Email: hiowamah@delsu.edu.ng

  • Area of Specialization: Water Resources and Environmental Engineering, Renewable Energy, Mathematical Modelling of Environmental Systems
  • Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering

  • Engr. Professor Hilary Ijeoma Owamah, FNSE, FNICE, FNIEE, is a distinguished scholar, accomplished administrator, and illustrious son of Delta State who has etched his name in burnished gold in both Nigerian academia and the engineering profession. He currently serves as the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) of Delta State University, Abraka, following his appointment on March 11, 2025, at the age of 42, making him the youngest professor ever to hold this position in the University’s 33-year history. This feat attests to the belief that a mighty tree does not wait to grow before revealing its spirit. Born on August 27, 1982, in Owa-Alero, Ika North-East LGA of Delta State, Professor Owamah began his early education in Ibusa before proceeding to the Federal University of Technology, Owerri, where he earned his B.Eng. degree in 2006. In 2011, he obtained his Master’s degree from the University of Port Harcourt and completed a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering at the University of Benin in 2016. His journey in academia began at Landmark University, Omu-Aran, Kwara State, in 2013, but the homecoming bug later led him to join the services of Delta State University, Abraka, in 2016 as a Senior Lecturer. On October 1, 2022, when Professor Owamah attained the rank of full Professor, he was just 40 years old, thus becoming the youngest professor ever produced by Delta State University and one of the youngest nationwide then. Prior to his current role, Professor H. I. Owamah served as DELSU’s Director and Acting Director of Academic Planning between 2022 and 2025, overseeing the unprecedented full accreditation of all 92 academic programmes by the National Universities Commission (NUC). He also served as Deputy Director of Intensive and Part-Time Studies (2020–2022) and as Head of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (2017–2020), with each role bearing testimony to his consistent drive for institutional excellence. A prolific scholar of international repute, Professor Owamah has authored over 60 peer-reviewed publications in Scopus- and Clarivate-indexed journals, earning him accolades and recognition within and beyond DELSU. His research focuses on environmental sustainability, wastewater engineering, and infrastructure systems. In the past five years alone, as a renowned and highly sought-after public intellectual, Professor Owamah has delivered over 70 keynote and public lectures across Nigeria and abroad. His impressive array of professional affiliations confirms that he is, indeed, an engineer’s engineer. He is a prestigious Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (FNSE), the Nigerian Institution of Civil Engineers (FNICE), and the Nigerian Institution of Environmental Engineers (FNIEE): all attained before the age of 40. He currently serves as Vice-Chairman of the NSE Asaba Branch and has held several other key roles within the engineering community. In consultancy, Professor Owamah has made a significant impact, serving clients such as Sterling Exploration and Energy Production Ltd., the Delta State Urban Water Corporation, and Contemporary Design Associates. He is presently the Lead Consultant at HISACHI Construction and Consultancy Ltd. Professor Owamah is also a highly regarded academic mentor and examiner, serving as an external assessor and examiner for doctoral and professorial candidates across several Nigerian and international universities, including Covenant University, the Universities of Nigeria, Nsukka, Akure, Otuoke, and Owerri and Andhra University (India). His career is decorated with numerous accolades, including the National Jubilee Merit Award from the NSE (2018), the Distinguished Professional Career Award by the Nigerian Institution of Environmental Engineers (2021), and recognition as an Outstanding Scholar by Times Africa Magazine (July 2021). Beyond his professional achievements, Professor Owamah is a man of deep faith. A devout member of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, he has long served as a Sunday School Teacher, mentoring both young and old in moral and spiritual growth. He is married to the delectable Mrs. Victoria Owamah, and they are blessed with four wonderful children. Professor Hilary Ijeoma Owamah personifies Chinua Achebe’s wisdom in Things Fall Apart that “When a man says ‘Yes!’ his chi says ‘Yes!’ also.” In him, the university system and the engineering profession have found a visionary leader: humble in greatness and firm in purpose. His life is, indeed, a living testimony to the truth of the Scriptures that a man diligent in his work will stand before kings and not before obscure men (Proverbs 22:29).
    My Publications
  1. Owamah, HI (2020) A comprehensive assessment of groundwater quality for drinking purpose in a Nigerian rural Niger delta community, Groundwater for Sustainable Development/Elsevier B.V.
    https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352801X18303047 Vol.10 Pages:

  2. Owamah, H. I., Alfa, M. I., Oyebisi, S. O., Emenike, P. C., Otuaro, E. A., Gopikumar, S., & Kumar, S. S. (2020 ) Groundwater quality monitoring of a popular Niger Delta university town in Nigeria., Groundwater for Sustainable Development, Elsevier
    https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352801X20302046 Vol. Pages: 100503.

