Pan-African course in Field Geological Mapping builds capacity of national geological surveys
A group of international students in geology received their certificates last week at the Geological Survey of Namibia after completing an intensive 25-day programme in Field Geological Mapping.
Named the PanAfGeo project, the twenty five students from seventeen different African countries will return to their respective geological surveys where they work in the building of geological maps on different scales. The training was supervised by Veronika Stedra of the Czech Geological Survey assisted by Vickey Do Cabo of the Geological Survey of Namibia.
The Namibian course followed the introductory course presented early in the year in Ethiopia. The theoretical and data processing sessions took place at the Geological Survey of Namibia in Windhoek with the field work conducted at Tsaobis Leopard Park in the Swakop River valley in the Karibib district.
The Namibian programme employed intensive one on one training supported by experts from the Czech Geological Survey, the Geological Survey of Slovenia, the Geological Survey of Namibia and researchers from the University of Namibia. The field work was conducted in small groups of trainees, each of them supervised by one expert from Europe or Namibia.
The field work included further excursions in the so-called Damara belt and the wider Karibib district where the arid environment has led to exposed geological structures of a wide variety. Field observation and sample collection covered petrologic, structural, sedimentologic and volcanologic aspect of geological research. It also introduced students to the role of Geographic Information Systems and data obtained by remote sensing using special equipment.
Caption: Twenty five students in geology from seventeen African countries received their certificates last week Friday in Windhoek after successfully completing a 25-day course, consisting of both theoretical and field work, to equip them to work as Geological Mappers in their respective geological surveys. (Photograph by Vladimir Zacek)
