Practical actions to strengthen capacity for deep-water research in Africa

Abstract

While Africa's deep marine biodiversity offers economic prospects it also supports crucial ecosystem services and sustainable development is dependent on knowledge of these systems. Building understanding of deep-water ecosystems is key, but there are substantial discrepancies in countries' abilities to achieve this. Coinciding with the 2024 Ocean Decade Conference, the Challenger 150 African Network of Deep-water Researchers is pleased to release a report on “Practical Actions to Strengthen Capacity for Deep-water Research in Africa”. Through a series of online workshops, the ANDR brought together 98 individuals from 19 African nations to discuss challenges for deep-water research in Africa, identify solutions to overcome these and propose practical actions going forward.