Albertine Rift Conservation Society

The overall goal of this grant to the Albertine Rift Conservation Society (ARCOS) is to promote regional collaboration for freshwater conservation in the Great Lakes region. ARCOS, in partnership with other regional organisations such as the Nile Basin Discourse and the RAMSAR Centre for Eastern Africa will conduct the following activities over a three year period: collate, analyse and disseminate information regarding the status and trends of watersheds, wetlands and other freshwater ecosystems in the region; support the development of a regional network of stakeholders engaged in watershed and wetland management; and strengthen regional institutional collaboration and coordination for freshwater conservation, particularly through the RAMSAR Convention.

The Albertine Rift Conservation Society (ARCOS) is a regional conservation organization whose overall goal is to enhance ecosystem conservation and promote sustainable development in the Albertine Rift. The purpose of this grant is to establish a new regional information and training center located in Kigali (Rwanda) to support NGOs and community-based organizations working in the Albertine Rift region. The new center will improve access to NGOs and community-based organizations supported by ARCOS, and modern infrastructure for information technology will improve the quality of services provided to these organizations. By reducing overhead costs, this grant will contribute to ensuring the long-term sustainability of AROCS’s core activities.

To enhance the resilience of ecosystem services and their benefits to local communities and to build capacity of local NGOs in the Albertine Rift region (over three years).

To develop a regional monitoring system and build NGO capacity in the Albertine Rift region (over three years).