Dr. Tetsuro Kikuchi, a Senior Researcher at JIRCAS and a member of SATREPS VaryAla Project (Output 4), traveled to Madagascar in September for field research and meetings with partner institutions.

During this visit, in the western part of Ankarafantsika National Park (AKF), the project’s study area, weirs were installed in two small catchments for hydrological investigations, and observations of streamflow and turbidity were initiated. In addition, meteorological observation stations were installed in the vicinity of each catchment, and measurements of meteorological variables—including precipitation, air temperature, solar radiation, wind direction, wind speed, and humidity—were initiated.
Furthermore, water sampling was conducted at a total of 18 sites, including rivers and springs in the region as well as the two small catchments, for water quality measurements and analyses of water quality components.
Subsequently, at the Laboratory of Radioisotopes (LRI), University of Antananarivo, a collaborating research institution, an overview of these surveys was presented, and discussions were held on future research plans and the framework for continued collaboration.