Effects of SRM on climate change in the northern Gulf of Guinea
Project summary
Prof. Ezinvi Baloïtcha and his team are researching how SRM may affect the impacts of climate change on West Africa’s regional climate, in particular precipitation regimes and river discharge in the coastal countries located along the northern Gulf of Guinea where the climate is strongly modulated by oceanic conditions. In Benin and West Africa in general, global warming is expected to cause an increase in temperatures, more severe floods, sea level rise, an acceleration of coastal erosion, changes to monsoon precipitation, and disruptions to the overall regional hydrology. These effects could have dramatic socio-economic consequences due to their impact on agriculture, fisheries, water resources and human health. The team’s research has the potential to help local governments in each of these countries better identify and manage their climate risks. The project is hosted at the UNESCO International Chair in Mathematical Physics and Applications (ICMPA) at the University of Abomey-Calavi in Cotonou.
The team
Prof. Ezinvi Baloitcha (PI)
ICMPA-UNESCO Chair & University of Abomey-Calavi
Associate Professor in Mathematical-Physics at the University of Abomey-Calavi, Ezinvi Baloïtcha obtained his PhD in 2002 in co-supervision between Université de Liège, Belgium, and Université Paris XI Orsay, France, in the field of N-body Problems in non-relativistic quantum mechanics as well as the use of wave packet methods for charge transfer in Helium atoms. After successively two-year and one-year post-doc positions at Bristol University (England) and Université Paris XI Orsay, France, he returned to Benin in 2005 and got a permanent position at the University of Abomey-Calavi where he became Scientific Secretary of the International Chair in Mathematical Physics and Applications. Since 2005, he has been giving lectures in geometric optic, quantum mechanics, electromagnetism, fluid mechanics, wave theories and PDE. His research interests include the development of mathematical tools to study 1) circulation and surface conditions (mixed layer and salinity, barrier layer, circulation and meso-scale eddies) in the Gulf of Guinea and the equatorial and coastal upwellings and 2) the interactions between coastal upwelling, as well as Hamiltonian decompositions, quantum mechanics, and group theories.
Prof. Eric Adéchina Alamou
University of Abomey-Calavi
Associate Professor of Universities (CAMES), Adéchina Eric Alamou has a PhD in Hydrology and Integrated Water Resource Management from the University of Abomey-Calavi (UAC). A Professor-Researcher, he is currently the Deputy Director of the School of Sciences of Building and Road (ESTBR) of the National University of Sciences, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (UNISTIM) of Abomey. Member of the Laboratory of Applied Hydrology (LHA) of the National Institute of Water (INE) of the University of Abomey-Calavi (UAC), he conducts his scientific research work in the field of hydrological modelling, variability and climate change and its impacts on water resources. Hydrologist modeller and specialist of surface water and flood management, Dr Alamou is co-author of the rain-flow hydrological model based on the principle of least action (ModHyPMA). He actively participates in the management of floods in the lower valleys of the Benin shedding basins. Member of several research programs and international organizations and research programs, he has conducted several studies in his area of expertise. He has published 22 peer-reviewed papers on his research.
Dr Eliézer Iboukoun Biao
University of Abomey-Calavi
Eliézer Iboukoun Biao obtained his PhD in Climate Change and Water Resources from the University of Abomey-Calavi (Benin) in 2015. A Member of the Laboratory of Applied Hydrology of the National Institute of Water at the University of Abomey-Calavi, his researches focus mainly on hydrological modelling, impacts of climate variability and climate change on water resources, uncertainties analysis and stochastic modelling. He is the author and co-author of several published papers on hydrological modelling in Benin. His experience in carrying out research began ten years ago as an undergraduate research assistant at the French Research Institute for Development in Benin. His major research experience, though, has come through the West African Climate Science Service Center on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use (WASCAL) project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). WASCAL is a large-scale research-focused program designed to help tackle the challenge of climate change and thereby enhance the resilience of humans and environmental systems to climate change and increased variability. It does so by strengthening the research infrastructure and capacity in West Africa related to climate change and by pooling the expertise of ten West African countries and Germany.
Dr Frédéric Kpèdonou Bonou
UNSTIM, ICMPA-UNESCO Chair & IRHOB
Dr Frédéric K. Bonou is Researcher and Assistant Professor at the National University of Sciences, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics of Abomey (UNSTIM) in Benin. He obtained a PhD in Physical Oceanography in 2016 on the variability of CO2 parameters in the Tropical Atlantic Ocean from the Federal University of Pernambuco, Recife, Brazil (UFPE). Since 2016, he has been working in Benin on the implementation of CO2 estimation in the tropical Atlantic Ocean using multi-regression and neural network methods. He is also involved in the analysis of the coastal dynamics in Benin. He is currently working with Benin DECIMALS team members using GeoMIP simulations for the analysis and understanding of the impacts of geo-engineering on the West African Monsoon. Dr Bonou is also a member of the teaching team of the Master in Physical Oceanography and Applications at the ICMPA-UNESCO Chair. He is in charge of the “Climatological Data Analysis: Statistical Tools” course in this Master and co-supervises the students’ internships. He is also Associated Researcher at the Fisheries and Oceans Research Institute of Benin (IRHOB).
