In complex basins like the Nile, where historical perceptions, culture and politics often overshadow facts on the ground, technical understanding and solutions to transboundary river-related development issues need to be devised. Further, reaching out to the next generation of professionals who may help riparian countries move beyond inter-generational conflicts to a new era of cooperation is equally important. ENTRO has thus taken the initiative to establish Internship programme as part of its core activities and successfully implemented in the last 10 years. This programme has proven immensely popular in fostering cooperation and allowing ENTRO to enhance and its professional network. The programme started in 2011 when ENTRO engaged the countries through partnership with scientific communities (EN universities). Eastern Nile countries have acknowledged the contribution of the Internship programme and even instructed its sustenance and expansion. As a result, the Programme has extended its reach outside academia, to include Young Professionals practicing their trade in the private sector, other government ministries, civil society, etc.

Objectives

The main objective is to empower young people from the Eastern Nile Basin countries to support the emergence of a shared understanding about the resource base – its potentials, the risks it is facing and its future. The overarching objective is to engage young people in transboundary dialogue and trust building among relevant Nile basin stakeholders to enhance cooperation to mitigate risks and harness opportunities.

The intermediate results objectives are to:

• Help the new generation of potential water professionals and leaders to acquire new skills, develop new regional collaborations, and contribute multi-sectoral perspectives to enhance ENTRO knowledge and analytical services and fill critical knowledge gaps.
• Provide young people from Nile Basin states with the necessary tools and skills to set up projects that tackle water related challenges in the basin.
• Enhance the capacity building of the interns by giving them training in various areas related to ENTRO projects.
• Provide coaching for the effective development of water projects led by young people that effectively offers sustainable solutions to sustainable water resources management in the basin.
• Use lessons learned and concrete results from interns, to contribute to the policy dialogue in the Nile Basin countries at various levels, leading to a lasting involvement of young people in efforts to provide solutions to water related challenges.

1. Up to now 19 different batches of the Internship programme (with nearly 200 interns) have been implemented in the last 10 years;
2. This programme run through different categories: Regular Internship Programme, Flood Management and Forecasting, Young Professional Programme and Joint Studies.
3. Over 80 capacity building trainings, sharing sessions, field visits, workshops, online sessions have been implemented under this programme so far.

The interns have delivered more than 100 various water resources related technical knowledge products (analytic tools, toolkits, models, data, Remote Sensing Applications, analyses and study reports) that support ENTRO projects in many areas, including (Flood and Drought Management; Dam Safety; Hydrological Analysis; Agriculture; Irrigation; Climate Change; Environmental; Groundwater; Hydropower; Rainwater Harvesting; Remote Sensing; Watershed Management; Water Resources Modelling; Sedimentation Management; Water Quality; Water Diplomacy; Transboundary Water Management as well as other activities such as: Web Portal Information Management System, E- Library Development, Database Packaging, Communication, etc.

• A network of young water resources professionals created that can change the future and contribute to the sustenance of the momentum in dialogue and inter-riparian cooperation.
• The internship gives young people the chance to start their career and help them acquire a better idea of what they want to do in the future.
• The internship programme helps in establishing physical and virtual space that allows people from diverse cultural and academic backgrounds to work together in joint teams allowing for unprecedented collaboration.
• Benefits for these targeted young people include increased knowledge and skills on Water management, enhanced capacity to set up projects, increase in their social capital (networks) within the water sector, opportunity to interact with other inspiring young people, on-going support from NBI and continuous mentorship from senior water experts.
• The internship plays a key role in sustaining Nile Basin engagement and partnership, particularly among water resources professionals, offsetting or otherwise moderating.
• The interns enrich NBI Knowledge base with an array of technical knowledge and academic traditions in understanding the river system.
• This programme helps NBI to create a conducive environment where water resources professionals, academics and practitioners can come together and collaborate in solving the shared problems of the basin and build cooperative partnerships.

A new generation of water professionals and leaders: The Eastern Nile Young Professionals Programme: Click Here