Ocean Monitoring Masterclass in Mombasa, Kenya

On June 17th at Sote Hub, Mombasa the Mercator Ocean – OPERA team hosted a hybrid masterclass on  Ocean Monitoring that successfully brought together 92 participants in a hybrid format, with 25 attending in person and 67 joining online from across the region and beyond. The event was hosted in partnership with the Early Career Ocean Professionals Programme, Africa Node and Sote Hub.

The session commenced with a keynote address by former ECOP Africa Coordinator, Gabriel Juma, who initiated the conversation and framed the key themes for discussion. This was followed by an intervention from Yandeh Sallah-Muhammed (Mercator Ocean International), who presented an overview of Mercator Ocean, the OceanPrediction Decade Collaborative Centre, and the OPERA Project. The presentation covered the project's mission, technical framework, implementation timeline, and current opportunities for participation, including open positions and avenues for engagement.

 The participants then explored key aspects of ocean monitoring through presentations from Jethan d'Hotman (NRF-SAEON), Nicole du Plessis (NRF-SAEON) and Josphat Mokoya (ECOP Kenya Node Coordinator). Topics ranged from observations (satellite and in situ) to modelling and forecasting, ocean governance, the blue economy and opportunities for early career ocean professionals. To close the session, attendees were encouraged to engage more with the topic through the opportunity to join the upcoming MOOC on Ocean Forecasting being currently developed by ICPMA and University Abomey Calavi under OPERA‘s current capacity development activities. 

The interactive discussion session that followed sparked valuable exchanges on strengthening ocean knowledge, building capacity and advancing collaboration to support sustainable ocean management and informed decision making. Thank you to all speakers and participants for contributing their expertise, insights and enthusiasm to a highly engaging and successful masterclass! 

Keep an eye on updates to learn more about our activities on our website: Homepage | OceanPrediction DCC