Dr Yelognisse Casimir Da-Allada
UNSTIM, ICMPA-UNESCO Chair & IRHOB
Dr Casimir Y. Da-Allada is working at the National University of Sciences, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics of Abomey (UNSTIM) in Benin. He obtained a PhD in Physical Oceanography in 2013 on the Sea Surface Salinity variability of the Tropical Atlantic Ocean from the International Chair in Mathematical Physics and Applications (ICMPA-UNESCO Chair) of the Abomey-Calavi University (Benin) and Paul Sabatier University of Toulouse (France). He completed 3 years of post-doctorate in France working on the tropical oceans (Atlantic and Indian) and Atlantic Cold Tongue dynamics. He is currently working on a better understanding of the marine hydrological cycle variability in the tropical Atlantic. He uses observations data, analysis products and numerical simulations for his research work. Dr Da-Allada is also a member of the teaching team of the Master in Physical Oceanography and Applications at ICMPA-UNESCO Chair. He is in charge of the Introduction to Physical Oceanography course in this Master, and co-supervises the students’ internships. Finally, he is also Associated Researcher at the Fisheries and Oceans Research Institute of Benin (IRHOB).
Dr Ezéchiel Obada
University of Abomey-Calavi
Ezéchiel Obada obtained his PhD on Hydrology and Integrated Water Resources Management in 2017 from the University of Abomey-Calavi. His PhD research focused on the quantification of recent and future changes of the hydro-meteorological variables (rain, temperature, potential evapotranspiration and runoff) in the Mekrou catchment (Benin, West Africa) under climate change scenarios. His current research focuses mainly on how to reduce uncertainties of climate change impacts on future water availability over Benin under climate change scenarios using a multi-models approach. A Member of the Laboratory of Applied Hydrology (LHA) of the National Institute of Water (INE)/University of Abomey-Calavi (UAC) in Benin, he is currently working with the team of Prof. Abel Afouda and Prof. Eric Adéchina Alamou. Ezéchiel Obada published eight articles on climate change and rainfall-runoff modelling.
Yves Wilfrid Pomalegni
ICMPA-UNESCO Chair & University of Abomey-Calavi
Yves Wilfried Pomalegni obtained his Master of Science in Physical Oceanography and Applications from the International Chair in Mathematical Physics and Applications (ICMPA-UNESCO Chair) of Abomey-Calavi University (Benin) and Paul Sabatier University of Toulouse III (France). He began his PhD program in December 2018 at the International Chair in Mathematical Physics and Applications of Abomey-Calavi University. His work focuses on the impacts of Solar Radiation Management (SRM) on the equatorial Atlantic Cold Tongue and precipitations during the West African Monsoon. This research is part of the PISWAC project funded by SRMGI/TWAS under a DECIMALS grant.
Dr Esdras Babadjide Josué Zandagba
University of Abomey-Calavi
Zandagba Josué holds a PhD in Hydrology and Integrated Water Resource Management from the International Chair in Mathematical Physics and Applications (ICMPA-UNESCO Chair) of Abomey-Calavi University. Working as a Research Assistant at the Laboratory of Applied Hydrology for more than 5 years, he has participated in several research projects, scientific trainings and seminars on issues related to the monitoring and management of water resources, climate change and water hygiene and sanitation. The most important ones focused on meteorological variables analysis, the hydrological modelling of the Ouémé sub-basin and the evaluation of the impact of climate variability on water resources. He also works on the hydrodynamic modelling and water management of some lakes and lagoons of Benin. As Course Assistant at the National Water Institut, he teaches and supervises bachelor students in their research work. A junior expert in the OmiDelta Project for the section related to water resource management in the Delta of Ouémé, he has published several articles in journals on hydrology and on environment protection.
Olabi Léonard Worou
ICMPA-UNESCO Chair
Olabi Léonard Worou obtained his Master of Science in Physical Oceanography and Applications in 2019 at the International Chair in Mathematical Physics and Applications (ICMPA-UNESCO chair) from the University of Abomey-Calavi (Benin) and the University Paul Sabatier of Toulouse III (France). His internship research focused on the impact of solar geoengineering on sea surface salinity in the Gulf of Guinea under the supervision of Dr Casimir Da-Allada and Prof. Ezinvi Baloitcha. This research was part of the PISWAC project funded by SRMGI/TWAS under a DECIMALS grant.