The Senior Officials Session of the Sectoral Council of Ministers for Lake Victoria Basin (SECOM) kicked off, 18th June 2018 at Protea Hotel, Entebbe, Republic of Uganda.
SECOM comprises experts, Principal and Permanent Secretaries and Ministers of environment, natural resources, water, population, health, infrastructure, and other institutions bearing functional linkages with the mandate of the LVBC. The SECOM provides policy guidance and directives to the Lake Victoria Basin Commission (LVBC).
Opening the session, Florence Grace Adongo, Director for Water Resources Management, the Ministry of Water and Environment and Chairperson of the Senior Officials Session, welcomed delegates from 5 EAC Partner States to Entebbe—the home of “multiple institutions in the Republic of Uganda.” She urged delegates to provide requisite technical inputs that will ultimately inform the policy directives and guidance by the Ministers on 22nd June 2018. Such endeavor, she noted, significantly contributes to bettering the lives of 40 million citizens in the wider Lake Victoria Basin. “Uganda takes this meeting seriously. Our deliberations should aim at increasing benefits to the peoples of the East African Community,” Florence Grace Adongo, said.
Pamela Agaba, Senior Water Officer, Department of International and Trans-boundary Affairs, Ministry of Water and Environment, Uganda invited delegates to sample Uganda’s natural sceneries beyond Entebbe, the conviviality of Ugandans and richness of diverse cultures.
The LVBC Deputy Executive Secretary for Programmes and Projects, Telly Eugene Muramira informed delegates about LVBC status of programmes and project implementation and key achieved milestones since the last SECOM—June, 19th -24th , 2017 held in Mwanza, the United Republic of Tanzania. “Since our last meeting in Mwanza, there are many projects coming on board, expended efforts in resource mobilization by LVBC, Muramira noted. He stressed that to maximizing organizational impact, LVBC will engage more efforts and resources in improving the quality and sustainability of LVB deliverables in the Basin. This way, “we shall be able to match the stature of the Commission with the quality of what we do and this what development partners and Partner States expect of us,” LVBC Deputy Executive Secretary for Programmes and Projects emphasized.
The Session of Senior Officials will be followed by the meeting of the Coordination Committee and the Session of Ministers. The Coordination Committee comprise of Principal and Permanent Secretaries of the Sectoral Ministries.