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The AEWEN (Africa Europe Water & Energy Network) project, co-funded under the COSME programme of the European Union, has successfully concluded its activities. Its primary objective was to develop a network and implement a joint internationalisation strategy to assist European SMEs in expanding into three selected African countries: Morocco, Senegal, and Tunisia. The project aimed to address the growing demand in Africa for green energy and water solutions. Initiated in late 2021, the AEWEN project concluded in March 2024.

The AEWEN project consortium comprised four established European clusters specialising in complementary areas of energy and water: Tenerrdis, based in Grenoble, France, and project coordinator, alongside Environment Park / CLEVER in Turin, Italy, the Catalan Water Partnership (CWP) in Girona, Spain, and Cluster Tweed in Liège, Belgium.

Throughout the project duration, four business missions were planned in African countries. Morocco, Senegal, and Tunisia were chosen due to their projected growth in the renewable energy sector and needs for sustainable water solutions to face water scarcity. In order to foster interactions with companies from these countries, partnerships have been established with 15 organisations active in the water and energy sectors and keen to promote networking and knowledge sharing.

In Morocco, two missions were conducted due to the abundance of opportunities it presented. The first mission occurred in December 2022, followed by a second mission in November 2023. These missions included activities such as B2B meetings, roundtable discussions, and visits to key companies in the region, such as OCP-Jorf Lasfar, AMA Detergent, and Taqa Morocco. The second mission also featured conferences and participation in the Global Green Event in El Jadida.

Senegal hosted the second mission in July 2023, organised in collaboration with the ESECA project. Notably, a significant number of individual B2B meetings were held during this mission, along with a conference on water and energy.

The mission to Tunisia took place in September 2023, spanning three days and involving a welcoming conference, roundtable discussions on water and energy, and visits to key institutions and research centres such as the Technopole de Borj Cédria and Technopark Neotex in Monastir. Networking opportunities and individual B2B meetings were also facilitated.

The involvement of companies in projects activities, and especially missions, was integral to the project’s success. Overall, 45 companies from Europe participated in the missions. While many contacts were established, about ten companies already succeeded in building business collaborations with companies based in Morocco and Senegal. Further cooperative opportunities are under discussion.

In addition to the missions, the AEWEN project aimed to keep stakeholders informed about energy and water developments and project updates through various activities and webinars. These activities included pre-mission webinars, strategic sessions such as the so-called “Country days” in which key information was shared about the target markets, and capacity-building webinars focusing on internationalisation strategies, the water-energy-food nexus and funding opportunities.

Participation in relevant fairs such as IFAT 2022, Ecomondo 2022, Pollutec 2023, Aquatech 2023, and Off-Grid Expo 2023 provided opportunities to expand the network and promote the project to a wider audience as well as the chance to enhancing networking opportunities through B2B meetings and guided tours. 

A key objective of the AEWEN project was to foster collaboration and synergy between European and African companies to promote business and facilitate growth in the water and energy sectors in targeted African countries. To this extent, the AEWEN website served as a central platform for accessing information about the project and the companies involved, including a comprehensive catalogue showcasing their characteristics. On the whole, 175 companies, both from Europe and Africa, joined the AEWEN network, 148 of them being SMEs.

Going forward, efforts will be made to maintain and expand the network established by AEWEN to leverage the project’s outcomes and generate further benefits.

In recent years, major technological breakthroughs have occurred in the fields of information technology, electronics and data management. They offer considerable opportunities in the water and urban services sector, particularly in terms of asset monitoring, real-time infrastructure management and the creation of new services for users (smart metering to detect leaks, real-time consumption monitoring, hydrological and hydrogeological monitoring solutions, etc

In addition, future challenges such as climate change, rapid population growth, increasing urbanisation and growing demands for services will require new approaches to water resource management. These factors call for a change in behaviour, and smart grids are essential tools for achieving this. However, despite the availability of technologies and the recognition of needs, the adoption of these solutions on the market is progressing slowly. What are the issues at stake, the obstacles and the drivers influencing technological implementation for the management of water resources?

