Status of Capacities for Climate Services Provision in the

Caribbean

ADRIAN TROTMAN CHIEF, A PPLIED M ETEOR OLOGY A N D CLIM A TOLOGY

ADRIAN TROTMAN POST-DOC R ESEA R CHER , BR CCC

CA R IBBEAN INSTITUTE F OR METEOR OLOGY A ND HYDR OLOGY

National Consultation on a Framework for Climate Services 16-17 May, 2016

Georgetown, Guyana

The Caribbean Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology:

MANDATE

“… to assist in improving and developing the Meteorological and Hydrological Services as well as providing the awareness of the benefits of Meteorology and Hydrology for the economic well-being of the CIMH member states. This is achieved through training, research, investigations and the provision of related specialized services and advice”.

• WMO Regional Training Centre – meteorology, hydrology and associated sciences

• Operate as a centre of research in meteorology, hydrology and associated sciences

• Regional Climate Data Centre - Data collection, storage, & dissemination

• Regional Instrument Centre – Develop, maintain, repair, and calibrate meteorological & hydrological instruments

• Regional Centre of Excellence for Satellite Meteorology

• Caribbean Centre for Climate and Environmental Simulations

• Advisor to regional governments on matters related to meteorology, climate & hydrology

• Provide specialized services to industry • WMO Regional Climate Centre (Demonstration

Phase) – a natural extension in function

Functions of the Caribbean Institute for Meteorology & Hydrology

An arm of the Caribbean Meteorological Organisation (CMO) and an organisation of the

Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Sixteen Member States

Toward a Caribbean Designated Regional Climate Centre

Centres of excellence that create regional products including long-range forecasts that support regional and national climate activities (particularly those of National Climate Centres) and thereby strengthen capacity of WMO Members in a given region to deliver better climate services to national users

CIMH entered the Demonstration Phase of being and RCC in April 2013 To provide relevant, wide ranging climate information and services for

the Caribbean region Supporting Climate Services at the national level – National Climate

Centres

RCC Mandatory Functions

• Interpret and assess LRF products from GPCs, including the exchange of basic forecasts and hindcast data

• Generate regional tailored products, including consensus-based seasonal climate outlooks

• Provide online access to RCC products • Perform regional climate diagnostics • Develop regional climate datasets and archiving • Establish a regional historical reference climatology • Implement a regional Climate Watch • Coordinate training for RCC users • Provide information on RCC products and guidance on

their use

Support the GFCS at the Regional Level

A Caribbean Framework for Climate Services

CSIS - Online access to RCC products and services

rcc.cimh.edu.bb

Future Heat Waves

Flood Potential Outlooks

Long-Range Forecasts – Consensus-based Through the CariCOF- forum of meteorologists/climatologists

At end of wet season

Max Temp SON; DJF 2015

Min Temp SON; DJF 2015

Forums with the farming community and agricultural extension agencies to promote a better understanding of the applications of

weather and climate information

Caribbean Climate Outlook Forum

Means for communication, awareness, education, and feedback. Suggested

wet/hurricane and dry season

Stakeholder meetings bring meteorologists/climatologists and the user-

community together to discuss climate forecasts and other information; and provide feedback.

Builds trust and understanding

User Interface Mechanisms: Users, climate service providers and climate researchers interact

Future – User Online Helpdesk; Interactive Web portal; starting with CariSAM

Observation and Monitoring Observations to meet the needs of climate services

• Provision of observation equipment, retrofitting • Enhancing database and monitoring through

remote sensing (satellite, radar) and GIS technology and techniques

• Database (CDB funded project) release and launch of “light” synchronising version for Met Services – CIMH providing service support

• Climate Impacts Database – link with DEWETRA

Research, Modelling and Prediction Implementation

to assess and promote the needs of climate services within research agendas

Climate drivers, trends, predictions, projections – CSGM UWI, INSMET, CIMH…

Physical and socio-economic impacts and vulnerability– impact and vulnerability assessments (e.g. ECLAC, World Bank …) ; water, agriculture and food security, health disaster

