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Water Level Observation Network for Central America (RONMAC)
Final Report
June 2000 – December 2001
Lessons Learned
Time
frame
Technical
Capabilities
Maintenance
Expenditures
Time frame
From the inception of the project in July 2000, the RONMAC team was fully aware of the short time frame in which it was working. Owing to the December 31, 2001, deadline established by the U.S. Congress for all post-Hurricane Mitch projects, RONMAC had just 18 months to establish a functioning and sustainable water-level observation network. This proved to be challenging, especially given the high priority that was placed on stakeholder participation and capacity-building. Each station installed was an opportunity for training. Although this slowed down the installation schedule, in the long-term it helped to establish a significantly more sustainable network.
Technical Capabilities
The capability and expertise of the staff of the national counterpart institutions were generally low in current “digital” technology of monitoring systems, because of little exposure prior to RONMAC. RONMAC has provided basic training and equipment in technology and detailed training during the two RONMAC training workshops. Nonetheless, given the complexity of the systems, it is unreasonable to expect national-level technicians to possess a deep understanding of highly technical field. Because of this lack of institutional expertise at the national level, it is necessary to have the capability available within the regional infrastructure, which demonstrates the necessity of a continued role for CRRH. The trend in RONMAC countries is towards the expansion of their national observation networks, not a regional approach. As a result of this project, relationships have been strengthened and possible alliances have been identified, creating stronger linkages between the CRRH and the national counterparts. However, this is a capacity-building activity that will need to be continually addressed.
Maintenance Expenditures
One key to the future success of the network is for the national counterpart institutions to incorporate the maintenance of the monitoring network into their budgets. The national technicians who participated in RONMAC were not given sufficient support by their agencies. An influencing factor was the sheer size of the overall “Mitch” Project, of which RONMAC was only one portion. This placed a burden on the capacity of the national agencies. In the future, the allocation of time, travel funds, and vehicle support must become part of the national annual operating plan for the system to successfully survive. It is CRRH’s responsibility to promote this idea on a managerial level.