In this context, the Pôle Eau Dakar (PED) and the Africa Europe Water & Energy Network (AEWEN), pursuing their shared objectives of developing and disseminating knowledge and innovation in the water sector, are organising a webinar on “Digital tools for water resource management”. The aim is to present digital tools for intelligent and rational management of water resources, thereby promoting technology transfer to support social, economic and scientific cooperation between Europe and Africa, while helping to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6 (SDG 6) by 2030.

Join the webinar on Thursday 25^th of January at 10 am (GMT) / 11 am (CET). Register here: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Mf0-IS74QJWEkyXJoJNTjg

Agenda – CET time

11.00 – Welcome and introduction, Pôle Eau Dakar

11.15 – Digital solutions for optimising urban services, HydroScan

11.30 – Digital tools for managing, planning and monitoring water resources, Hydras Water Management

11.45 – Digital tools for knowledge and management of water resources, DGPRE (Direction de la Gestion et de la Planification des Ressources en Eau)

12.00 – Remote management system for hydrometric stations and hydraulic infrastructures in the Senegal River Delta, SAED (Société d’Aménagement et d’Exploitation des terres du Delta du fleuve Sénégal)

12.15 – Conclusion, AEWEN

NB : The webinar will be held in French, translation will not be provided.

Last November, the AEWEN team participated in Aquatech Amsterdam 2023 alongside euWater4i-SD. Together, we involved several EU enterprises to showcase their services and products to African stakeholders.

On the first day of Aquatech, the 6th of November, a delegation of African companies embarked on an organized tour through the interested exhibiting EU companies. In total the delegation met with 15 EU Companiesinterested in Africa. This initiative facilitated meaningful interactions with different EU enterprises expressing interest in Africa. This activity concluded with a highly productive networking cocktail, extending as well the opportunity for companies not exhibiting at the fair to broaden their connections with African stakeholders.

This immersive experience proved to be very enriching, marked by valuable meetings that hold the potential to catalyze new partnerships and projects in the future.

The trade fair Aquatech, which will take place from the 6th to the 9th of November in Amsterdam, will bring together all the key stakeholders of the water sector. The AEWEN project team invites you to take part in a morning dedicated to water in Africa. 

Join us on Monday 6th of November in the morning for an open tour of the exhibitors, then meet us and find out more about AEWEN and AFRICA Business, we will finish the session with a Networking cocktail. 

If you are exhibiting at the fair and you have interest in exploring new contacts in Africa,  your company can be included in the suggested tour. An e-booklet will be provided to visitors and enable them to easily identify companies. If this is of interest to you, let us know by filling up this formular  by the 31st October  and we will forward you with detailed information about times and place.

The programme Includes: 

• 11:00 – 11:15 hours – welcome at NL Pavilion
• 11:15 – 12:30 hours – Exhibition tour
• 12:30 – 13:30- network event at NL Pavilion.

We hope to see you soon at Aquatech! 

From 10 to 13 October 2023, the AEWEN members participated in Pollutec Lyon. Dedicated to water, energy and environment, this fair gathered over 1500 exhibitors from all over the world. It was a good opportunity to meet with African delegations, especially those from Tunisia and Morocco.

Many companies from the network also attended the fair, either as exhibitors or visitors. Visitors were invited to connect with AEWEN exhibiting companies thanks to a self-guided tour edited for the occasion (see pdf hereafter). The AEWEN team themselves organised a tour to meet and discuss about the members’ products and projects. This allowed to strengthen the relationships developed over time and hopefully lead to new collaborations.

The fair also represented the opportunity to highlight AEWEN’s activities. On October 11, the consortium organised an afternoon dedicated to water & energy in Africa. After the proposed tour to meet with companies from the network, companies were invited to take part in a conference on collaborations between Africa and Europe. About 25 companies attended the AEWEN presentation. The day ended with a networking cocktail and great expectations for the final days of the fair.

In order to strengthen ties between the Tunisian and European companies, a business mission was organised end of September in Tunisia within the framework of the AEWEN project. This mission aimed to explore the renewable energy and water sectors, to identify and start potential collaboration as well as to network.

12 European companies took part in this event, which began with a warm welcome from Adel Chaabane, representative of the Chamber of Commerce, and an overview of the Tunisian business environment. Fabienne Bosc, project manager of Environment Park in Turin and a member of the AEWEN team, then presented the project, followed by Omri Salah who introduced the Green tech cluster.

