Región III: América del Sur

La Región III de la Organización Meteorológica Mundial (OMM) está compuesta por 13 Estados Miembros que quedan cubiertos por el paraguas de la Oficina Regional para las Américas de la OMM. Su vasto territorio abarca imponentes paisajes, desde las tierras altas hasta los glaciares del extremo sur del continente, pasando por los exuberantes bosques tropicales amazónicos, sin olvidar los estuarios de La Plata y la Amazonia o las cumbres nevadas de los Andes. Esta diversidad geográfica se refleja en la rica biodiversidad y en la variedad meteorológica y climática de la Región. 

Las inundaciones, las crecidas y las sequías son los principales peligros ante los que América del Sur es más vulnerable: están profundamente relacionadas con la variabilidad climática —sobre todo El Niño-Oscilación del Sur— y se ven exacerbadas por el cambio climático. Sin embargo, existen otros fenómenos que también afectan de manera significativa a la Región, como las tormentas violentas, los deslizamientos de tierras o los incendios forestales, ya que el norte de la Argentina, el sur del Brasil y el Paraguay conforman la zona con mayor frecuencia de relámpagos de todo el mundo.  

Para hacer frente a los desafíos que, entre otros factores, plantean el cambio climático y las limitaciones ambientales locales, la Oficina Regional para las Américas colabora de manera activa con la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL), el Instituto Interamericano para la Investigación del Cambio Global (IAI), la Organización de los Estados Americanos (OEA) y el Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Espaciales (INPE) del Brasil. También dedica una parte importante de su labor a contribuir a la consecución de los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible de las Naciones Unidas al participar en coaliciones temáticas con la Oficina de las Naciones Unidas para la Reducción del Riesgo de Desastres (UNDRR), el Programa de las Naciones Unidas para el Medio Ambiente (PNUMA) y la Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Alimentación y la Agricultura (FAO). 

En cuanto al panorama socioeconómico, la Región III está formada principalmente por economías en desarrollo: un par de países en desarrollo sin litoral cuyos ingresos son, de media, entre medianos y altos, así como países con índices de desarrollo humano entre medios y muy altos, como el Uruguay, Chile y la Argentina. 

Ongoing projects in the region

WMO Technical Advisory under AIM for Scale

Climate change is increasingly affecting agriculture across the globe, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where smallholder farmers face growing uncertainty from erratic rainfall, rising temperatures, and extreme weather events. These challenges threaten food security, livelihoods, and national economies.To address these pressing issues, the Agriculture Innovation Mechanism for Scale (AIM for Scale) was launched as a bold initiative to bring evidence-based agricultural innovations to scale—starting with weather services.  WMO is involved in the AIM for Scale Programme Weather Package as a technical advisory partner supported by a grant from the International Affairs Office at the Presidential Court of the UAE. The initiative aims to scale climate services for farmers in countries across Africa, Asia, and South America. Current engagement includes Bangladesh, Chile, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Nigeria, with expansion to 30 countries planned by 2027.WMO supports the initiative through technical advisory on the following aspects: Country engagement through NMHSs and WMO Regional Training Centres, coordination to align the programme with WMO priorities and initiatives.,  the application of climate services in the agriculture sector through innovative co-production processes, enhanced capacity building and trainings for NMHSs and extension actors ; guiding in development of AI-focused weather and agrometeorology training with partners like the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI), University of Chicago and WMO Members and regional centres.  As WMO Secretary-General Professor Celeste Saulo stated during COP29, " More and better data leads to better weather forecasts, early warning systems and climate information services for agriculture and other vital economic sectors. Closing basic data gaps will also help inform AI models.” Professor Saulo added that “the agriculture sector is undoubtedly one of the most vulnerable sectors to climate variability and change. Additional partnerships are needed to ensure that farmers are involved in the coproduction of weather and climate services which will enhance resilience and adaptation in the  agriculture sector.”  

ENANDES+. Building Regional Adaptive capacity and resilience to climate variability and change in vulnerable sectors in the Andes, a contribution to scaling up the ENANDES project

The presence and influence of the Andes, the most important mountain range in the Southern Hemisphere, creates a large variety of climatic and environmental conditions in the Andean countries of South America, not only in the mountainous zones but also in its slopes and surrounding areas. Andean countries share distinctive climate, environmental and cultural characteristics that have led the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to recognize them as particularly vulnerable to climate change.ENANDES+ will support six of seven Andean countries in their climate adaptation and resilience efforts, scale up the ENANDES project, currently being implemented by WMO through the Adaptation Fund. With The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)contribution adding Argentina, Bolivia and Ecuador to the three original ENANDES countries, Chile, Colombia and Peru. The project will also involve all WMO regional institutions in South America, including the Regional Climate Centres for South and West of South America, and the Regional Training Centres in Peru and Argentina.In Argentina and Bolivia, an early warning system for flash flood warnings in the binational area of the Pilcomayo River Basin will be developed, allowing for a unique transnational approach to improve climate resilience and adaptation in the region. In Ecuador, the National Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (INAMHI) will work in the upper Pastaza River basin to produce frost warnings for small-scale family farms, and hydrometeorological forecasts to support the management of hydroelectric power plants.  In Peru, the National Meteorological and Hydrological Service will work with MeteoSwiss and WMO regional centres to ensure technical knowledge is available and equally distributed amongst project stakeholders. 

Climate Science Information for Climate Action (CSICA)

Since October 2018, and in response to the Paris Agreement (Article 7, paragraph 7 (c)) WMO and Green Climate Fund (GCF) have partnered to provide the global community with access to new climate information, tools, and guidance to facilitate the generation and use of climate information in support of climate action decisions, recognizing the contribution and value of science-based decision-making in responding to climate change.  Some of the products developed by WMO include a methodology for Developing the Climate Science Information for Climate Action (WMO-No. 1287), data, tools and associated technical resources for enhancing the climate science basis for GCF-funded projects and activities, as well as for National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and climate policies.  The aim of providing these products is to help all countries, in particular least developed countries (LDCs), small island developing states (SIDS) and developing countries to identify and select the most effective climate actions to address climate impacts. In doing so, the guidance can contribute to country-level decision-making and the mobilization of climate finance.The Climate Science Information for Climate Action (CSICA) initiative was officially launched in 2021 at the twenty-sixth Conference of Parties (COP 26) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Glasgow, Scotland. Furthermore, the GCF Board at its thirty-third Session in July 2022 adopted Decision 19 (GCF B.33/19) recognizing the results of the WMO-GCF collaboration and acknowledged the importance of scaling up the support for strengthening the capacity of all stakeholders to access, synthesize, and incorporate relevant climate science information into climate action policies, plans and investments, as well as enhancing the hydrological and meteorological systems and associated climate information services for low-carbon and climate-resilient development.Noting significant demand from countries, and high-level political support for this work, WMO is implementing the CSICA initiative through the provision of institutional coordination support, technical advisory services, capacity development and increased partnerships. 

Completed projects in the region

Oficinas de la OMM en la Región

Oficina Regional para las Américas de la OMM

Oficina Regional para las Américas de la OMM (RAM)

Mariscal López 1146, esq. 22 de septiembre

3er piso, Edificio del Ministerio de Defensa Nacional

Asunción, Paraguay