Having had a quick grasp of the concepts of water quality monitoring taught at a recent training in The Gambia, Rose, a community extension agent at TRY Oysters in The Gambia, demonstrates salinity measurements to participants. The staff of TRY were engaged in the trainer of trainers activity, organised by Ghanaian fisheries and marine ecology scientists from the University of Cape Coast's Centre for Coastal Management.

At this one-day training session, practical demonstrations were led by the staff of TRY Oysters after learning from the scientists. This approach, the scientists believe, enabled easier and faster understanding by the training participants, who were mainly women shellfishers and youth interested in shellfishing.

From the training received, the TRY Oysters staff will periodically conduct refresher activities for the women. This will help in the participatory monitoring of water quality in the estuaries where shellfish are harvested in The Gambia. TRY Oysters is supporting the women with the basic logistics needed for water quality monitoring.

The water quality equipment have been provided with the assistance of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) through the Women SHellfishers and Food Security Project (Phase I).