The East Africa Community (EAC) Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) Taskforce met to discuss strengthening NWP in the region through collaboration and capacity building.
The East Africa Community (EAC) is a regional intergovernmental organization comprising of eight Partner States - Republic of Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Republic of Kenya, Republic of Rwanda, Federal Republic of Somalia, Republic of South Sudan, Republic of Uganda and United Republic of Tanzania - with its headquarters in Arusha, Tanzania.
The Taskforce on Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) of the EAC was established under the program of Meteorology following a recommendation made by the Heads of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services of the EAC Partner States.
The objective of the taskforce is to facilitate the exchange of information on NWP between the Partner States, including updates on the status of NWP implementation at the national level and identification of development needs, hence representing a platform to identify mechanisms for peer-support and avenues for accessing development opportunities within or outside the EAC.
From 4 to 6 December 2024, the NWP taskforce met in Nairobi with support from WMO through three projects: CREWS East Africa, CREWS Horn of Africa, and CREWS Central Africa project, and Finland. The main objective of the meeting was to develop a draft roadmap for enhancing NWP capacity in the EAC region. The roadmap outlined the necessity of improving the capacity of NMHSs to establish, maintain and develop NWP systems among others through:
- Peer-support between the countries to bridge existing gaps in NWP weather forecasting in the region; and
- Leveraging on existing program, initiatives and capacities of Regional Specialized Meteorological Centers (RSMCs) in the region including RSMC Dar Es Salaam and RSMC Nairobi.
A follow up meeting will be held on 25-27 March in Arusha where the roadmap will be consolidated and finalized by the heads of NMHSs. The roadmap will then be presented to the Ministerial Council of the EAC for endorsement, which is expected before the end of the year.
