No. 115/2023

Biomathématiques et d’Estimations Fores­ tières at the University of Abomey-Calavi in Benin and the Humboldt Research Hub “Socio-ecological modelling of COVID-19 dynamics in Africa”. In Benin, as in many African countries, population figures are rising significantly. At the same time, the forests and agricultural land are disappearing – not only because climate change is increasing temperatures and aridity but also because of overexploitation of the soil and forests by humans. It is thus becoming ever more difficult to provide enough food for everyone. To remedy this, researchers in industrialised countries often think in terms of genetic engineering or multilevel vertical greenhouses in cities. But Glèlè Kakaï thinks there is a much simpler solution in Africa: instead of focusing on modern varieties of forced crops that cannot cope with the changing climate, we should be falling back on plants like Synsepalum dulcificum, known as the miracle berry, or the horseradish tree, which are both drought- and heat-resistant and highly nutritious. “They’ve been around for ages. Farmers in the countryside have PROFESSOR DR ROMAIN GLÈLÈ KAKAÏ from Benin teaches and conducts research at the Faculty of Agronomic Sciences at the University of Abomey- Calavi. He is the head of a Humboldt Research Hub with a budget of 750,000 euros and chairman of the African German Network of Excellence in Science (AGNES). From 2008 to 2009, he was a Humboldt Research Fellow at the University of Freiburg. been growing them for many decades in some cases. With targeted cultivation, we could keep developing these plants and cultivate them on a larger scale.” FIGHTING FOR THE LAST FORESTS Another way of meeting the challenges in Africa, Glèlè Kakaï believes, would be to not only give young researchers a good education but also to offer them a future in their own countries, as well. “We have so many talented young people here in Africa. They are our greatest asset. And now we need to utilise it.” He, himself, recently conducted a national forest assessment of Benin forest reserves for the government. He travelled to rural regions of the country with several graduates and postdocs and recorded structural parameters of tree stands in order to be able to better protect the surviving forests in his country. “When we’re working, it is common to meet Photo: private › 15 HUMBOLDT KOSMOS 115/2023