H2O Maghreb is a public-private partnership initiative implemented by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and supported by FESTO Didactic, EON Reality, Morocco’s State Secretariat in charge of Vocational Training, National Office for Drinking Water and Electricity (ONEE), and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). It aims to improve industrial and municipal water management practices in Morocco and the Maghreb region through the development of new curricula using innovative technology, and the establishment of a demonstration and training hub in Rabat, Morocco. It will be implemented over a period of two years by UNIDO and linked to UNIDO’s global knowledge sharing platform, the Learning and Knowledge Development Facility (LKDF).

On May 4, the H2O Maghreb project – launched in April 2017 to improve water management skills – met with representatives of public and private entities operating in the water and sanitation sector, to present and discuss the program’s upcoming training program.

The event, organized as part of the project’s second “Community of Practice” meeting, gathered a selected panel of Moroccan private sector company representatives, as well as a number of public, private or semi-private entities operating in water management, sanitation and wastewater treatment. During the meeting the content and the training modalities of the program were presented and discussed with the participants. Overall, the H2O training program will provide Moroccan youth and water professionals with hands-on training on the operation and maintenance of water facilities (drinking water as well as wastewater).

The program outline was well received by participants, who notably underlined the relevance of its content with regard to their actual needs, its modular approach facilitating tailor made in-service training, and its use of innovative pedagogical tools such as e-learning, automation technologies and virtual reality. Training modalities were positively received, and companies expressed their interest to welcome interns during the upcoming intake.

The completion of this essential step set the starting point for further implementation steps within the project, such as syllabus development, training of trainers and training of beneficiaries.

For further information, please contact:

Ulrike Bletterie

Industrial Development Officer/H2O Project Coordinator

UNIDO Agro-Industries Technology Division

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