The Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD) held the 49th meeting of the Governing Council at its premises in Nairobi, Kenya. The 49th meeting of the Governing Council was attended by delegates from RCMRD member States among other experts. The meeting was opened by Hon. Dr. Fred Matiang’i, the Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Information, Communications and Technology (ICT) in the government of Kenya.
In his opening speech, Dr. Matiang’i expressed his profound gratitude to RCMRD for hosting the meeting and to the delegates for honouring the invitation. He echoed the ideals upon which RCMRD was established, saying, “The ideals upon which RCMRD was established by our countries include the spirit of Pan-Africanism, regional integration and pooling of scarce resources of our countries to have a centre of excellence to help provide technical support, capacity development programmes and project implementation.” In regard to strengthening and developing land legislation and regulatory frameworks, the Cabinet Secretary noted that members having been affected by common issues in the same area could share lessons in order to advice the implementation of similar practices.
Before officially declaring the meeting open, Dr. Matiang’i wished delegates a fruitful collaboration towards propelling member States to greater economic growth and consequently supporting the Centre. He said, “Let me once again take this opportunity to remind you that the deliberations of this all important meeting require passion, leadership and innovation. This is the sector that may propel each of our countries to greater economic growth hence every support should be given to the centre, to provide the services that are much needed, to link strategic programs with strategic technical expertise and to ensure best practice, quality and standards.”
Hon. Dr. Fred Matiang’i officially opening the 49th meeting of the RCMRD Governing Council.
The 49th Meeting of the Governing Council discussed matters arising from the previous meeting, UNECA and country statements, report of the technical committee, report of the finance committee, date and venue of the next meeting, report of the Appointments, Promotions and Remuneration Committee (APRC), adoption of the report of the 49th Governing Council meeting, and resolutions.