The WIODER (Western Indian Ocean Delta Exchange and Research network) project, jointly funded by IDRC (International Development Research Centre, Canada) and IRD, was set up to provide the basis for a research network working on the present-day changes in deltas in the Indian Ocean.
The impacts of environmental and demographic changes on the territories around the four deltas in the Indian Ocean are compared by a team of European, African and Malagasy researchers.
Sharing hydrological, ecological and socio-economic data in a network and standardising the protocols used to study changes will make it possible to establish an observatory on changes occurring in the deltas.
The four deltas selected (Tana delta in Kenya, Rufiji in Tanzania, Limpopo in Mozambique, and Betsiboka in Madagascar) will serve as training sites for master’s and doctoral students.