Leveraging space technology for improved flooding resilience in Douala City, Cameroon
- Paper number
GLOC-2023,T,IP,x75305
- Author
Mr. Stephane Lako Mbouendeu, Cameroon
- Coauthor
Dr. Desire Muhire, Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC), Austria
- Coauthor
Mr. Chukwuma Okolie, Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC), Nigeria
- Coauthor
Mr. Charles-aimé Nzeussi Mbouendeu, International Space University (ISU), France
- Coauthor
Mr. Krittanon Sirorattanakul, California Institute of Technology, United States
- Coauthor
Mr. Swarnajyoti Mukherjee, Apogeo Space Srl, Italy
- Coauthor
Ms. Lisah Ligono, Kenya
- Coauthor
Mr. Abinash Silwal, Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC), Nepal
- Year
2023
- Abstract
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports that climate change has a drastic effect on the water cycle in some regions leading to higher precipitation intensities and frequencies, andrisingtemperatures. Consequently, the frequency and magnitude of climate change-induced floods is likely to increase in countries facing these changes with coastal developing countries being the most vulnerable. Reliable early warning systemsare extremely important for flood management. However, there are hindrances which make the task difficult such as insufficient, inconsistent or unreliable data and infrastructures. The REFRA-SOS project (Realtime Flood Risk Assessment in developing countries using Social media, Optical and SAR satellite data, IGCP734), sponsored by UNESCO International Geological Correlation Programme (IGCP) and Space Generation Advisory Council (SGAC), aims to address these challenges by developing sustainable and effective management plans/tools driven by earth observation, crowd sourcedsocial media data, and hydrological models.In two consultationsheld with experts in 2021 and 2022 during the project annual workshops, some opportunities for advancing flood risk science with space technologies and the key constraints of incorporatingadvanced technologies (e.g., internet of things) and very high resolution imagery were identified. The primary constraints which include finance, data, human resources, technology, institutional and knowledge obstacles were also analyzed. This paper presentsthe outcomes of the consultation with more than 100 experts and discusses possible penetration points to help improve the resilience of developing countries to climate change-induced flood risks. It also provides a quick insight and overview of potential partner institutions (universities, research centers, corporate and non-governmentalorganizations) in developing countries for the implementation and development of spacetechnology for flood adaptation and mitigation.
- Abstract document
- Manuscript document
(absent)