A new partnership agreement has been signed between the University of Khartoum and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Sudan. The agreement covers several sustainable development projects, including the construction of solar power plants. “We will immediately start working on new opportunities to bring tangible and beneficial improvements to people’s lives,” said Fadwa Abdelrahman Ali Taha, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Khartoum.
Solar energy projects include the upcoming installation of 450 solar water pumps in Sudan. The initiative is co-financed by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and UNDP. The installations will be used for agricultural irrigation in Sudan’s Nile State.
The Sudan Solar Irrigation Project will receive technical support from the Energy Research Center (ERC) at the University of Khartoum. According to the UNDP, “The ERC will study farmers’ needs and opportunities and design solar pump systems, building on previous technical support to UNDP for the construction of Sudan’s first solar laboratory and studying the potential of wind energy in Red Sea State.”
Several departments at the University of Khartoum will also collaborate with the UNDP-Sudan Accelerator Lab. They will explore innovative ways to apply new technologies and solutions to Sudan’s development challenges and increase opportunities for young people in the development process. “We launched the Accelerator Lab initiative in early 2019 to catalyze innovative solutions to the complex development challenges of our time. The project is funded by the German Development Cooperation and the Qatar Foundation for Development, with the Italian Cooperation Agency and the Nesta Innovation Foundation as implementing partners,” said the UNDP.
Also under the new agreement between the University of Khartoum and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), research will be carried out in various fields, including the environment and climate change.
Inès Magoum