World Meteorological Day 2022 - Early Warning and Early Action

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Promotional materials

Posters, videos and other outreach materials for World Meteorological Day 2022 can be downloaded in high-resolution format in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish from our Trello Board.

WMO Secretary-General's Statement

WMO Secretary-General Statement for World Meteorological Day 2022

Early Warning and Early Action: Hydrometeorological and Climate information for Disaster Risk Reduction

Greetings from the World Meteorological Organization secretariat in Geneva.

The top priority of WMO is to protect lives and livelihoods from weather, climate and water extremes.

Every minute of every day of the year.

I am therefore very happy that the theme of World Meteorological Day 2022 is “Early Warning and Early Action.”

It celebrates the great achievements of national meteorological and hydrological services in improved early warning systems. It also highlights the vital work of the disaster risk reduction community in making sure that these early warnings lead to early action.

But we cannot be complacent. We face many challenges, especially in making sure that early warnings reach the last mile to the most vulnerable who need them most.

Climate change is already very visible through more extreme weather in all parts of the world. We are seeing more intense heatwaves and drought and forest fires. We have more water vapor in the atmosphere, which leads to extreme rainfall and deadly flooding. The warming of the ocean fuels more powerful tropical storms and rising sea levels increase the impacts.

We expect this negative trend to continue. Greenhouse gas concentrations are at record levels, locking in climate change to continue for decades to come, melting of glaciers and sea-level rise up to centuries.

In addition to climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation is a top priority. Early warning systems are a powerful way to adapt.

Last year WMO published a report on disaster statistics for the past 50 years. It showed that there were more than 11 000 disasters linked to weather, climate and water-related hazards, almost equal to one disaster per day. There were 2 million deaths – or 115 per day.

The number of disasters has increased five-fold in the past 50 years. And the economic cost has soared.

But the good news is that the number of casualties has fallen dramatically. We are better than ever before at saving lives.

Supercomputers, satellites and advances in science have greatly increased the accuracy of our forecasts. Mobile phone alerts and weather apps can reach even remote areas.

WMO is promoting impact-based forecasting, of what the weather will be and what it will do. That is needed to enhance the preparedness and early action of various user and customer groups, who are dependent on weather.

But much more remains to be done. Only half of the 193 Members of WMO have multi-hazard early warning systems in place. There is also a major need to enhance the impact based forecasting skills of a large fraction of Members.

There are severe gaps in weather and hydrological observing networks in Africa, some parts of Latin America and in Pacific and Caribbean islands. This undermines forecasts local and globally.

WMO has therefore created a financing mechanism known as SOFF (The Systematic Observation Financing Facility) to drive investment in the basic observing system and fill data gaps.

WMO is an implementing partner in the Climate Risk and Early Warning Systems Initiative (CREWS), which builds resilience among vulnerable countries and communities.

WMO is spearheading a new water and climate coalition to focus more attention on water-related hazards and shortages. We have highly successful programmes and projects on tropical cyclones, coastal inundation, floods and drought.

In Geneva, we have joined forces with the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction to form a centre of excellence on climate change and disasters.

WMO has been developing a support mechanism to provide reliable and authoritative information to the UN humanitarian agencies to be able to optimize the humanitarian aid before and after a weather-related disaster. We are working together with financing institutions like the World Bank, European Union, UNDP, Green Climate Fund, to allocate more funding to early warning services and to ensure sustainability of the investments.

And of course, WMO is committed to the 2030 international agenda on climate action, sustainable development and disaster risk reduction.

WMO’s vision is that “by 2030, we see a world where all nations, especially the most vulnerable, are more resilient to the socioeconomic consequences of extreme weather, climate, water and other environmental events.

Early warnings work. They must work for everyone. They must lead to early action.

I wish you all a happy World Meteorological Day.

UN Secretary-General's Message

THE SECRETARY-GENERAL
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VIDEO MESSAGE ON WORLD METEOROLOGICAL DAY

23 March 2022

Human-caused climate disruption is now damaging every region.

The most recent report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change details the suffering already happening.

