The Southern African Science Service Centre for Climate Change and Adaptive Land Management (SASSCAL) is set to showcase its innovative products and services at the 13th Zambia Water Forum and Exhibition (ZAWFE), marking its first time as an exhibitor at this prestigious national event.

As Zambia’s premier platform for advancing dialogue and collaboration on water, sanitation, and hygiene, ZAWFE aligns closely with SASSCAL’s mission. The organization’s participation underscores its commitment to promoting scientific research and tools that drive informed decision-making for sustainable water resources management both in Zambia and across the Southern African region.

National Programme Coordinator for SASSCAL Zambia Node Office, Dr Innocent Chomba said that at this year’s event, SASSCAL will spotlight the Wetlands Monitoring and Assessment Services for Transboundary Basins (WeMAST) project, one of its flagship initiatives. The exhibition will feature cutting-edge tools such as the WeMAST Geoportal, which supports wetland management through Earth Observation (EO) data, along with Mapographics that visually depict critical environmental insights.

“This year’s ZAWFE, SASSCAL will be exhibiting scientific products and research efforts aimed at promoting sustainable management of water resources such as wetlands. The WeMAST Products such as The WeMAST Geoportal and its services in wetland management, Mapographics,” he said,

He highlighted that in addition to WeMAST, SASSCAL’s exhibition table will host a range of products and services including the Dam Reservoir Atlas for Southern Africa (DRASA), highlights from the SASSCAL 2.0 Research Programme, and the Tipping Point Explained by Climate Change (TIPPEC) research initiative. Attendees will also learn about the Open Access Data Centre (OADC), which provides open scientific data to foster regional resilience and knowledge sharing.

This year’s ZAWFE theme, “Integrating Solutions for Sustainable Development: Exploring the Water-Energy-Food & Ecological (WEFE) Nexus”, speaks directly to SASSCAL’s integrated approach to environmental management. The WeMAST project, in particular, plays a vital role in developing local capacity and advancing institutional, human, and technical resources for EO-based wetland management key components of the WEFE nexus.

SASSCAL aims to engage a wide audience at the forum, including community members, students, academia, policy makers, government agencies, local leadership, and industry stakeholders. The organization’s objective is to not only raise awareness of its impactful work but also to foster partnerships, knowledge exchange, and collaborative action to address the region’s pressing water challenges.

By exhibiting at ZAWFE for the first time, SASSCAL signals a deeper commitment to outreach, visibility, and solution-oriented dialogue ensuring that science and data continue to inform sustainable development across Africa.