Gahou was born in Cotonou on October 22, 1947. He studied from 1986 to 1989 at the Institute of Theatrical Studies at the University of Sorbonne Nouvelle Paris 3, earning a teaching license. From 1985 to 1986 Gahou served an internship at the Conservatoire national supérieur d'art dramatique in Paris and in 1988, had an internship at the Institut international de la marionnette.[1] Beginning in 1974, he was self-educated in the mediums of plastic art, wall tapestry, sculpture, and interior architecture.