WASCAL - West African Science Service Center onClimate Change and Adapted Land Use

Manfred DenichBonn Climate Change Conference, 36th SBSTA sessionBonn, May 23, 2012

West African Science Service Center on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use

Problems (examples)• 5th IPCC report:

831 invited authors – 66 are African scientists (8%)

• Publications on climate and related issues:2.4% from African scientist (1981-2009)

• Number of delegates: USA 136, Ethiopia 2 (Bali 2007)

WASCAL…•aims at strengthening the capacities and competences in research, education and policy makingof West-African countries…

•to deal with issues of climate changethrough adapted land use on a scientific basis…

•in partnership with German institutions(research institutes, universities).

WASCAL partner countries• Benin• Burkina Faso• Côte d‘Ivoire• Gambia• Ghana (HQ)• Mali• Niger• Nigeria• Sénégal• Togo

WASCAL partners•West African universities (11+)

•National meteorological services (6 countries)

•National water resources authorities (6 countries)

•National agricultural research systems (6 countries)

•Regional and international institutions (9+)

•German universities and research centers (10)

1. Competence Center (Ouagadougou)

2. Core Research Program

3. Graduate Research Program

Capacity development and infrastructure

Competence Center•provides infrastructure for research and development,

•brings together know-how in climate, hydrology, land use, biodiversity, economics and social sciences.

Establishment of databases•Data collection networks (climate, water, land use, biodiversity, socio-economic data)

•Data management

•Data analyses and policy advice

Core Research ProgramAfrican and German scientists establisha joint research program on land management under changing climatic conditions.

Research clusters

• Climate and weathere.g. Interactions between land surface changes and regional climate

• Landscape dynamicse.g. Adapting to water scarcity, uncertainty, and the effect of changing climate patterns

• Agricultural systemse.g. Locally-evolved land management options as coping measures to climate change

• Markets and livelihoodse.g. Demography and land use under increasing climate variability

• Risk managemente.g. Economic evaluation of risk management strategies

• Integrated assessmente.g. Scenario analyses at landscape level

Graduate Research Programs (GRP)Regional universities work together and with counterpart institutions in Germany to establish GRPs.

The idea is based on an analysis of the West African university landscape:•few universities in the region have the critical mass to establish an above-average GRP on climate issues,•to be attractive, high-quality teaching facilities and adequate research opportunities have to be offered.

Graduate research programs identified by regional policy makers:

1.African Climate Systems (Nigeria) 2.Climate Change and Water Resources (Benin)3.Climate Change Economics (Sénégal)4.Climate Change and Land Resources (Ghana)5.Climate Change and Agriculture (Mali)6.Climate Change and Biodiversity (Côte d'Ivoire)7.Climate Change and Human Security (Togo) (Master)8.Climate Change and Land Use (Nigeria) (Master)

• The GRPs are based at a university campus (lead university) of one of the participating countries.

• Each GRP accepts 10 doctoral students per year.

Structure of a graduate research program

Lead university

German university

Competence Center

Regional university 1

Regional university 2

Regional university 3

WASCAL network

Minna

Germany

Thank you !www.wascal.org

West African universities•Université d’Abomey-Calavi (Benin)•Université de Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso)•University of the Gambia (The Gambia)•Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) (Ghana)•Université de Cocody-Abidjan (Côte d'Ivoire)•Université de Bamako (Mali)•Université Abdou Moumouni de Niamey (Niger)•Federal University of Technology Akure (Nigeria)•Federal University of Technology Minna (Nigeria)•Université Cheikh Anta Diop de Dakar (Senegal)•Université de Lomé (Togo)

National institutions• National Meteorological Services

Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Togo

• National Water Resources AuthoritiesBenin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Mali, Togo

• National Agricultural Research SystemsINRAB - Benin, INERA - Burkina Faso, CSIR - Ghana, CNRA - Côte d'Ivoire, IER - Mali, ITRA - Togo

Regional and international institutions

•VBA, AGRHYMET/CILSS, Institut 2iE, FARA, AGRA

•UNU-EHS, IWMI, IFPRI, WMO

German partners

•Center for Development Research – ZEF Bonn •University of Bonn (Geography, Agriculture)•University of Augsburg (Geography)•University of Würzburg (BioCenter, Geography)•Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)•German Aerospace Center (DLR)•German Climate Computing Center (DKRZ)•Forschungszentrum Jülich