Bio
Prof. Karim Rakha has over 26 years of experience in the fields of coastal and hydraulic engineering with emphasis on numerical and hydraulic modelling of coastal hydrodynamics and beach morphology. Upon completion of his B.Sc. in 1988, he was selected to work as a teaching assistant in the Irrigation and Hydraulics Department in Cairo University. In 1988–1990, he assisted in the supervision of the hydraulic model tests performed for the new Isna Barrage in Egypt.
In 1990 Prof. Rakha received his M.Sc. in civil engineering from Cairo University. During this period he gained experience on hydraulic models and sediment transport in rivers. In 1991 he received a scholarship for his Ph.D. at Queens University, Kingston, Canada. At Queens University, he worked as a research and teaching assistant in the field of coastal engineering. Prof. Rakha performed two-dimensional and three-dimensional experiments in the laboratory, and developed a numerical morphology model for a beach backed by a seawall.
After completing his Ph.D., he was employed at the International Research Center for Computational Hydrodynamics ICCH, at the Danish Hydraulic Institute DHI for one year. At the ICCH Prof. Rakha worked on improving the sediment transport models developed by DHI.
In 1996 he returned back to Egypt and worked as an Assistant Professor of Harbour and Coastal Engineering at Cairo University.
In 1997 Prof. Rakha returned to the ICCH for another two years to complete the model developments he had undertaken during his previous stay. Prof. Rakha also worked for DHI on a project for the Shore Protection Authority SPA in Egypt.
In 1998 Prof. Rakha returned to his position as an Assistant Professor of Harbour and Coastal Engineering at Cairo University and as a senior coastal engineer at ECMA. At ECMA Prof. Rakha participated in many consultancy projects including design of coastal structures, bathymetric surveys, design of artificial lagoons, modeling of waves and currents in the nearshore area, and others.
In 2000 Prof. Rakha worked as a coordinator at the Shared Water Resources Diploma SWRD in Cairo University. In 2001 Prof. Rakha was promoted to an Associate Professor at Cairo University. From 1998-2003 Prof. Rakha worked as a consultant for the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA) and participated in the review of many EIA’s and in the determination of the setback line for some projects.
In 2003 Prof. Rakha joined the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research KISR as an Associate Researcher. At KISR Prof. Rakha worked on several projects using mathematical models. These models included hydrodynamic models for tidal currents, water quality models, wave models, and shoreline models. During the years Prof. Rakha spent at KISR, he modeled all the power plant intakes and outfalls in Kuwait and thus gained extensive experience in the modeling of thermal outfalls. In 2008, Prof. Rakha was promoted to a Research Scientist at KISR.
In 2010 Prof. Rakha returned to Egypt as a Professor of Harbour and Coastal Engineering at Cairo University. Prof. Rakha works as a consultant for many companies inside and outside Egypt and for several agencies