NiMet, ECOWAS Forge Strategic Partnership to Boost Disaster Preparedness Across West Africa
…Partnership to strengthen early warning systems and regional climate resilience
The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission have agreed to deepen cooperation in advancing disaster preparedness and regional climate resilience, with a strong focus on early warning systems and capacity-building across West Africa.
This was the outcome of a courtesy visit by a high-level delegation from the ECOWAS Commission, led by the Director of Humanitarian and Social Affairs, Dr Sintiki Tarfa Ugbe, to NiMet Headquarters in Abuja on Monday, 1st July 2025.
The delegation was received by the Director General and Chief Executive Officer of NiMet, Professor Charles Anosike.
Welcoming the ECOWAS delegation, Professor Anosike reaffirmed NiMet’s commitment to strengthening regional collaboration in weather and climate services.
He emphasised the Agency’s critical role in bolstering early warning systems across the sub-region and pledged to support ECOWAS-led initiatives through the provision of technical expertise, training programmes, and enhanced access to meteorological data.
“We are proud of our role in the regional climate ecosystem and stand ready to provide the scientific and operational support needed to scale early warning systems and climate services for the benefit of all ECOWAS Member States,” Anosike stated.
Dr Ugbe, in her remarks, praised NiMet’s leadership in the delivery of impactful climate services in West Africa. She recalled the Agency’s instrumental role in providing early warnings during the Sierra Leone mudslide disaster—a key example of regional solidarity and technical competence.
“NiMet has consistently demonstrated proactive engagement in climate disaster risk reduction,” Dr Ugbe noted. “Our collaboration must now be deepened to promote anticipatory action, disseminate early warnings effectively, and ensure coordinated responses to humanitarian emergencies across Member States.”
Dr Ugbe highlighted potential areas for further collaboration, including joint training programmes, technical exchanges, and enhanced access to climate knowledge tailored to regional priorities.
She described NiMet as a strategic partner in building a more resilient West Africa through co-developed solutions and shared institutional capacities.
The meeting also addressed the establishment of the ECOWAS Disaster Operation Centre, currently being spearheaded by Professor Mansur Bako Matazu, the immediate past Director-General of NiMet and a member of the ECOWAS delegation.
The Centre will serve as a regional coordination hub for the dissemination of multi-hazard early warnings and response mechanisms.
Further discussions explored the designation of NiMet’s Training Centres as ECOWAS Centres of Excellence for meteorology and climate science.
Both organisations agreed on the need to formalise their growing collaboration through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which is expected to be signed in the coming weeks.
Professor Anosike called for the strengthening of institutional frameworks and appealed to ECOWAS to support NiMet’s cost recovery initiatives to sustain the provision of climate services.
He also highlighted NiMet’s alignment with global climate action, particularly the United Nations’ Early Warnings for All (EW4All) initiative, through the development of a National Framework for Early Warning Services that supports end-to-end coordination across the climate value chain.
The meeting concluded with a shared commitment to enhance regional disaster preparedness through science-based, people-focused climate action.
