Monday, June 9, 2014

Further Coordination between Climate Information Projects in Africa



UN intergovernmental agencies, development banks, and Met services gathered in Nairobi to take part in the “Roundtable on strengthening development of weather, climate and hydrology related early warning systems in Africa.” The discussions at the event centered on ensuring that the various activities centered on enhancing climate information systems in Africa are complimentary and that early warning systems (EWS) investments are coordinated and build on each other.

Programme Manager, Bonizella Biagini, presented the collaborative approach of the multi-country UNDP project “Climate Information for Resilient Development and Adaptation to Climate Change (CIRDA),” while highlighting its role on facilitating access to reliable data and technology transfer; data interpretation and processing; identification of end users; integration of data into adaptation planning and actions.  A key innovative aspect of the CIRDA approach will be helping countries to identify climate information end users and working with the private sector to facilitate data access.

Through its presentation, UNESCO highlighted its use of crowdsourcing in Mathare slums (Nairobi) to collect data, underscoring that social media has become a trusted source of information for many people. Furthermore, WMO showcased its experience in implementing tools such as mobile weather alerts in Lake Victoria. The role of communications between information providers and users was underscored by the BBC, stressing that language needs to be adapted to the target audience. As a result of the roundtable, opportunities for engaging in cooperating with other agencies and met services such as Kenya Met through South-South cooperation will be forthcoming.



The Roundtable was hosted by UNDP-GEF, UNEP Department of Early Warning and Assessment (DEWA), and the UK Meteorological Office. Chairs to the sessions included Elena Manaenkova, WMO Assistant Secretary General; Jacqueline McGlade, UNEP Chief Scientist ; Xu Tang ,WMO Director weather and Disasters Services, among other noted participants.

For more information on the developments of the roundtable, including presentations go to the CIRDA Webpage www.undp-alm.org/projects/cirda.


No comments:

Post a Comment