The Société d'Exploitation des Eaux du Niger (SEEN) hosted from 29 to 31 January 2019, a workshop to strengthen the capacities of laboratory technicians of water utilities in metrology. Initiated by the African Water Association (AfWA) as part of the USAID-funded AfriCap program, this workshop aimed to strengthen the theoretical and practical capacities of laboratory technicians in measurement. A total of forty participants from eleven water utilities in nine African countries, members of AfWA, took part in the training.

At the opening of the meeting, the representative of AfWA’s Executive Director, Dr Siméon Kenfack, Director of Programmes of AfWA, thanked the Société de Patrimoine des Eaux de Niger (SPEN) and SEEN for their involvement in the organization of the meeting. He then recalled that AfWA attaches great importance to improving the performance of its members in order to provide quality services to the population, hence the many training courses it organizes with the support of its partners. For his part, the Managing Director of SPEN, Mr Hamed Haidara Ag Elgafi, on behalf of SPEN and SEEN, welcomed the choice of Niger to host the workshop's work. He welcomed and congratulated AfWA for all the actions carried out in Africa; then recalled that one of SEEN's priorities is to guarantee the quality of the water provided to the population. He said he expected a lot from this workshop because, SEEN is committed to raising its service and requirements, based on technological advances.

During the three days of the meeting, participants were instructed on the basics of metrology laboratories, balance calibration, volume metrology and characterization of climatic chambers. They have learned to calculate the calibration uncertainty of certain specific laboratory equipment, to manage compliance with measurement errors and uncertainties as well as equipment; the value of the metrological records of certain instruments has also been demonstrated to them. Finally, practical work in the laboratory and a visit to the water treatment plant were also carried out. *At the end of the workshop, the participants expressed their satisfaction with the training’s progress. They said their expectations were met because this meeting was an opportunity for them to share their knowledge but also to learn a lot from each other. They urge AfWA to continue this kind of meeting to improve the capacity of African water utilities’ staff to provide quality water to the population.

It should be noted that the Africap Program is a USAID-funded capacity building program for the African Water Association. It takes place in two (02) axes. First at the level of the Executive Office staff, in order to improve the governance of the institution and the services provided to members; second, to set up a knowledge management and sharing platform, and third at the level of the water companies' laboratories in order to strengthen their operational capacity for better water quality management.