Climate Investment Funds joins the Alliance for Hydromet Development

The Climate Investment Funds (CIF) is officially joining the Alliance for Hydromet Development. The virtual ceremony is taking place during the week-long Executive Council Meeting of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) from September 28 to October 2 2020.

The Alliance brings together major international development, humanitarian and climate finance institutions to scale up and unite efforts to improve weather, climate, hydrological and related environmental information services, also known as hydromet services. Improving forecasts, warnings and projections of climate emergencies will save countless livelihoods and lives. One priority action of the Alliance is to establish the Systematic Observations Financing Facility (SOFF) to sustain compliance of developing countries with the Global Basic Observing Network and increase their access to improved weather and climate products and services.  

The CIF brings significant expertise and experience to this partnership through its Pilot Program for Climate Resilience (PPCR). This Program has supported some of the most vulnerable countries in the world to improve their capacity in providing reliable hydromet services, including Dominica, Grenada, Haiti, Jamaica, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, Papua New Guinea, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Tajikistan.

With total funding of more than $300 million, including co-financing, these investments cover all five components of the hydromet value chain: observation and monitoring; data and information management; research, forecasting, and modeling; service development and delivery; and training and capacity building. To date, more than 14 million people have benefited from PPCR support.

By joining the Alliance, CIF furthers its commitment to help developing countries make informed decisions and advance their adaptation and resilience actions in a more systematic way.

The CIF is joining the other 12 organizations who have united efforts to form the Alliance which was launched at COP 25 in Madrid in December 2019. Through collective action, the Alliance members have committed to achieve the common goal of closing the capacity gap on hydromet services by 2030.

Mafalda Duarte, Chief Executive Officer of the CIF, said: “Well-functioning weather and climate information services are necessary to effectively manage the risks associated with an uncertain and warming climate and build resilient economies and communities. However, the developing countries who bear the greatest burden of the impacts of climate change are also the ones facing capacity constraints to produce timely and accurate forecasts, early warnings, and climate projections. Through the Alliance, we will continue to support developing countries bridge this hydromet capacity gap and lay the foundation for resilient and sustainable development.”

According to Petteri Taalas, WMO Secretary-General, “The Climate Investment Funds are a major player supporting countries on delivering reliable weather and climate services. We warmly welcome them as a new member of the Alliance, further strengthening our joint efforts to scale up and unite our efforts to close the hydromet capacity gap.”

During the event, the CIF is also releasing a knowledge piece titled, Strengthening Weather and Climate Information Services for Resilience: Highlights from PPCR-supported projects. It draws on the operational experiences of PPCR in supporting partner countries build their capacity in delivering and using weather and climate information services. To continue generating and disseminating learning on this important topic, the CIF will also be launching an in-depth learning review on its PPCR hydromet-related activities.

Moving forward, CIF and other members of the Alliance will continue to work in the following areas:  

1. Improving systematic observations for better data by strengthening country capacity for sustained operation of observational systems and establish the SOFF to finance developing country observations in new, more effective ways.
2. Enhancing support for better adaptation, mitigation, and resilience by strengthening country capacity for science-based mitigation and adaptation planning.
3. Strengthening early warning systems for improved disaster risk management by developing multi-hazard national warning systems that consist of better risk information, forecasting capabilities, warning dissemination, and anticipatory response.
4. Boosting investments for better effectiveness and sustainability by fostering programmatic approaches that go beyond individual projects, including systematically strengthening the WMO’s integrated global, regional, and national operational hydromet system.     

The actions of the Alliance are guided by the principles of UN agreements, including the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Agreement on climate change, and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030.

The Alliance is open for membership to all public international development, humanitarian, and financial institutions providing assistance to strengthen developing countries’ hydromet capacity.