  3. Owamah, H. I., Alfa, M. I., & Onokwai, A. O. (2020) Preliminary evaluation of the effect of chicken feather with no major pre-treatment on biogas production from horse dung, Environmental Nanotechnology, Monitoring & Management, Elsevier
    https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2215153220303299 Vol.14 Pages: 100347

  4. Owamah, H. I. (2020). Biogas yield assessment from the anaerobic co-digestion of food waste and cymbopogon citratus. Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management, 22(6), 2012-2019. (2020) Biogas yield assessment from the anaerobic co-digestion of food waste and cymbopogon citratus., Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management, Springer
    https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10163-020-01086-3 Vol.22(6) Pages: 2012-2019

  5. Onokwai, A. O., Owamah, H. I., Ibiwoye, M. O., Ayuba, G. C., & Olayemi, O. A. (2020) Application of Response Surface Methodology (RSM) for the optimization of energy generation from Jebba hydro-power plant, Nigeria., ISH Journal of Hydraulic Engineering, Taylor and Francis
    https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09715010.2020.1806120 Vol. Pages: 1-9.

  6. Alfa, M. I., Owamah, H. I., Onokwai, A. O., Gopikumar, S., Oyebisi, S. O., Kumar, S. S., ... & Ilabor, S. C. (2020) Evaluation of biogas yield and kinetics from the anaerobic co-digestion of cow dung and horse dung: a strategy for sustainable management of livestock manure., Energy, Ecology and Environment, Springer
    https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40974-020-00203-0 Vol. Pages: 1-10.

  7. Alordiah, C. O., Owamah, H. I., Ogbinaka, E. J. A., & Alordiah, M. O. (2020) NIGERIA’S LOW CONTRIBUTION TO RECOGNIZED WORLD RESEARCH LITERATURE: CAUSES AND REMEDIES., Accountability in Research, Taylor and Francis
    https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/08989621.2020.1855984 Vol. Pages: In press

  8. H.I. Owamah (2019) Groundwater Quality Assessment in a University Sub-Urban Community in Delta State, Nigeria: Part A-Physicochemical Analysis , Appl. Sci. Environ. Manage. /Faculty based Journal University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria
    https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/jasem.v23i1.22 Vol.23(1) Pages: 151-157

  9. Owamah, HI (2019) Adsorption Model for the sequestration of dye from wastewater using potato peels as adsorbents, Journal of the Nigerian Association of Mathematical Physics/Nigerian Association of Mathematical Physics (NAMP)
    Vol.49 (1) Pages: 289-294

  10. Owamah, HI (2019) Assessment of groundwater quality properties in a university sub-urban community in Delta State, Nigeria: part b-correlation analysis and household water treatment adoption , Appl. Sci. Environ. Manage./ Faculty based Journal University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria
    https://www.ajol.info/index.php/jasem/article/view/185429 Vol.23(3) Pages: 469-474

  11. H.I. Owamah (2019) Optimization of biogas production through selection of appropriate Inoculum-to-Substrate ((I/S) ratio , The Nigerian Journal of Technological Development/Faculty of Engineering & Technology, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria
    https://www.ajol.info/index.php/njtd/article/view/183252 Vol.16 (1) Pages: 17-24

  12. H.I. Owamah (2019) Groundwater quality parameters-correlation and microbial analysis , Nigerian Journal of Technology (NIJOTECH)/ A Publication of the Faculty of Engineering, University of Nigeria, Nsukka
    https://www.ajol.info/index.php/njt/article/view/185718 Vol.38 (2) Pages: 526 – 531

  13. H.I. Owamah, Atikpo E. Ukala, D.C., Apkan, E (2018) Assessment of some geotechnical properties of Nigerian coastal soil: A case-study of Port-Harcourt beach mud, Appl. Sci. Environ. Manage. /Faculty based Journal University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria
    https://www.ajol.info/index.php/jasem/article/view/167946 Vol.22 (2) Pages: 228 – 233.

  14. H.I. Owamah (2018) Examining the physicochemical and microbial qualities and mineral content of selected brands of bottled water marketed and consumed in Asaba, Delta State, Nigeria , Appl. Sci. Environ. Manage. /Faculty based Journal University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria
    https://www.ajol.info/index.php/jasem/article/view/181857 Vol.22(12) Pages: 1979–1984

  15. Atikpo E., Owamah, I.H., Anyata B.U (2017) Modelling of Zinc in Amaonye Forest Sol of Ishiagu Communities in Ebonyi State of Nigeria. , Journal of the Nigerian Association of Mathematical Physics/Nigerian Association of Mathematical Physics (NAMP)
    Vol.40 Pages: 323-336

  16. H.I. Owamah, E Atikpo, O Oluwatuyi, A.M. Oluwatomisin (2017) Geotechnical properties of clayey soil stabilized with cement-sawdust ash for highway construction , Appl. Sci. Environ. Manage./Faculty based Journal University of Port Harcourt, Nigeria
    https://www.ajol.info/index.php/jasem/article/view/166888 Vol.21(7) Pages: 1378-1381

  17. Owamah, HI, Izinyon, OC, Igbinewekan, P (2017) Characterization and quantification of solid waste generation in the Niger Delta Region of Nigeria: a case study of Ogbe-Ijoh community in Delta State, Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management / Springer
    https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10163-015-0426-3 Vol.19 Pages: 366–373

