WMO: climate services support climate action
As climate change impacts intensify, the need for climate services to support mitigation, adaptation and increase resilience has never been higher. In the past five years, there has been progress in provision of this climate information for decision-making, but big gaps remain and investment lags far behind needs, according to a new multi-agency flagship report produced by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
- Climate change means unprecedented need for climate services
- State of Climate Services report finds progress supporting climate action but big gaps
- Climate services capacity improves in Asia and Africa
- Adaptation funding must be better informed by climate services
The State of Climate Services report says that in 2024, one third of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs) provide climate services at an ‘essential’ level, and nearly one third at an ‘advanced’ or `full’ level. It says that countries in Asia and Africa, in particular, have made strides in boosting their capacity thanks to targeted adaptation funding.
“On our journey towards sustainable development, we need to do more to turn climate science and climate information into actionable services, to make climate services more accessible and to use them more effectively,” says WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo.
“In the face of unprecedented environmental challenges, the development, delivery, and use of climate information to enable climate action has never been more crucial,” she says.
2023 was the warmest year on record to date, with the unprecedented warmth continuing into 2024. Many climate extremes are becoming more frequent and intense. While weather and climate-related reported deaths are decreasing over time due to better early warnings and disaster risk management, economic losses are increasing.
In the period from 2020 to mid- 2024, floods remained the most frequently reported disaster. However, heat-related hazards became the leading cause of deaths, accounting for 57% of the total reported weather, water, and climate related-deaths globally. Storms resulted in the greatest economic losses, contributing to 59% of the total, according to data from the International Disaster Database EM-DAT cited in the report.
Of the US$63 billion being spent on climate adaptation, nearly a third goes towards climate-informed investments, with a small portion (estimated at about US$4 to 5 billion) of that explicitly supporting climate services and early warning activities, according to the report.
But despite an overall increase, the report notes that the continued investment is not necessarily translating into support for building the capacities of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services, which are essential organisations for supporting climate action at the national and local level through provision of climate information services. Latin America and Caribbean, for instance, face a growing need for early warning services to deal with hazards such as forest fires and droughts.
“We need to make the necessary investments for a sustainable future. The cost of no action is several times higher than the cost of action. This is why it is essential to increase support for NMHSs for collecting better knowledge of the Earth’s system and its changes, delivering fit-for-purpose climate services to support decision making, and developing early warning systems to protect communities from increasing natural hazards,” says Celeste Saulo.
WMO has issued annual reports on the state of climate services for the past five years. This is in response to a request from the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP) for more information on adaptation needs and to help identify steps needed to address climate service gaps and needs, to inform more effective investment. All climate action investments need to be climate informed so that they are forward looking – the past is no longer indicative of the future.
The latest edition of the report explores the current state of play and also documents the progress that has been made in the last five years. It includes analyses and stories to explain how specific countries, including Seychelles, Mauritius, Laos, and Ireland, have succeeded in developing and using climate services to deliver a range of socioeconomic benefits and to advance climate action.
The report is based on contributions from 38 partners including major climate finance institutions, such as the Green Climate Fund, Adaptation Fund and the Global Environment Facility that are founding partners of the report series, and the UNFCCC Secretariat. The UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction worked closely with WMO on the Investment section of this year's edition.
WMO will present the State of Climate Services 2024 report at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan. It complements the UN Environment Programme’s Adaptation Gap report, also published on 7 November.
Highlights
The need and demand for climate services to inform decision-making has never been higher.
There is a growing awareness and commitment to incorporating climate services into national adaptation plans (NAP). More than 80% of the 58 countries that have submitted a NAP acknowledge and recognize the importance of climate services as part of their national adaptation strategies, according to UNFCCC.
Dealing with extreme events is no longer just about reacting to immediate crises; it’s a critical component of climate action. Climate services help bridge the gap between short-term weather events and long-term climate impacts.
There has been substantial progress in terms of climate service capacity in the last five years – especially in Asia and Africa.
The number of NMHSs providing ‘advanced’ climate services has increased from 8 in 2019 to 15 in 2024. There is a clear trend towards a higher level of sophistication and comprehensiveness of these services, allowing society to more effectively tackle climate challenges, and opportunities, through climate-informed decisions.
Despite progress, gaps remain.
Too few nations are creating tailored climate services, and there are still significant gaps in the coverage of observing networks in Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS), for instance. Less than 20% of NMHSs reported that they have conducted socioeconomic benefit (SEB) assessments of their weather, climate, and hydrological services over the last ten years.
There are also significant gaps in the co-development of climate services that recognise the specific impacts of climate-related risks for children, women, people with disabilities, and marginalized social and livelihood groups. Further, the engagement of children and youth as key partners in the co-development and inclusive communication of climate services has not yet been addressed sufficiently, and education has not yet been integrated as a key sector within global and national climate services frameworks.
