Ousmane Seidou

Dr. Ousmane Seidou is a Full Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of Ottawa, where he has served since 2007. He leads the Hydraulics Lab and holds affiliations with the Faculty of Engineering's Centre for Indigenous Community Infrastructure. His academic journey includes a PhD from École Polytechnique de Montréal (2002) and postdoctoral research at the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique, Quebec. Dr. Seidou specializes in climate change impacts on water resources, hydrological modeling, and transboundary water management.

Education:

• Ph.D. in Civil Engineering (Hydraulics), École Polytechnique de Montréal (2002)
• M.Sc. in Water Resources Engineering, École Polytechnique de Montréal (2002)
• Postgraduate Diploma in Hydroinformatics, École Inter-États des Ingénieurs de l'Équipement Rural (1998)
• Undergraduate Degree in Civil Engineering, École Mohammadia d'Ingénieurs (1996)

Research Focus: Dr. Seidou’s work integrates hydrological modeling with climate adaptation strategies, emphasizing Africa’s water security. Key areas include:

• Climate change impacts on river basins (e.g., Niger, Congo)
• Development of flood early warning systems in West Africa
• Water-Energy-Food-Environment (WEFE) nexus frameworks
• Environmental flow estimation in wetland ecosystems

He leads international projects involving multi-country collaborations and agencies like the United Nations Development Programme and the World Bank.

Recent Projects:

• Principal Investigator for the Niger Basin Authority’s WEFE Nexus initiative
• Technical leadership in the Dutch-funded BAM-GIRE project (Mali/Guinea wetlands)
• Development of flood early warning systems for Niamey and Gaya (Niger)

Teaching: Courses include Climate Change Impacts on Water Resources, Advanced Hydrological Modeling, and Water Resources Management. He mentors PhD students in hydrology and climate adaptation.

Grants & Funding: Secured multi-million-dollar projects with organizations like Wetlands International and the UAE-BELEM Programme. Recent funding includes $135,000 for hydrological modeling tools in the Niger Basin.

Labs/Teams: Director of the Hydraulics Lab at the University of Ottawa. Active in global initiatives like the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA) indicator development under the Paris Agreement.