The fourth Middle East and African IAU Regional meeting (MEARIM), was jointly hosted by Entoto Observatory & Research Center(EORC) and East African Regional Office of Astronomy for Development (ROAD-IAU) from 22-25 May 2017 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia with the theme of “Exploring our Universe for the benefit of Humankind”. The aim of the meeting was to strengthen and build capacity of Middle East and African Regional development in Astronomy and provide a forum for scientists and students in the region to exchange ideas and experiences.
The OAD was represented by Kevin Govender, Vanessa McBride and Ramasamy Venugopal. The meeting was launched by His Excellency Dr.-Ing. Getahun Mekuria, the Ethiopian Minister of Science and Technology. The welcome address was followed by a keynote speech from Vanessa McBride on “Astronomy for Development”. There were also multiple, parallel sessions on “Astronomy for Development” during the course of the conference.
The meeting was attended by about 120 participants from over 30 countries, including representatives from all of the OAD Regional Offices. A full day meeting of the OAD Regional Offices took place right after the conference.