  18. Ifesinachi I. Mokwenye Paul N. Diagboya Bamidele I. Oluowolabi Ikenna O. Anigbogu Hilary I. Owamah (2016) Immobilization of toxic metal cations on goethite-amended soils: a remediation strategy , Appl. Sci. Environ. Manage./Faculty based Journal University of Port Harcourt
    https://www.ajol.info/index.php/jasem/article/view/140447 Vol. 20 (2) Pages: 436 – 443

  19. H.I.Owamah, O.C.Izinyon (2015) Optimal combination of food waste and maize husk for enhancement of biogas production: Experimental and modelling study, Environmental Technology & Innovation/Elsevier B.V
    https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352186415000383 Vol. 4 Pages: 311-318

  20. H.I.Owamah, O.C.Izinyon (2015) Development of simple-to-apply biogas kinetic models for the co-digestion of food waste and maize husk, Bioresource Technology/Elsevier B.V
    https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960852415009384 Vol.194 Pages: 83-90

  21. H.I. Owamah, O.C. Izinyon (2015) The effect of organic loading rates (OLRs) on the performances of food wastes and maize husks anaerobic co-digestion in continuous mode, Sustainable Energy Technologies and Assessments/Elsevier B.V.
    https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2213138815000405 Vol.11 Pages: 71-76

  22. AO Sojobi, HI Owamah, SO Dahunsi (2014) Comparative study of household water treatment in a rural community in Kwara state, Nigeria , Nigerian Journal of Technology (NIJOTECH)/ Faculty of Engineering, University of Nigeria, Nsukka
    https://www.ajol.info/index.php/njt/article/view/101082 Vol.33 (1) Pages: 134 -140

  23. H.I.Owamah, S.O.Dahunsi, U.S.Oranusi, M.I.Alfa (2014) Fertilizer and sanitary quality of digestate biofertilizer from the co-digestion of food waste and human excreta, Waste Management/Elsevier B.V.
    https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0956053X14000476 Vol.34 Pages: 747-752

  24. Dahunsi, SO, Owamah, HI, Ayandiran, TA, and Oranusi, SU (2014) Drinking Water Quality and Public Health of Selected Towns in South Western Nigeria, Water Quality, Health and Exposure/Springer
    https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12403-014-0118-6 Vol.6(3) Pages: 143-153

  25. Owamah, HI (2014) Biosorptive removal of Pb(II) and Cu(II) from wastewater using activated carbon from cassava peels, Journal Material Cycles and Waste Management/Springer
    https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10163-013-0192-z Vol.16 Pages: 347–358

  26. H.I.Owamah, M.I.Alfa, S.O.Dahunsi (2014) Optimization of biogas from chicken droppings with Cymbopogon citratus, Renewable Energy/Elsevier B.V.
    https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S096014811400086X Vol.68 Pages: 366-371

  27. AO Sojobi, HI Owamah (2014) Evaluation of the Suitability of Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE) Waste as Fine Aggregate in Concrete , Nigerian Journal of Technology (NIJOTECH), A Publication of the Faculty of Engineering, University of Nigeria, Nsukka
    https://www.ajol.info/index.php/njt/article/view/122291 Vol. 33(4) Pages: 409–425

  28. H.I. Owamah, M.A.Enaboifo, O.C. Izinyon (2014) Treatment of wastewater from raw rubber processing industry using water lettuce macrophyte pond and the reuse of its effluent as biofertilizer, Agricultural Water Management/Elsevier
    https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378377414002546 Vol.146 Pages: 262-269

  29. Owamah,IH, Asiagwu AK, Egboh SHO & Phil-Usiayo S. (2013) Drinking water quality at Isoko North communities of the Niger Delta Region, Nigeria, Toxicological & Environmental Chemistry /Taylor and Francis
    https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02772248.2013.847939 Vol.95(7) Pages: 1116-1128

  30. HI Owamah, AK Asiagwu, IL Nwaogazie, A Uwague (2012) Trend analyses and BOD5 removal efficiency of a brewery treatment plant in Nigeria, International Review of Civil Engineering (IRECE)/A Publication of Praise Worthy Prize S.r.l, Naples, Italy
    https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=Trend+analyses+and+BOD5+removal+efficiency+of+a+brewery+treatment+plant+in+Nigeria&btnG= Vol.3(3) Pages: 304-308

  31. Ramonu, John A. L. and Ilevbaoje, J. O. and Olaonipekun, O. A. and Omotosho, Adebayo and Owamah, H.I and Adewole, Tolulope A. ( 2018) PREVENTION OF CONFLICT IN CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY CONSIDERING; ORGANIZATION, CONSULTANCY FIRM, CONTRACTUAL FIRM AND THE PROFESSIONALS PERSONNEL IN NIGERIA, International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology (IJCIET)
    http://www.iaeme.com/ijciet/issues.asp?JType=IJCIET&VType=9&IType=12 Vol.9(12) Pages: 472-484