Abdul Basit (Da’ie)
SDGs Senior Specialist
Abdul Basit Da’ie is a specialist in climatology and hydrometeorology and a researcher in atmospheric and environmental sciences, with more than 14 years of professional experience in university teaching, climate and environmental research, educational programme development, natural disaster risk management, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and Remote Sensing. A significant part of his professional work has focused on climate, climate change, water resources, meteorology, and natural hazards in Afghanistan. Alongside his academic and research activities, he has experience in translating scientific and technical concepts into educational and accessible materials for students, professionals, and wider audiences. Abdul Basit Da’ie holds a Master of Applied Physics from the National University of Malaysia (UKM) and a Bachelor of Science in Hydrometeorology from the Faculty of Geosciences at Kabul University. He has served as a lecturer at the Faculty of Geosciences of Kabul University, where he has taught a range of specialized subjects, including climatology, climate change and environmental studies, flood and drought analysis, meteorology and atmospheric modelling, weather forecasting, statistical methods in atmospheric sciences, atmospheric dynamics, general meteorology, aviation meteorology, and research methodology in natural sciences. Alongside his academic career, Da’ie has contributed to projects and programmes related to climate, water resources, and natural disaster risk management. His professional roles include Consultant Trainer for capacity building on climate change policies, Natural Disaster Risk Management Expert in a UNESCO- and JICA-funded project, Meteorology Adviser in a JICA/Ministry of Energy and Water project, and GIS Expert in an ADB/DABS project. He has also contributed to physics training and educational radio broadcasting programmes. An important part of his professional work is dedicated to scientific research and knowledge production. His research has addressed topics including potentially dangerous glacial lake outburst floods, spatial and temporal rainfall patterns in Afghanistan’s river basins, solar radiation, ultraviolet radiation, atmospheric dynamics, mathematical properties of fluid flows, and global climate change. Some of his research has been published in scientific journals and international conference proceedings. Da’ie has also contributed to translating and developing scientific resources in Dari. He translated the specialized books Numerical Weather Prediction and Data Assimilation and Applied Thermodynamics for Meteorologists from English into Dari. This work reflects his contribution to improving access to specialized scientific and educational resources for students and professionals in Afghanistan. In addition to research and teaching, he has participated in specialized training programmes related to glacier monitoring and hydrological modelling, GIS and Remote Sensing for water resources management, hydrometeorology, snow and glacial melt runoff modelling, and stream-flow measurement. These programmes involved institutions including Kabul University, the University of Lausanne, DAAD, ICIMOD, GTZ, and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. His expertise in GIS, Remote Sensing, MATLAB, and data-analysis tools, combined with his knowledge of atmospheric sciences and hydrometeorology, enables him to conduct scientific and spatial analyses related to climate, water, natural hazards, and the environment. Abdul Basit Da’ie is a native Dari/Persian speaker and is fluent in Pashto. He also has proficiency in English and Arabic. The combination of his academic, research, and practical experience in climate change, hydrometeorology, water resources, natural disaster risk management, GIS, and Remote Sensing has enabled him to combine a strong scientific understanding of Afghanistan’s climate and environmental challenges with extensive teaching, research, and applied experience in these fields.