ADMIR

ARICA23_71 — Multi-Hazard Resilience in Arab Countries ARICA

ARICA23_71 is an ADMiR-led project, funded under the Arab Research & Innovation Co-Funded Alliances (ARICA) programme via Egypt's Academy of Scientific Research and Technology (ASRT), uniting research partners from Egypt, Morocco and Oman to enhance disaster resilience across Arab countries through multi-hazard modelling and mapping using machine learning and IoT sensors.

The project investigates the interplay of multiple hazards — earthquakes, tsunamis, climate change, volcanic activity, landslides, land subsidence and floods — for a pilot study site in the Arab region, processing large hazard datasets to predict probabilities, impacts and hazard interactions. Its outputs include precise multi-hazard risk assessment maps, a foundation for early warning systems, and advanced risk-assessment tools for land-use managers, planners and decision-makers.

ARICA23_71 shares its open-source geospatial infrastructure with the KNIGHT project to maximize resource efficiency, and includes a dedicated capacity-building programme with training material for regional stakeholders. The project aims to catalyze similar AI-driven hazard-modelling initiatives across Arab countries and elevate regional disaster resilience efforts.

Egyptian PI: Mohamed ElGabry (African Disaster Mitigation Research Center, NRIAG). Co-PI: Ahmed Mohsen Lethy. International partners: Prof. Mimoun Chourak (Mohamed I University, Morocco); Prof. Issa ElHussain (Sultan Qaboos University, Oman).

Recent activities & outreach

ARICA23_71's research was showcased at the 9th Arabian Conference on Astronomy and Geophysics (ACAG9) through a dedicated panel, “SMART HORIZONS: AI & Emerging Technologies for Multi-Hazard Disaster Resilience in the Arab Region,” bringing together specialists including Prof. Issa El-Hussein (Oman Earthquake Monitoring Centre, Sultan Qaboos University) and Prof. Mimoun Chourak (Mohamed I University, Morocco) to discuss how artificial intelligence, machine learning, GeoAI, IoT sensing networks and immersive virtual-reality training can strengthen multi-hazard early warning and disaster-resilience capacity across the Arab region.

The panel's discussions identified priority gaps for the region going forward: stronger integration between social- and physical-science perspectives in hazard research, persistent data and monitoring deficits in under-instrumented areas, the need to build governance frameworks and public trust around AI-enabled early-warning alerts, and expanding regional capacity to adopt and sustain these emerging technologies.

ARICA23_71 has also received formal appreciation from the Arab region's research-council federation for its contribution to advancing multi-hazard resilience research, and its progress and outputs are documented in ADMiR's institutional reporting and list of publications.

Project reporting

ARICA23_71's progress and outputs are documented in ADMiR's Annual Report, which describes the project as a flagship 2025 research initiative, led by ADMiR's Director with partners from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Morocco and Oman, and reports the establishment of a regional data-exchange platform, initial hazard-mapping case studies, and the design of an experimental early-warning system architecture combining real-time seismic and flood sensor feeds with AI-driven alert algorithms.

Related publications

Project partners have published peer-reviewed research aligned with ARICA23_71's multi-hazard modelling objectives, including:

Maklad, M., Yamanaka, H., ElGabry, M.N., Abuelnadr, I., Hussein, H.M. “Shallow shear-wave velocity profiling using microtremor arrays in the Nile Delta, Egypt.” Engineering Geology, 357 (2025), art. 108346.
Bouchikhi, S., Chourak, M., El Baida, M., Boushaba, F. “Multi-criteria decision analysis and hydrodynamic modeling for flood-safe urban planning: case study of Oued Merzeg, Casablanca (NW Morocco).” Natural Hazards, 121(17) (2025), pp. 20655–20682.
El Hadri, L., Boushaba, F., Chourak, M., El Baida, M. “Mapping flood hazard in Driouch region (north-eastern Morocco) using AHP and numerical approaches.” Journal of African Earth Sciences, 231 (2025), art. 105776.
Afaf, H., Oujidi, M., Chourak, M., Amar, I., Ramdani, S. “Assessment of flood hazards in Greater Berkane for the selection of nature-based solutions, Oriental region, Morocco.” Modeling Earth Systems and Environment, 11:139 (2025).
Bouchikhi, S., Chourak, M., Boushaba, F., El Baida, M. “Flood susceptibility mapping in urban areas based on Analytical Hierarchy Process: a decade-long systematic literature review.” Journal of African Earth Sciences, 233 (2026), art. 105903.

Full details of these and other ADMiR-affiliated publications are maintained in ADMiR's institutional publications list.

Check Also .. Show All

Hapi — African Water Observatory
An open, satellite-driven observatory monitoring water storage, flood extent, quality and climate across Africa&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#039;s great river basins for climate adaptation, early warning and disaster risk reduction.

Knight — Northern Lakes Observatory
Satellite monitoring of Egypt&#039;s northern coastal lakes, starting with Lake Manzala, for water quality, ecosystem health and coastal water-resource management.

ARICA23_71 — Multi-Hazard Resilience in Arab Countries
Enhancing disaster resilience in Arab countries through multi-hazard modelling and mapping using machine learning and IoT sensors, with partners from Egypt, Morocco and Oman.