AICCRA Awareness Raising at Regional Climate Forum for East Africa

Regional Climate Outlook Forums (RCOFs), initiated in 1996 in southern Africa, helped mainstream the routine use of seasonal forecasts across the developing world. They provide an important mechanism for communicating climate information as well as supporting knowledge sharing and collaboration with relevant stakeholders. The RCOFs present a unique opportunity to raise awareness and receive feedback about AICCRA in the climate community with next users – both the regional and national meteorological agencies who are creating the seasonal forecasts, but also the user communities – such as from agriculture and national disaster agencies – who also use these forecasts. In East Africa, the regional COF, which is known as the the Greater Horn of Africa Climate Outlook Forums (GHACOF), is convened by the IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre (ICPAC)

Introduction to Remote Sensing for Monitoring Rainfall, Temperature, Vegetation and Water Bodies

A discussion of remote sensing technology and how it can be used to collect information about the Earth and its atmosphere

Disponibilité et utilisation des données climatiques en Afrique : les défis à relever obstacles

La disponibilité de données météorologiques et de produits d'information basés sur ces données – et l'accès à ceux-ci – est essentielle face à l'objectif d'un développement à l'épreuve du changement climatique. Toutefois, ces informations météorologiques ne sont pas utilisées à grande échelle en Afrique. Les informations utiles ne sont souvent pas disponibles, et lorsqu'elles le sont, ceux qui en ont le plus besoin n'y ont pas accès. Des efforts sont actuellement menés pour remédier au problème de la disponibilité et de l'utilisation de ces données

Overcoming challenges in the availability and use of climate data in Africa

Availability of and access to climate data and information products is critical to achieving climate resilient development. However, climate information is not widely used in Africa. Useful information is often not available or, if it does exist, is inaccessible to those that need it most. Efforts are being made to alleviate the problem of data availability and use

Climate Risk Management in Agricultural Extension (CRMAE) Reference Guide

The Climate Risk Management in Agricultural Extension (CRMAE) Reference Guide is an accompaniment to the abridged CRMAE Handbook. Both the Reference Guide and Handbook are training and reference materials intended to be used during implementation of the Climate Risk Management in Agricultural Extension course in Ethiopia. The Reference Guide was designed for Ethiopia’s subject matter specialists (SMS) and extension staff, including development agents (DAs). It may also be used by other actors, such as non-governmental organizations (NGOs) or community-based organizations (CBOs), who work closely with farmers and those who support them. It aims to provide foundational knowledge on climate and agricultural decision making and practical tools to analyze climate-related risks, use appropriate weather and climate information to support agricultural decisions, communicate complex climate information effectively with farmers, and integrate climate services into agricultural extension activities. Keywords: Ethiopia; agriculture; climate change; climate variability; food security; education; extension approaches; capacity development; climate-smart agriculture; climatology; monitoring systems; forecasting; participatory approaches; Goal 2 Zero Hunge

Training on Climate Risk Management in Agricultural Extension (CRMAE) for Ethiopian Meteorological Institute (EMI) staff from Regional Meteorological Service Centres (RMSC)

A six-day training workshop was implemented from September 1-7, 2022, in Adama, Ethiopia by the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI) in collaboration with the Ethiopian Meteorological Institute (EMI) and Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture (MoA). The workshop, which was organized as part of the World Bank’s Accelerating the Impact of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) project, brought together 18 Ethiopian Meteorological Institute (EMI) staff from nine Regional Meteorological Service Centres (RMSC) to be trained on the topic of Climate Risk Management in Agricultural Extension (CRMAE). The major objectives of the training were to create a better enabling environment and improved RMSC capacity to support regional, zonal, and woreda-level Ministry of Agriculture staff, including Development Agents, to take advantage of the best-available weather and climate information and adapt recommended technology packages to local conditions

From research to practice: Adapting agriculture to climate today for tomorrow in Ethiopia

