Bahir Dar Institute of Technology Joins EU-Funded DIGITWATER Project to Transform Water Education in Africa

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Bahir Dar Institute of Technology (BiT), Bahir Dar University, has become an Ethiopian partner in the DIGITWATER Project, a flagship international initiative funded by the Erasmus+ Program of the European Union. The project aims to digitally transform higher education and research in water management, with a strong focus on Sub-Saharan Africa. 
DIGITWATER seeks to enhance the quality, accessibility, and relevance of water education through the adoption of innovative digital technologies. The project focuses on upgrading e-learning platforms, establishing technology laboratories, and developing interactive digital learning resources, including Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) in water resources engineering. Through these interventions, the project promotes collaborative learning and knowledge sharing among universities, students, academic staff, and stakeholders from both the public and private sectors. The DIGITWATER Project is designed around four core objectives:
      Modernizing water education through digital innovation by introducing flexible, interactive, and inclusive online learning tools
      Building future-ready skills and capacities for students, academics, and water professionals through hands-on digital training             and real-world projects
      Strengthening international collaboration and real-world engagement among universities, industry, public authorities, and                communities
      Promoting inclusive, sustainable, and impactful water solutions, with strong attention to gender equality and employability in          the water sector 
A distinctive feature of DIGITWATER is its Integrated Project (IP) approach, where MSc students work on real-world water challenges. Each participating higher education institution develops a local case study, supported by workshops on emerging technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT). The project also promotes South-South and North-South collaboration, joint supervision of MSc theses, virtual mobility, and co-development of interdisciplinary MSc programs in water education. The project is structured into eight Work Packages (WPs):
      1.Project management, governance, and coordination
      2.Digital education and virtual learning
      3.High-tech solutions for water management (IoT, AI, cloud computing)
      4.Virtual mobility and joint MSc initiatives
      5.Empowering the water community (MOOCs, training, industry linkages)
     6.Real-world problem solving and integrated projects
     7.Quality assurance and evaluation
     8.Dissemination, sustainability, and impact 
The DIGITWATER Academy primarily targets MSc students in water-related disciplines, Academic staff and researchers in water resources and environmental engineering, Water professionals, industry stakeholders, public authorities, and local communities. The project brings together a diverse consortium of leading universities and organizations from Europe and Africa, including:
        Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Belgium)
        IHE Delft Institute for Water Education (Netherlands)
        Eummena BV (Belgium)
        Sakarya University (Turkey)
        Bahir Dar University and Arba Minch University (Ethiopia)
        Kyambogo University and Makerere University (Uganda)
        University of Cape Town and University of KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) 
Through its participation in DIGITWATER, Bahir Dar Institute of Technology strengthens its commitment to digital transformation, international collaboration, and impactful water education. The project will enhance institutional capacity, enrich MSc programs, and contribute to sustainable water management solutions aligned with regional and global development goals.