From 11 to 13 September, the Systematic Observing Financial Facility (SOFF) together with the African Development Bank (AfDB) co-hosted a regional workshop in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire to address needs to close Africa’s basic weather and climate data gaps for effective adaptation and climate resilient development. More than 100 country and development partner representatives discussed enhancement of a regional approach of SOFF support and how countries can get complementary funding from the African Development Bank’s new Climate Action Window in support of the UN Early Warnings for All initiative.  

Since opening its doors for business in July 2022, SOFF has already been supporting 23 African countries with funding amounting to $USD 62 million.  

“Good data are the foundation of good decisions. Translating data into better forecasts will empower our communities to anticipate and address climate challenges with greater foresight and efficacy,” says Daouda Konate, First Vice-President of WMO. 

Observing Africa’s weather and climate impacts global climate action 

Africa is highly vulnerable to climate change. Floods and droughts, as well as periods of extreme temperature, have intensified in recent years, according to the WMO State of the Global Climate 2023 report. 

“Africa is warming faster than the global average, with 2023 ranking among the top three warmest years on record for the continent. While Africa is hard hit, most countries are missing foundational weather and climate data,” says Thomas Asare, WMO Assistant Secretary-General. Africa faces the most significant basic weather and climate data gaps, accounting for 30% of the global shortfall. Asare adds, “For example, currently, Germany alone has more operating weather stations than the entire African continent. This Africa data gap doesn’t just affect local forecasts, it impacts our global ability to respond to climate challenges.”

Leveraging SOFF Investments with AfDB’s Climate Action Window 

James Kinyangi speaking on behalf of Dr. Anthony Nyong, Director of Climate and Green Growth at the African Development Bank, emphasized the urgent need for data-driven adaptation strategies. “Africa is not just facing a climate change crisis but a pressing one. We must urgently invest in climate information systems and accelerate the Early Warnings for All initiative to mitigate the severe impacts of extreme weather events,” Kinyangi said. He added that the Bank remains committed to expanding financial support for adaptation efforts, with a target to double climate finance to $25 billion by 2025. 

In addition to the close collaboration with the African Development Bank, SOFF established a collaboration framework with the major climate and environment funds namely the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the Global Environment Facility, the Adaptation Fund, the Climate Investment Funds and Climate Risk and Early Warning Systems Initiative (CREWS), to ensure that countries receive coordinated support to strengthen the meteorological value chain, beyond SOFF support. These opportunities were discussed at the workshop with the representatives of CREWS and GCF.  

Partners emphasize importance of peer-to-peer approach at the workshop 

A key feature of SOFF is the provision of peer-to-peer technical assistance by more than 20 advanced national meteorological services. They shared challenges and mapped out solutions that could support the implementation, looking at opportunities for enhancing efficiency and coordinated sub-regional implementation. Elinah Khasandi Kuya, SOFF peer advisor at the Norwegian Meteorological Institute emphasized, “At Met Norway we are integrating SOFF activities into our existing capacity building initiatives. We plan to provide technical guidance on the most effective and sustainable way to internationally share data based on our own experience in Met Norway.” 

Gender inclusivity is critical and showing progress 

Through its Gender Action Plan, SOFF promotes gender equality and strives to ensure that gender considerations are systematically integrated across all SOFF activities. This includes gender representation in governance, partners, within the SOFF Secretariat, as well as in the implementation of SOFF initiatives in beneficiary countries.

Partners shared some of the challenges they face in achieving the established targets, such as 50% women representation in some of the activities, due to a lack of trained female personnel. However, some countries shared successful examples of initiative that will help them to achieve those targets, such as through the development of a Gender Policy within the National Meteorological and Hydrological Services, collaboration with civil society organizations focusing on women empowerment, the adoption of quotas for new recruitments and initiatives to increase international visibility and training opportunities for female staff. Ester Araújo de Brito, Executive Administrator of the Cabo Verde National Institute of Meteorology and Geophysics, said that gender inclusion is no longer a problem within the institute and “I hope next year at a meeting like this we have many more women in the room”.

Hilde Jørgensen, Climate Services and Climate Adaptation Programme Adviser at the Norwegian Capacity (NORCAP), shared the experience with the Female Climate Accelerator Programme, a mentorship programme which aims to equip female scientists with the needed technical field, and social skills in the climate services sector to accelerate innovative science-based solutions and enhance the gender role in the development and delivery of climate services.

Exploring public-private partnerships to foster innovation and efficiency

Across Africa, National Meteorological and Hydrological Services are gradually starting to explore the role of the private sector. Araújo de Brito adds, “In Cabo Verde as part of the SOFF investment we are piloting a public-private model to support operations and maintenance of observation infrastructure in remote islands.

Several challenges still exist, mostly related to the lack of an enabling environment at the institutional level, and limited experience with non-public business models. The workshop provided the opportunities for more than 20 countries to share their experience in working with the private sector, while the implementing partners provided additional insights from the experience of other regions, stimulating consideration of innovative solutions.

Sustainability of SOFF operations ensured through inclusivity of countries’ voices

The unique feature of SOFF is that it provides long term, result-based, grant finance to ensure countries are able to operate and maintain the observing network in compliance with GBON requirements. This support is provided under the SOFF Compliance Phase and the operational modalities are still being developed. The workshop provided an important opportunity for the countries to voice their needs and for the SOFF Secretariat to gather input. This will allow the development of an operational framework that is suitable to the countries’ needs.

About

Systematic Observations Financing Facility (SOFF)

SOFF is a UN specialized fund co-created by WMO, UNDP and UNEP to close the climate and weather observations data gap in countries with the most severe shortfalls in observations, prioritizing Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and SIDS. SOFF provides long term financial and technical assistance to support the acquisition and international sharing of basic weather and climate observations, according to the internationally agreed Global Basic Observing Network (GBON) regulations. SOFF is a foundational element and delivery vehicle of the UN Early Warnings for All Initiative.

Global Basic Observing Network (GBON)

GBON paves the way for a radical overhaul of the international exchange of observational data, which underpins all weather, climate and water services and products. GBON sets the requirements for the acquisition and exchange of basic surface-based observing network designed, defined and monitored at the global level. GBON will improve the availability of the most essential surface-based data, which will have a direct positive impact on the quality of weather forecasts, thus helping improve the safety and well-being of citizens throughout the world.

Early Warnings for All initiative

The initiative launched by the UN Secretary-General in November 2022 at the COP27. It is a groundbreaking initiative to ensure that everyone on Earth is protected from hazardous weather, water, or climate events through life-saving early warning systems by. Early Warnings for All is built on four pillars led by UNDRR, WMO, ITU and IFRC respectively. Implementing partners include FAO, OCHA, UNDP, UNEP, UNESCO, REAP, and WFP, among other partners. SOFF and CREWS are delivery vehicles of this initiative.