Eighty percent of the world's agriculture is rainfed, making it highly vulnerable to climate fluctuations and stresses, such as those brought about by climate variability and change. Sub-Saharan Africa and Ethiopia in particular have experienced a significant increase in climate variability over the past decade, which has led to more frequent weather extremes such as floods and droughts. Because 85% of Ethiopia depends upon agriculture for its livelihoods, such rainfall shortages or excesses can impede food production, access to financial and natural assets, and the ability to recover in subsequent crop seasons. This means that climate variability in agriculture not only affects the availability of the food Ethiopians consume, but also the income of its smallholder farmers. Variability in rainfall and temperature can also have adverse effects on livestock and the pastoralists whose livelihoods depend upon it. Thus, all development planning and practice in the agriculture and related sectors need to take climate variability and long-term climate change into account. Climate services can contribute to the alleviation of a range of climate-sensitive development challenges, including agricultural production and food security. The Adapting Agriculture to Climate Today for Tomorrow (ACToday) approach of the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI), Columbia University, USA, aims to develop climate service solutions through enhancement of the availability and effectiveness of climate information in national policy, planning, management, and other decision-making processes in countries that are particularly dependent on agriculture and vulnerable to the effects of climate variability and change. It targets improved food security, nutrition, environmental sustainability and economic outcomes in these countries by promoting the use of climate information and services to manage current climate risks, while laying the foundation for adaptation to future climatic conditions. In this Perspective, we share experiences from the implementation of the ACToday project and approach in Ethiopia, outlining its accomplishments and challenges. In doing so, we characterize best practices and pitfalls to avoid to ensure climate knowledge and information truly meet the needs of climate-informed decision making and climate-smart policy and planning. We also outline pragmatic guidance to ensure activities designed to evolve climate research into services are done so appropriately, responsibly, and sustainably to bridge the gap between those who produce climate information and those who ultimately use it. Keywords: climate services, food security, SDG2: zero hunger, agriculture, Ethiopia, resilience, climate information, climate variabilit

Training of Trainers (ToT) on Enhancing National Climate Services (ENACTS) Maprooms for Users in Zambia

A five-day training of trainers (ToT) workshop was implemented from November 7 to November 11, 2022, in Lusaka, Zambia by the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI) in collaboration with the Zambia Meteorological Department (ZMD) and the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). The workshop, which was organized as part of the World Bank’s Accelerating the Impact of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) project, brought together 18 participants from the Zambia Meteorological Department (ZMD) alongside the Zambia Agriculture Research Institute (ZARI), the Ministry of Green Economy and Environment (MGEE), the Water Resources Management Authority (WARMA), the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), and the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) to be trained on ZMD’s existing suite of free online ENACTS Maprooms. The major objective of the workshop was to ensure that each of these institutions that play an important role in promoting the use of climate information and services and broader resilience of the agricultural sector are aware of and have the capacity to train users within Zambia on the best-available climate information products for decision-making. The ENACTS maproom products, which are freely available through ZMD’s website, provide location-specific (4 km grid) historical, monitoring, and forecast information that is important for activities related to planning, monitoring, and response for the agricultural sector and wider food system

Enhancing national climate services: How systems thinking can accelerate locally led adaptation

Making agriculture resilient to the trends and shocks of a changing and varying climate requires effective use of climate information. However, in many places around the world, collection of climate data has been seriously inadequate and, even when available, poorly accessible, of inconsistent quality, and divorced from foundational capacity building that underpins its use by decision makers at all levels. The Enhancing National Climate Services (ENACTS) initiative of the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI), Columbia University (US) has been intentional about addressing these challenges holistically through its recognition that national meteorological services can and should do more than merely produce climate data. In this perspective, we highlight two recent projects in East Africa that acknowledged ENACTS early as one component in a broader climate services ecosystem. In doing so, we illustrate how the social, political, institutional, and cultural systems surrounding climate information can be just as important as the data themselves in setting up lasting yet adaptive climate services. Keywords: climate services; climate; climate adaptation; systems thinking; locally led adaptation; agriculture; participatory; co-production; Africa; East Africa; ICPAC; climate services ecosystems; ENACTS; climate information; climate data; human centered design; adaptatio

Training of Trainers (ToT) on Enhancing National Climate Services (ENACTS) Maprooms for Users in Kenya

A five-day training of trainers (ToT) workshop was implemented from October 31 to November 4, 2022, in Nairobi, Kenya by the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI) in collaboration with the Kenya Meteorological Department (KMD) and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). The workshop, which was organized as part of the World Bank’s Accelerating the Impact of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) project, brought together 21 participants from national and county KMD offices, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries (MOAL&F), and the Kenya Agriculture and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) to be trained on KMD’s existing suite of free online ENACTS Maprooms. The major objective of the workshop was to ensure that each of these institutions that play an important role in promoting the use of climate information and services and broader resilience of the agricultural sector are aware of and have the capacity to train users within Kenya on the best-available climate information products for decision-making. The ENACTS maproom products, which are freely available through KMD’s website, provide location-specific (4 km grid) historical, monitoring, and forecast information that is important for activities related to planning, monitoring, and response for the agricultural sector and wider food system