Half of humanity is already in the danger zone.

Each increment of global heating will further increase the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events.

That is why we must limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees.

Keeping 1.5 alive requires a 45 per cent reduction in global emissions by 2030 to reach carbon neutrality by mid-century.

But, according to current national commitments, global emissions are set to rise by almost 14 per cent this decade.

The world must end its addiction to fossil fuels, especially coal.

At the same time, we must invest equally in adaptation and resilience.

That includes the information that allows us to anticipate storms, heatwaves, floods and droughts.

Today, one-third of the world’s people, mainly in least developed countries and small island developing states, are still not covered by early warning systems.

In Africa, it is even worse: 60 per cent of people lack coverage.

This is unacceptable, particularly with climate impacts sure to get even worse.

Early warnings and action save lives.

To that end, today I announce the United Nations will spearhead new action to ensure every person on Earth is protected by early warning systems within five years.

I have asked the World Meteorological Organisation to lead this effort and to present an action plan at the next UN climate conference, later this year in Egypt.

We must boost the power of prediction for everyone and build their capacity to act.

On this World Meteorological Day, let us recognize the value of early warnings and early action as critical tools to reduce disaster risk and support climate adaptation.

Early warning systems save lives.

Let us ensure they are working for everyone.

Around the World

WMO Members

Brunei Darussalam

The first event was chaired by Director of Meteorology of Brunei Darussalam Meteorological Department and also present was the Minister of Transport and Infocommunications.

As a member of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Brunei Darussalam Meteorological Department of Brunei Darussalam organized few events to commemorate March 23, which is the date of the establishment of this world scientific body under United Nations in 1950. In addition, this historic day is also celebrated to appreciate the important contributions made by the National Meteorological and Hydrological Services around the world in ensuring the safety and well-being of the community. This year the theme of the celebration is ‘Early Warning and Early Action.

The first event was the religious ceremony which was carried out virtually on 22nd March 2022 in conjunction with the World Meteorological Day 2022. The ceremony began with a mass recitation of Surah Yasin and Tahlil, followed by prayers.

Present at the ceremony was the Minister of Transport and Infocommunications, Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Awang Abdul Mutalib bin Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Setia Dato Paduka Haji Yusof. Also present were Yang Mulia, Awang Haji Mohammad Nazri bin Haji Mohammad Yusof, Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Transport and Infocommunications, Yang Mulia, Awang Haji Hairul Mohd Daud bin Haji Abdul Karim, Deputy Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Transport and Infocommunications, heads of departments as well as senior officials and staff from the Ministry of Transport and Infocommunications, departments and authorities under it.

Brunei Darussalam Meteorological Dpeartment - 2nd Event

The second event was weather forum conducted by Brunei Darussalam Meteorological Dpeartment alongside with our invited speakers. National Weather Briefing about the upcoming Intermonsoon season was also discussed iin the forum.

The second event was a Weather Forum titled ‘Early Warning and Early Action For Stronger Resilience’ on 23rd March 2022. The panel members consisted of Meteorological Officer from the Meteorological Department of Brunei Darussalam (BDMD), Dyg Nurulinani binti Haji Jahari, as well as invited panels namely Awangku Muhammad Naaim Syafii Bin Pg Hj Besman, Disaster Management Officer from National Disaster Management Center (NDMC) and also one member from the first intake of Disaster Preparedness Coordinators (DPC), Mohamad Sufhidin Bin Mohamad Sufian. Invited to join this forum were our stakeholders and users of our weather information including members of the public.

The virtual weather forum aims to further promote weather warnings and advisory issued by the Weather Forecast Centre and encourage cooperation as well as collaborative efforts between the authorities and the community in dealing with natural disasters that may occur in our country. The weather forum also aims to increase public awareness and knowledge of the existing Standard Operation Procedure (SOP) and that will be carried out when a natural disaster occurs in a place. This forum is also accompanied by a presentation on the Inter-Monsoon season which will be around this upcoming April.

