A new vision for weather and climate services in Africa
The collection, analysis and distribution of reliable weather, water and climate information— collectively referred to as climate and weather services—has the potential to greatly benefit efforts by African nations to reduce poverty, build resilience and adapt to a changing climate. For over 30 years, the international development community has made substantial investments in the procurement of weather, water and climate technologies, with the goal of improving weather and climate services for Africa. In this report a new vision is explored to address sub-Saharan Africa’s weather, water and climate monitoring and forecasting needs. The presentation of this new vision begins with a review of challenges with traditional approaches for improving the delivery of weather and climate services. A new approach is proposed that provides Africa's least-developed countries with end-to-end systems that can produce and deliver early warnings and climate information that can save lives, boost productivity and protect the environment.