Developing Climate Impacts Database to drive research – Climate to relate to impacts (thresholds, warnings, suitability of conditions etc …)

Capacity and Awareness Building – all-encompassing pillar

Long-range (Seasonal and Sub-Seasonal) Forecast Training

Climate Monitoring Training – including Drought Monitoring

Planning for Climate Resilience – including Drought Planning

Statistics, GIS and Remote Sensing Building awareness and capacity to interpret and apply

information of sectoral practitioners and communities …Agriculture – for farmers (regional and national

forums), for Extension Officers (special certificate course),

…DRR – Regional and sub-regional for DRM Managers and their Stakeholders – supporting the development of a regional Climate Impacts database

Health and Water –on regional scale mainly through CariCOF – greater focus in 2015.

Academia – in collaboration with UWI Building infrastructure capacity – instrumentation

networks

Early Warning Information Systems Across Climate Timescales

EWISACTS

…and then there is…

Removing the barriers between climate services providers (e.g. the Hydromet Service) and the users of climate information (climate sensitive sectors)

Important to know what exists and where the gaps are to develop and enhance Climate Servicess

better use of existing met./clim.

services & information

platforms

synergise sectoral activities, structures and initiatives with

climate services agenda

Consult and partner to identify,

co-produce, co-implement and

evaluate services

Principles Methodological approach

Integrate products / prototypes

within Decision Support Systems Strengthen

capacity to provide, absorb and utilize

climate information

Develop/ improve

existing sector specific impact

prediction

Co-develop, test, validate

sectoral EWISACTs products / prototypes

Establish coordination/

ownership mechanisms

Baseline sectoral

needs and provider capacity

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Step 5

Step 6

The Consortium of Regional Sectoral EWISACTs Coordination Partners

CONSORTIUM

Agriculture Water Energy DRM Tourism Health Weather,

Water and Climate

CARDI CWWA

CDEMA CIMH CARPHA

CTO/CHTA

CARILEC

Provider Baseline Survey

22 countries surveyed

Hierarchy of National Climate Services

Source: WMO (2012)

Providers: NMHS Technical Capacity

5%

29%

14% 14%

38%

< 5 technical staff

6-10 technical staff

11-15 technical staff

16-20 technicalstaff>20 technical staff

HMSG

28%

17% 50%

5%

Providers: Length of Time Delivering Tailored Climate

Services

1 to 3 years4 to 5 years6 to 10 years>10 yearsOther

HMSG

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Category 1: Abasic range ofclimate dataservices andinformation

products

Category 1 +Category 2

Category 2:Essential

climate dataservices andinformation

products

Category 3: Acomprehensiverange of climate

data servicesand information

products

Category 4:Provision of

advancedclimate service

% o

f tot

al re

spon

dent

s

Providers: NMHS Capacity to provide climate services

HMSG

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

CaribbeanStandardisedPrecipitation

Index (SPI)Outlook

CaribbeanDroughtBulletin

CariCOFClimateOutlook

Newsletter

CariCOFPrecipitation

Outlook

CariCOFTemperature

Outlook

CariCOFDroughtOutlook

RegionalAgroclimatic

Bulletin

% o

f tot

al re

spon

dent

s

YesNo

HMSG

HMSG

HMSG

HMSG

HMSG

HMSG

HMSG

Users: Usability of Climate Products and Tools

0102030405060708090

100

% o

f tot

al re

spon

dent

s

Not usable at all Not usable Neither usable nor not usable Usable Very usable Don’t know Not applicable

Users: Barriers to climate information use

0102030405060708090

100

We do not knowwhat climateinformation is

available

The informationavailable does not

suit our needs

The informationavailable is not

user friendly

We do not have in-house expertise to

use thisinformation

The level of detailprovided is notappropriate to

supportorganizational

decisions

Other

% o

f tot

al re

spon

dent

s

Strongly disagree Disagree Neither agree/disagree Agree Strongly agree Don’t know

How can the framework be adapted to the National (Guyana) Level?

A National Framework for Climate Services?

Thank you