As part of the effort to raise awareness on the theme this year, BDMD launched it’s official Telegram channel and also advertised our official YouTube channel. We also promote our upgraded Brunei WX mobile application to the general public via social media and mass media.

China

China Meteorological Administration (CMA) World Meteorological Day 2022 Website

Comic Strip for World Meteorological Day 2022 - "Early warning does the trick" (China Meteorological Administration)

Libya

Celebration of World Meteorological Day 2022 in Libya

The National Meteorological Centre (NMC) celebrated World Meteorological Day 2022 on 23 March at the Radisson Blu Al Mahary Hotel in Tripoli.

The celebration was attended by H.E. Minister of Transportation and also by Presidents of Administrative Control Authority, Airports Authority and Air Transport Syndicate. Among the attendees at the celebration were some officials from the Ministry of Transportation, Libyan Civil Aviation Authority, Ministry of Water Resources, Ministry of Foreign Affairs & International Cooperation, Agricultural & Animal Research Centre, University of Tripoli, etc. The celebration was also attended by the NMC staff, including the President and his Assistant, some retirees and the media. The program, which was arranged for this occasion, comprised the following activities:

Producing and distributing packs to the attendees containing the Arabic version of the WMO Secretary-General's message, the celebration program and a flyer about the NMC & WMO.
Producing 6 stand up posters on the occasion; one about the WMD 2022, and the others about the NMC, Climate, Agrometeorology and QMS.
Giving statements on the occasion by H.E. Minister of Transportation, President of Administrative Control Authority and President of NMC & P.R. of Libya with WMO.
Screening WMO S-G's video message for the general public and a video about the NMC entitled: "Challenges despite Difficulties".
Delivering two presentations on the following: " Global Warming & Climate Change ″ by NMC Director of Research & Studies Department, and ″The Prediction of Surface Temperatures and Sunshine Hours over Libya Using RegCM 4.4″ by a Faculty Member of the Atmospheric Science Division, University of Tripoli.

Setting up an exhibition on Traditional Observing Instruments & Equipment, Historical Climate Records dating back to 1945, 1956 & 1957 and Annual Summary of Agrometeorological Products for 2021, including a self-running presentation on Plant Diseases & Pests Affected by Weather & Climate Extremes.

Mr. Mohamed S. Al-Shhoubi, H.E. Minister of Transportation, speaking at the World Meteorological Day 2022 event in Tripoli (left), and officials in attendance, including Mr. Ali M. Juhaydir, President of the National Meteorological Centre (NMC) and Permanent Representative of Libya to WMO and his Assistant (right).

At the end of the celebration, the President of NMC & P.R. of Libya with WMO and his Assistant honoured the H.E. Minister of Transportation, some attended officials and some NMC staff members (passed away and retired), including the Director of Technical Cooperation Office, who acts as INTAD.

The national mass media covered the commemorative ceremony of the WMD and highlighted its theme. For this occasion, the Official Channel made interviews with H.E. Minister of Transportation, President of Administrative Control Authority, President of Airports Authority and NMC Director of Technical Cooperation Office. The celebration was also covered on the NMC Facebook page and by some attended officials.

The President of the Administrative Control Authority (left) and attendees of the event (right).

Mozambique

Statement by H.E. Ambassador Amadeu da Conceição, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Mozambique to the UN Office in Geneva and other International Organizations on the occasion of the World Meteorological Day 2022

Nigeria

Prof. Mansur Bako Matazu, Director General/CEO of NiMet, WMO Representative, Bernard Gomez, and Directors at World Meteorological Day 2022 celebration in Abuja.

The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) joined the rest of the world to celebrate World Meteorological Day (WMD) 2022. The event took place at the Abdurrahman Bello Dambazau Conference Hall, Abuja, Nigeria. The theme of this year’s celebration is ‘Early Warning, Early Action’. It puts the spotlight on the vital importance of Hydrometeorological and Climate Information for Disaster Reduction.

