Strengthening climate information and early warning systems for climate resilient

development and adaptation to climate change

Status of the UNDP-GEF Supported Initiatives in 10 countries in Africa

Pradeep KurukulasuriyaMark Tadross

Doha, Dec 2012

Overview

11 Least Developed African countries – Benin, Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Sao Tome & Principe, Gambia, Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia

Projects will address NAPA-identified priorities (LDCF funding)

Two main components:

Transfer of technologies for climate and environmental monitoring (mostly investment)

Climate information integrated into development plans and early warning systems (mostly technical assistance)

http://www.ews-undp.blogspot.com

Developments to date

Project development team:

6 international lead developers (1-2 countries each)

1-2 national counterparts in each country

Initial planning meeting for international lead developers

Government-led stakeholder workshops in each country

Initial consultations with key government departments, NGOs and the private sector

National Meteorological and Hydrological Agencies

Ministries of Agriculture and Health

Disaster Management Agencies

Cell phone companies and power generation utilities

http://www.ews-undp.blogspot.com

Challenges for implementation

Equipment:

Rehabilitation of existing weather and hydrological stations is sometimes preferable to new equipment

Current observations often relayed by telephone

Automatic Stations (transmitting via GPRS or satellites) are preferred but may not be practical (limited GPRS coverage) or easy to maintain (skills to fix)

Incompatibility of equipment from different manufacturers exacerbates maintenance and functional difficulties

Radar only covers small regions (often around airports) and involves large investment and maintenance costs

Calibration equipment often lacking

Satellite-receiving equipment in disrepair or data inaccessible to institutions who can use it

Data archiving facilities inconsistent, centralised etc.

http://www.ews-undp.blogspot.com

Challenges for implementation

Institutional

Data collectors receive limited incentives to report data regularly

Limited facilities for receiving and archiving data

Limited national capacity for implementation

Limited budgets for hiring new staff

Communication and dissemination

SMS systems for reporting and dissemination require operational budgets

Centralised facilities for issuing timely warnings to districts/provinces are not always functional

Forecasts not useful e.g. not adapted to specific sectors

Limited use of internationally available forecasts and monitoring

http://www.ews-undp.blogspot.com

Challenges for implementation

Operational

Limited operational budgets limit the effectiveness and sustainability of interventions

Few private sector services

Climate information not combined with other information on vulnerability to enhance warnings

High turnover and lack of trained personnel

Slow procurement processes

Legislative

Met services are often not fully constituted

Lack of dedicated Institutions mandated to issue warnings

http://www.ews-undp.blogspot.com

Approach to project design Identify users/sectors in need of climate-related warnings

and long-term observations. Assess feasibility and costs of providing new and rehabilitated equipment

Assess current and past activities to improve climate-related technologies and EWS – identify (un)successful approaches

Identify current systems, weaknesses in the flow of information, dependencies on skilled human resources

Use satellite monitoring information in place of observations where feasible, cost-effective and accurate

Improve forecast infrastructure and technologies – assess if forecasts can be shown to have useful skill

Wherever feasible, utilise monitoring and forecasts from international and regional centres

http://www.ews-undp.blogspot.com

Next steps ……… 14 national and 6 international team members engaging with

government agencies, NGOs and donors to:

Understand current deficiencies in observational network and development of climate related information

Assess problems related to human resources, budgets, institutional capacity, communication of information etc.

Ongoing information, interactions and feedback via blog site: http://www.ews-undp.blogspot.com

In-country consultations to be held between November 2012 and January 2013

1st draft project documents: January 2013

Feedback and review workshops: February - March 2013

Submission final documents to GEF: April 2013

http://www.ews-undp.blogspot.com

Collaboration and alignment with regional, bi- and multi-lateral initiatives

Regional:

ACMAD, ICPAC

SADC, COMESA, ECOWAS

Bi-lateral donors:

DFID, GIZ, JICA, USAID

Multi-lateral donors:

UN (WMO, FAO, WFP, UNEP, UNDP-BCPR, ISDR)

World Bank, IFC, GFDRR

AMESD (EU)

http://www.ews-undp.blogspot.com

http://www.ews-undp.blogspot.com

Timeline for project development phase

InceptionWorkshops

Project design

Validation workshops+ governmentconsultations

JunMayAprMarFebJan 2013

NovOctSep Dec

1st Draft review

National consultations, risk mapping, hardware inventory, capacity assessments, budget analyses, O&M costs etc.

Initialconsultations

2nd Draft

Final Draft

Logical frameworkfinancing plan

Submission for CEOClearance, adjustmentbased on GEF review

[Issue] [Best practices to improve recruiting process ROI]

[Cumbersome online forms]

[Standardize résumé data extraction to optimize effective data integration, exchange, and search applications.]

[Do not allow upload of résumé—this has to occur in order for data extraction technology to be optimized.]

[Large résumé volumes]

[Implement electronic résumé processing to speed online applications through process.]

[Utilize common data formats and database schemas to optimize data usage and value.]

[Utilize technologies to process résumés effectively and efficiently through internal resources.]

[Many formats] [Utilize technologies that accept and process multiple résumé formats and languages.]

http://www.ews-undp.blogspot.com