Anas Oubaha is a Ph.D. candidate at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P) in Morocco, affiliated with the International Water Research Institute (IWRI). His research lies at the intersection of remote sensing, hydrology, climate science, and machine learning, with a strong focus on developing data-driven solutions for drought monitoring, soil moisture mapping, and water resource management, particularly in data-scarce and climate-vulnerable regions such as North Africa.
His doctoral research, titled “Integrated Management of Drought in Morocco: Tracking and Early Warning,” aims to develop a seasonal predictive model that serves as a national drought early warning system. His work focuses on both meteorological and hydrological droughts, integrating Earth observation data, climate indices, and advanced machine learning approaches to improve drought forecasting and resilience planning.
Anas holds a Master of Engineering degree in Data and Software Engineering from the National Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics (INSEA), Morocco (2022). During his graduate training, he developed strong expertise in data science, artificial intelligence, and large-scale geospatial data processing.
In 2022, he joined the Center for Remote Sensing Applications (CRSA-UM6P) as a Data Scientist Intern, where he focused on retrieving, processing and combining satellite imagery of different key variables such soil moisture, land surface temperature and NDVI then applying machine learning algorithms to classify different hydrologic regimes over Africa.
Anas has authored peer-reviewed publications in leading journals, including the Journal of Hydrology and the International Journal of Climatology, contributing to the understanding of drought spatiotemporal dynamics across Morocco. He has also presented his research at international conferences focused on water resources, climate, and environmental sustainability.
His current research interests include:
- Seasonal prediction of meteorological droughts over Morocco using several machine learning approaches.
- Collaborative research on hydrology, climate variability, and Earth observation applications.
Driven by the goal of translating climate science into actionable decision-support tools, Anas is committed to advancing drought resilience strategies that support sustainable water management and climate adaptation in Morocco and beyond.
