Africa boosts storm forecasting

by ADANE BIKILA
ADDIS ABABA, (CAJ News) – AFRICA has launched a major new weather forecasting initiative aimed at improving early warning systems and strengthening the continent’s ability to respond to severe weather disasters.

The African Meteorological Satellite Application Facility (AMSAF) was officially launched in Addis Ababa on Monday, bringing together representatives from the African Union Commission, the European Union, EUMETSAT, the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and several African meteorological agencies.

The initiative is expected to significantly improve “nowcasting” capabilities across Africa, enabling national meteorological and hydrological services to provide more accurate short-term weather forecasts covering periods of up to six hours.

The development comes as Africa faces increasingly frequent and destructive extreme weather events, including storms, floods and tornadoes, which have caused widespread fatalities, displacement and damage to infrastructure in recent years.

Experts say the ability to issue timely and accurate warnings could save lives, protect livelihoods and improve disaster preparedness across vulnerable communities.

The AMSAF will establish a network of regional nowcasting centres serving Western, Eastern, Central and Southern Africa. The African Centre of Meteorological Applications for Development (ACMAD), based in Niger, will also contribute to the network.

Using advanced data from Meteosat Third Generation satellites, the centres will generate rapid weather forecasts designed to support decision-making by governments, emergency responders, aviation authorities and disaster management agencies.

Phil Evans, Director-General of EUMETSAT, described the launch as a milestone in strengthening Africa’s forecasting independence and resilience.

“The AMSAF represents an important step in supporting African countries to take full ownership of their weather forecasting capabilities,” Evans said.

“By advancing the development of locally tailored satellite products, we are helping strengthen resilience to extreme weather and support sustainable development across the continent.”

The initiative also supports the United Nations’ Early Warnings for All programme and the African Union’s Africa Multi-Hazard Early Warning and Early Action System (AMHEWAS), both aimed at reducing disaster risks linked to climate and environmental hazards.

The AMSAF forms part of the European Union-funded Strengthening Early Warning in Africa (SEWA) project under the Global Gateway Africa-EU Space Partnership Programme.

As part of the project, EUMETSAT announced it would expand access to Meteosat Third Generation data across Africa later this year by increasing bandwidth on its EUMETCast-Africa dissemination system.

Officials said the enhanced data access would allow African forecasters to benefit from faster, more detailed and more reliable weather information, improving preparedness for rapidly developing weather emergencies across the continent.

– CAJ News