It was attended by Directors, Management and Staff of the Agency. Also in attendance were Sister Agencies in the Aviation Sector, Major Stakeholders from Hydrology, Nigerian Hydrological Agency (NIHSA), Emergency Management (National, Federal and State Emergency Agencies (NEMA, FEMA & SEMA). Mr Bernard Gomez, WMO representative for North, Central and West Africa, WMO Staff and much more distinguished Government Officials and Representatives.

The WMD also marked the first year anniversary of the Director General/CEO, NiMet.In his keynote address DG/CEO NiMet, Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to WMO and Chairman, Board of Governors, African Centre of Meteorological Application for Development (ACMAD), Professor Mansur Bako Matazu welcomed everyone joining NiMet to celebrate WMD. He stated that WMO is the United Nations (UN) system’s authoritative voice on the state and behaviour of the Earth’s Atmosphere, its interactions with the Land and Oceans, the weather and climate it produces and the resulting distribution of water. He stated that the 23rd of March every year is a day set aside for the Celebration of the Convention for the establishment of the World Meteorological Organisation in 1950.

Students at World Meteorological Day 2022 Celebration at NiMet

Students together with Prof. Mansur Bako Matazu and Bernard Gomez, WMO Representative at WMD 2022

He further stated that Nigeria has been a member of WMO since the 30th November 1960 and has hosted the West African Sub Regional Office since 1996. In September 2018, Nigeria signed a new agreement to host the WMO Regional Office for North, Central and West Africa with the Secretary-General of WMO Professor Petteri Taalas in attendance which was held at the UN House, Abuja.

To reduce the risk associated with weather-related disasters both NiMet, Hydrological and Disaster Managers must work in synergy. This synergy has led to adoption and co-production techniques in our Seasonal Climate Prediction (SCP), which has served over the years as a multi-sectorial Early Warning Tool.

Some of the highlights of the day’s celebration were the presentation of prizes to the winners of the 2022 WMD Students Essay Competition. Another major highlight was the presentation of a car to the World Meteorological Organisation. This was in fulfilment of the 2018 agreement and appreciation of the support of the activities of NMHS in Nigeria by the WMO over the years. The car was received on behalf of the WMO by Mr Bernard Gomez.

Thailand

Thai Meteorological Department (TMD) celebrated World Meteorological Day 2022

World Met day 2022 - Thai Meteorological Department

On the 23rd March 2022, the Thai Meteorological Department (TMD) organized a one-day, 2022 World Meteorological Day Thailand Online Seminar on the topic of “Early Warning and Early Action in a Changing Climate” between 09.40 – 17.10 hrs. (Thailand time) as an important activity to celebrate World Meteorological Day 2022.

The objective was to give academic lectures to raise awareness and understanding for involved scholars and the public about early warning and dealing with climate change. The seminar was in a collaboration with the IPCC Thailand Chapter and Tohoku University Alumni Thailand. The invited speakers were from the Intergovernmental Commission on Climate Change (IPCC), Tohoku University, Rangsit University (Thailand), Chulalongkorn University (Thailand), PTT Public Company Limited (Thailand) and Thai Meteorological Department (TMD). Four speakers presented in English language and five speakers delivered in Thai.

At the opening ceremony, Mr. Chaiwut Thanakmanusorn, Minister of Digital Economy and Society delivered a recorded speech on the occasion of the World Meteorological Day 2022. Later, Dr. Chomparee Chompurat, Director-General of TMD opened the seminar with her speech via a clip video.

The seminar was successfully accomplished with its objectives and attended by our executives, invited speaker, staff and participants from various public and private agencies involved in early warning and disaster management, people and those who were interested in about 150 - 160 participants.

Seminar materials are available here.

Viet Nam

The Vietnam Meteorological and Hydrological Administration successfully organized a national joint ceremony for World Water Day, World Meteorological Day, and Earth Hour Campaign 2022 on 23 March 2022 in Viet Nam. At that event, the President of Viet Nam, Mr Nguyen Xuan Phuc, shared a message at WMO's Regional Office for Asia and the South-West Pacific.

Partners

United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR)

Statement of Ms Mami Mizutori, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction on the occasion of the World Meteorological Day 2022

World Meteorological Day 2022 - Early Warning and Early Action

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