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2024 UPCOMING EVENT - INTERNATIONAL TRAINING COURSE

EWAfrica: Enhancing Early Warnings
for Climate and Weather Extremes

Supporting the Early Warnings for All Action Plan for Africa

The Context

Africa grapples with severe climate challenges—floods, droughts, cyclones, storms, and heatwaves—impeding socio-economic progress. From 1970 to 2021, Africa accounted for 35% of global weather-related fatalities, yet only 40% had access to Early Warning Systems (EWS), a global low.
The World Meteorological Organization’s 2022 report highlights socio-economic impacts, emphasizing the urgent need for effective early warning systems. These systems yield a 30% damage reduction with just 24 hours’ notice.

The Early Warnings for All Action Plan for Africa, part of the Early Warning for All Initiative, unveiled in Nairobi on September 4, 2023, aims to safeguard lives and livelihoods. Focused on monitoring, capacity building, communication, and community engagement, it enhances dis- aster preparedness, increases awareness, and fosters regional cooperation.

The Initiative

EWAfrica

An International Training Initiative to Support the Early Warnings for All Action Plan for Africa

Strengthen knowledge and technical expertise to establish Multi-Hazard Early Warning Systems (MHEWS) in participants’ respective countries and regions, addressing local needs within a robust global scientific framework. 

EWAfrica training course caters to the learning needs of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHS) and Disaster Risk Management (DRM) agencies, focusing on co-designing multi-hazard, people-centered, and impact-based EWS in Africa. Each course pillar addresses specific learning topics that promote collaboration, partnership, inclusion, interoperability, and transdisciplinary approaches.

Goal

Strengthen knowledge and technical expertise to establish Multi-Hazard Early Warning Systems (MHEWS) in participants’ respective countries and regions, addressing local needs within a robust global scientific framework. 

EWAfrica training course caters to the learning needs of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHS) and Disaster Risk Management (DRM) agencies, focusing on co-designing multi-hazard, people-centered, and impact-based Early Warning Systems (EWS) in Africa. Each course pillar addresses specific learning topics that promote collaboration, partnership, inclusion, interoperability, and transdisciplinary approaches.

Aim

Support the implementation of the Early Warnings for All in Africa Action Plan by building capacities of NMHS and other agencies involved in early warning of climate and weather-related risks. This involves addressing key topics related to the principles of MHEWS and the four pillars of EW4ALL (Early Warning for All).

Target Audience

The course is designed for agents of NMHS in Africa, as well as other line ministries involved in weather and climate-related risks, and Disaster Risk Management agencies with responsibility or engagement in designing and/or developing EWS.

Fees

Fees will be covered by course sponsors or by participants’ organisations or by external funding sources.

Express your interest in the Course now!

The EWAfrica training course is still in the planning phase, with anticipated implementation in 2024. In this phase, we are currently gathering expressions of interest for this initiative targeted towards national and local African institutions that are interested in participating.
Simply fill out the form by clicking on the button below to indicate your interest in attending EWAfrica.
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WHAT ARE THE REASONS TO ATTEND THIS COURSE?

Participants will improve their knowledge and technical capabilities in the design and set-up of MHEWS in their own countries and regions, responding to local needs within a global and robust scientific framework.
The training course will provide participants with knowledge through best practices and key studies on methods, approaches and ethical implications to respond to some of the main challenges in implementing MHEWS.

Key Topics

Principles of Multi-Hazard EWS

Key components of global risk reduction, EWS face implementation challenges. A robust legislative framework is vital, establishing rules for roles, responsibilities, and processes. This ensures alignment with national disaster risk management strategies and upholds human rights. Emphasizing a people-centered, impact-based approach, the principles include partnership, monitoring, evaluation, and ethical considerations for just and equitable MHEWS development and implementation.

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Disaster Risk Knowledge and Management

Multi-risk assessment, encompassing social, environmental, economic, political, and ethical aspects of vulnerability to various climatic hazards.

Preparedness and Response Capabilities

Inclusive contingency planning, training, and awareness-raising among local communities, including the integration of indigenous knowledge. This aims to enhance community involvement in early warning systems, focusing on response capability and equality.

Observations, Monitoring, and Forecasting

Monitoring and forecasting multiple hazards, whether occurring simultaneously or cumulatively over time, across various spatial scales (from regional to local, transboundary) and temporal scales (seamless from nowcasting to seasonal). This involves utilizing open standards and platforms for data and information sharing, ensuring interoperability and employing distributed systems to enhance the monitoring and forecasting capacities of climate and weather-related parameters.

Dissemination and Communication

Inclusive communication campaigns, emphasizing the ethics of warning communication (non-exclusivity, inclusion of disadvantaged groups, etc.). This involves integrating digital technology and traditional social networks, along with collaboratively defining comprehensible warning messages with communities. The goal is to enhance the establishment of robust and diversified communication strategies for disseminating early warnings to all.

Why should institutions send their staff members?

The implementation of the Early Warnings for All Action Plan for Africa needs a multifaceted and holistic vision strengthening national capacities to enhance disaster preparedness, protect lives, and build resilience across the African continent. This training course reflects the comprehensive approach of the plan and addresses the urgent need for effective early warning systems to mitigate the impacts of extreme weather and climate change in Africa.

Course Format, Assessment and Activities

Course Format

Training course in presence with lectures, case studies and Labs (hands on sessions. Distance Learning will be used for pre-course and post-course activities.

Student Assessment

A final test will be administered to participants after the face-to-face phase through the Moodle platform Participants will receive a certificate of participation and students passing the final test will also receive a badge.

Language Used

The course language will be English. Interpretation services for lectures will be considered based on participants’ English skills during the selection phase.

Pre-course Content and Activities

Pre-Course will be carried out through a distance learning platform to ensure a common entry level. Pre-Course Content: The shared principles of MHEWS and the four pillars of EW4ALL a common base for enabling, managing and implementing the EW4ALL in Africa; the Ethical Principles of Early Warning System.

Post-course Content and Activities

Post-Course Activity will be conducted online three months after the face-to-face phase in the form of a workshop, where participants will provide presentations on how and to what extent they have disseminated the acquired knowledge within their respective institutions and the progress they have made in their work tasks.

Organizers

The course is co-organized by Italian Air Force Meteorological Service, World Meteorological Organization Regional Training Center in Italy in collaboration with the Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies and the Center of Excellence in Telesensing of Environment and Model Prediction of Severe Events of the University of L’Aquila in Italy.

Express your interest.

Collecting preliminary interests in the course will help us better plan the course's logistics and schedule.
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