Demand is increasing.
WMO analysis shows that the services being provided to national governments, agriculture and emergency planning and response are in highest demand. The analysis of NDCs shows increased attention on health and ecosystems and biodiversity in the context of climate change adaptation. The analysis also reveals an increase in NMHSs offering climate services to all sectors since 2000, with perhaps two notable increases being for the commercial and tourism sectors.
This trend highlights a growing recognition of the value climate information holds for business continuity, risk management, and strategic planning. Businesses can use climate information to strategically manage their supply chains, and minimize disruptions caused by extreme weather and climate events. The tourism sector needs climate information to enhance tourist well-being and to decide the location and construction scheduling for new resorts. In 2024, 62 NMHSs provide data services to the tourism sector, compared with 48 in 2019.
Regional cooperation is a key enabler for successful development, delivery and use of climate services.
In 2024 there are 26 designated WMO Regional Training Centres (RTCs) serving as hubs for educating and equipping NMHS personnel with the necessary competences and knowledge to develop and deliver weather, climate, and hydrological services, with 143 NMHSs benefitting in 2024 compared to 65 in 2019.The importance of regional cooperation is highlighted by many of the case studies included in the Annex to the present report, such as the case studies for Trinidad and Tobago, Seychelles, Australia, Mauritius and Maldives, and also in 36 case studies out of the 113 collected since 2019, as part of the State of Climate Services reports.
Climate services inform action
Climate services are the provision and use of climate data, information, and knowledge to assist decision-making. Climate services require appropriate engagement between the recipient of the service and its provider to co-produce services that can support specific decision-making processes, along with an effective access mechanism to enable inclusive communication and timely action. Climate services can help prepare decision-makers for the impacts of weather and climate, which is particularly important as our climate changes. Example applications include:
- Should I plan a vaccination programme in my region based on likely impact of forecast seasonal rainfall?
- Do I need to plant drought-resistant seeds next season based on the likely impact of forecast rainfall and temperature?
- How much wind and solar resources can we expect to get in various areas in the coming months, seasons, and years to establish and operate new renewable power plants?
- Will our children’s access to schools be affected by extreme rainfall or drought? Will we need to reschedule the school day and school year to account for heatwaves?
- Is our city’s infrastructure resilient to projected changes in extreme rainfall under a changing climate?
- How might sea level rise impact coastal communities and infrastructure in the coming decades and what investments are needed to adapt?
Notes to Editors
WMO, through its Global Framework for Climate Services, issues annual reports on the State of Climate Services since 2019 in response to a United Nations request for more information on adaptation needs of countries.
The Global Observatory, developed by UNDRR and WMO, provides a unified framework to track and understand the investments made by multilateral actors, identifying financing gaps and fostering collaboration among stakeholders to strengthen early warning and climate services. The Observatory is the main source of data for the Investment section of this report and it contributes to the Multi-Hazard Early Warning System Status report of UNDRR and WMO.
The following organizations contributed to the 2024 edition:
- Adaptation Fund
- Agence Française de Développement
- African Development Bank
- Asian Development Bank
- Barbados Meteorological Services
- Belgian Climate Centre
- Bureau of Meteorology Australia
- Climate Policy Initiative
- Climate Risk and Early Warning Systems
- Deloitte Belgium
- Department of Meteorology, Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology - Cambodia
- Department of Meteorology and Hydrology - Lao People's Democratic Republic
- Environmental Protection Agency, Ireland
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
- Global Environment Facility
- Green Climate Fund
- Group on Earth Observations Global Agricultural Monitoring (GEOGLAM)
- Inter-American Development Bank
- Met Éireann - The Irish Meteorological Service
- Maldives Meteorological Service
- Mauritius Meteorological Services
- National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology - Ecuador
- National Meteorological Service of Argentina
- Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration
- Save the Children
- Seychelles Meteorological Authority
- Systematic Observations Financing Facility
- Transport Infrastructure Ireland
- Trinidad and Tobago Meteorological Service
- UK Met Office
- United Nations Development Programme
- United Nations Environment Programme
- United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Secretariat
- United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction
- University College Cork
- University of Cambridge
- World Bank
- World Meteorological Organization
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for promoting international cooperation in atmospheric science and meteorology.
WMO monitors weather, climate, and water resources and provides support to its Members in forecasting and disaster mitigation. The organization is committed to advancing scientific knowledge and improving public safety and well-being through its work.
For further information, please contact:
- Clare Nullis WMO media officer cnullis@wmo.int +41 79 709 13 97
- WMO Strategic Communication Office Media Contact media@wmo.int