project will create a platform for discussion, knowledge exchange, policy and methodology development to provide guidance and tools for the provision of modern bioenergy for the sustainable and optimal usage of drylands ecosystems. The project web site provides details about the anticipated products of the project.