Power Computing in Africa

From finance to transport, from manufacturing the perfect potato chips to performing simulations in climate modelling, High Performance Computing (HPC) is a tool whose use cuts across disciplines.

HPC uses clusters of computers to solve complex scientific computational problems, with applications ranging from the above-mentioned to the modelling of atomic structures. Sub-Saharan African researchers have few options for HPC on their continent, with most relying on shared connections with clusters in Europe and elsewhere.

With this in mind, ICTP has been supporting universities in Africa to set up sustainable educational programmes to train students and researchers in using HPC.

ICTP's Information Computing and Technology Section (ICTS) has been working in development-related activities for creating computational physics centres in Africa.  In 2009, ICTP donated HPC equipment worth 25,000 euro to Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia as part of a Italian/UNESCO-supported project.  Furthermore, the project has helped establish a programme that offers students HPC as a specialization of the existing M.Sc. degree programme in the Department of Computational Science.

ICTS' Clement Onime, who has been instrumental in helping install HPC clusters in Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia says, "Because HPC finds use across disciplines, understanding how to use it will strengthen the quality of research and development in the region."

Lemi Demeyu, the current head of the Computational Science department at Addis Ababa, recently visited the ICTP to exchange ideas on the sustainability of the new specialization programme. "The first batch of 5 students, who were admitted in 2010, are working toward their M.Sc. with a specialization in HPC," informs Demeyu. "ICTP has supported setting up the programme, contributed to finalizing the syllabus, and providing trainers for conducting courses," he adds.

Onime says that the selection of Addis Ababa University as a computational physics centre was based on specific criteria. "The university already had a strong climate group, and HPC can be used extensively in climate model simulations, so we knew there was immediate use for the HPC technology. Moreover, the university's focus on interdisciplinary subjects made it easy for us to select it for the HPC project."

"ICTP's commitment in supporting the HPC programme is crucial for the African region," says Demeyu. The hope is that once the programme in Addis Ababa University becomes self-sustaining by attracting local talent and experts, more such centres can be established in the region. The African University of Science and Technology in Abuja, Nigeria, and the Institute of Mathematical and Physical Sciences in Republic of Benin are already under consideration for establishment of similar centres. With HPC being one of the new research areas that ICTP plans to focus on, the African region will see support in further developing such programmes.