Over the first day, participants were provided with information on the water and energy sectors, including best practices from Tunisian companies and pitches from their European counterparts. The afternoon was devoted to productive B2B meetings between Tunisian and European companies.

The second day involved a visit to the Société de Gestion de la Technopole de Borj Cédria, where participants had a closer look at current projects in the water and energy sectors, as well as business opportunities. Onsite, the companies also visited two research centres, CERTE on water and CRTEn on energy. These visits were mutually beneficial, providing valuable information research projects and needs in Tunisia. There were also opportunities to continue to network with another group of Tunisian companies.

The mission concluded on Thursday 28^th of September with a visit to the Neotex Technopark centre in Monastir, which focuses on the textile sector. During this session, participants gained first-hand insight into the energy and water treatment needs of industries. The day ended with further B2B meetings.

This business mission to Tunisia was a major opportunity to foster networking between companies, enabling them to build bridges between the needs and solutions, as well as to enhance strong commercial and business relationships.

From EU to bilateral through multilateral funding, SMEs have various opportunities to finance their projects. On September 20^th over 45 companies and other organisations participated in the webinar dedicated to funding opportunities.

Water and energy projects have the possibility to be funded through programmes of the European Union. Thelma Pellicer and Nicolas Espitalier presented a guide for European funding, including general principles, information on the different EU programmes and some recommendations. The guide was produced as part of the euWater4i-SD project.

Consultants can help companies in developing their projects. Sanne Sulejmani, from Leyton for example, presented the key steps to follow. The webinar was an opportunity to learn from EU SMEs’ experience. Three companies, LuciSun, Odit-E and Idrabel, shared their knowledge and best practices. 

International funding is also available. Companies can turn to financial donors, as Patrick Heinrichs from AWEX explained. Participating in public procurement is another possibility. The project Pro SME supports companies in this regard by proposing tools to acquire competencies and be able to bid for public contracts.

Finally, companies can rely on the bilateral cooperation agencies. Sophie Colette from Enabel presented for instance the target sectors of the Belgian cooperation, with focus on water and energy, the target countries and the engagement of the private sector.

You missed the webinar? You can watch the replay here

If you wish to receive the presentations, you can contact Catherine Delahaye:cdelahaye@clustertweed.be

An opportunity to meet with European and African companies working on renewable energy and smart grids. This event will be organised from 6 to 8 December in the framework of the Off-grid Expo and Conference, a two-day international congress fair dedicated to off-grid solar, wind, hydropower systems and self-sufficient power supply.

During this event, you will:

• Participate in personalised B2B meetings with European and African companies
• Learn about success stories from European companies making business in Africa
• Stay tuned on past and future business missions to Africa
• Discover the regional capabilities of Bavaria

Register here to stay updated about the event, you will get a 20% discount for the Off-Grid Expo. Details on the programme can be found in the flyer attached below 👇

For further information, please contact Peter Rechberger: peter.rechberger@ecpe.orgThe AEWEN team is delighted to continue the collaboration with the ESECA partnership for this event. In July 2023, the consortia organised a joint business mission in Senegal. ESECA is a European project fostering collaboration between European and African companies, especially with the Sub-Saharan region.

The AEWEN team will be at Pollutec, participate in this international tradeshow specialised on environment, water and energy solutions! We invite you to two main events:

1/ AEWEN business Day on 11^th of October

An event dedicated to collaborations between Africa and Europe:

• 2 pm | open tour of exhibitors (self-guided)
• 4.50 pm | AEWEN presentation: Opportunities for Africa-Europe collaboration in the water and energy sectors
• 5.15 pm | Project example: CASASOL, a rural centre of solar resources in Senegal
• 6 pm | Networking cocktail

Let us know if you will be there by filling in this short form by 22^nd of September.

2/ Green Days

The tradeshow is also the opportunity to meet with stakeholders and boost your business at international level. B2B meetings will be organised during the event, register on the Green Days platform to plan them!

Registrations are open until September 30^th, please mention “AEWEN” under the question “Are you part of a cluster or programme”, it will help the team for the follow-up of the event.