| Abstract |
Since 2005 the Government of Iceland has provided core funding for the United Nations University Geothermal Training Programme (UNU-GTP) reserved for local training in developing countries. These activities, that have come to be known as the UN Millennium Short Course Series, were initiated with Workshops for Decision Makers in three continents (held in Kenya in 2005, El Salvador in 2006, and China in 2008) and continued by annual Short Courses for East Africa and Latin America. The aim is not only to increase efforts in geothermal capacity building in these regions, but also to further regional cooperation in geothermal development. Furthermore, through these short courses UNU-GTP has reached out to new countries at an early stage in the development of geothermal resources, for which these events have proved a suitable start. In Kenya, the week-long “Workshop for Decision Makers” has been followed by annual Short Courses on Geothermal Exploration, now extending for more than 3 weeks. Close cooperation partners from the start have been the Kenya Electricity Generating Company (KenGen) and, from its foundation in 2009, the Geothermal Development Company (GDC). Almost 500 individuals from 22 countries in Africa (including Yemen) have benefitted from this training. These events have been an important contributor to the momentum that is currently being witnessed in geothermal development in Africa. In El Salvador, the series was started with a similar Workshop which has been followed by near-annual 1-2 week Short Courses on various topics in line with the needs in Latin America. Here, the cooperation partner has been LaGeo of El Salvador. By the end of 2014, 370 individuals from 14 countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, had attended the events. Conditions have not yet allowed the development of the Asian series beyond the starting Workshop in 2008, attended by almost 120 participants. The material prepared for the UN Millennium Short Courses has also provided a platform for UNU-GTP to go one step further by offering customer-designed Short Courses and Training on contract, in line with the needs of local companies and institutions from developing countries, usually financed through local or external financial sponsors. Since 2010, this has become an important part of the operations of UNU-GTP, not least in Kenya due to its urgent need for more geothermal manpower, but also in other parts of the world, including Asia and Latin America. Courses have extended from 1 week to 3 months, and local training up to 6 months on site. The rapidly increasing needs for geothermal know-how in Africa and Latin America is beyond what UNU-GTP can be expected to fulfil through its regular activities and finances. The next step is foreseen to be the establishment of formal regional geothermal training centres. A recently started programme of Diploma Courses in El Salvador and MSc opportunities in geothermal studies in Kenya are hopefully sprouts that soon may grow into fully fledged geothermal training centres for Latin America and East Africa. |