Voluntary Cooperation Programme (VCP)
Member-to-Member support to strengthen weather, climate and water services
The Voluntary Cooperation Programme (VCP) engages the WMO community for voluntary cooperation among Members, connecting countries to share expertise, resources and solutions to strengthen weather, climate and water services.
Built on the principle of cooperation and Member supporting Members, VCP brings together a community in which every Member can contribute according to its strengths and capacities, whether through technical expertise, financial resources, equipment, training, fellowships, peer-to-peer exchanges and institutional partnerships. WMO facilitates this cooperation by identifying and prioritizing needs, connecting Members, mobilizing resources and expertise, and supporting partnerships that respond to national and regional priorities and strengthen sustainable, long-term collaboration.
Unlike larger development projects, VCP is designed to provide a flexible and timely response to Members’ needs that can be addressed through relatively modest resources and targeted support. It can respond to specific priorities, catalyse new partnerships and complement larger investments by mobilizing the technical expertise and cooperation needed to help sustain their results over time.
Member identifies a need and sends a request > VCP management team + Regional Office assess and prioritize the need > VCP connects the need with available support > Implementation of the request > Results and lessons report
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wmo [dot] int (Support VCP )
A Community built on cooperation
VCP goes beyond individual activities. It brings together a community of Members committed to sharing knowledge, experience, expertise and resources to address common challenges and strengthen weather, climate and water services.
The VCP community is open to Members interested in contributing to and benefiting from a network of cooperation, with each Member participating according to its capacities and needs. Contributions can take many forms, from financial resources and technical expertise to equipment, training, fellowships, peer-to-peer exchanges and institutional partnerships.
Each year, Members come together at the VCP Annual Meeting (Informal Planning Meeting of the VCP) to exchange experiences, share lessons learned, identify opportunities for cooperation, discuss emerging needs and priorities, and develop new partnerships.
This community approach recognizes that cooperation is not a one-way process. A Member receiving support in one area may have valuable expertise, experience or resources to share with others. By connecting these complementary capacities and needs, VCP helps make the collective knowledge and expertise of the WMO community more accessible, while fostering lasting relationships and stronger regional and peer-to-peer collaboration.
From support to sustainable partnerships
WMO is evolving to respond to a changing development landscape.
WMO is strengthening the VCP’s role as a platform for South-South cooperation, regional collaboration and twinning arrangements between National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs).
The objective is to complement traditional financial assistance with longer-term institutional relationships through which Members can exchange expertise, learn from each other and jointly address common challenges.
Regional and peer-to-peer cooperation can also sustain investments made through larger development projects. By connecting NMHSs with institutions facing similar operational environments and challenges, VCP supports relationships that can continue beyond the lifetime of individual projects.
How VCP cooperation works
Join the VCP Community
The VCP community is open to all Members who want to participate and contribute. WMO is currently actively engaging Members that already play an important regional role to integrate the VCP.
Members can offer expertise or resources, establish peer-to-peer ot twining partnerships, provide training or equipment, contribute financially, or bring forward priority needs where cooperation with other Members can make a difference.
Every contribution strengthens a community built around a simple principle: Members supporting Members.
For detailed information on VCP processes, activities, contributions and programme, visit the VCP Knowledge Hub.