Keyamo, Anosike, Lead Nigerian Delegation to WMO Aeronautical Meteorology Scientific Conference in Geneva
Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, alongside the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), Professor Charles Anosike, is currently representing Nigeria at the Aeronautical Meteorology Scientific Conference (AeroMetSci-2024) organised by the Commission for Weather, Climate, Hydrological, Marine and Related Environmental Services and Applications (SERCOM).
The event, which commenced on 21 October 2024, is being held at the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, and is set to run until 25 October.
The AeroMetSci-2024 conference brings together professionals and key stakeholders from the WMO, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), as well as academic, research, and aviation communities.
Under the theme “Aviation, Weather and Climate: Scientific Research and Development for Enhanced Aeronautical Meteorological Services in a Changing Climate”, the conference seeks to highlight advances in meteorological observations, forecasts, and early warnings, while also addressing the impact of climate change on aviation.
The Nigerian delegation, which includes the Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the United Nations and other International Organisations in Geneva, Ambassador Abiodun Richards Adejola, and the Managing Director of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Engr. Farouk Ahmed Umar, aims to deepen their understanding of new developments in meteorology and its application to aeronautical meteorological services.
For NiMet, this is seen as vital to fulfilling its mandate of providing critical meteorological services for the aviation industry.
On the sidelines of the conference, Minister Keyamo and the Nigerian delegation met with the WMO Secretary-General, Professor Celeste Saulo, to discuss the strengthening of bilateral relations between Nigeria and the WMO.
During the meeting, Keyamo underscored the importance of meteorology in enhancing aviation safety and its role in national development.
He also highlighted Nigeria’s contributions to regional meteorological capacity building and advocated for increased WMO presence in the country.
Keyamo further expressed Nigeria’s commitment to supporting the WMO’s Early Warnings for All (EW4All) initiative and requested the organisation’s assistance in developing a national roadmap for early warnings.
He called for additional WMO support in the areas of training, skills acquisition, and expanded fellowship opportunities for NiMet personnel.
Professor Anosike, in his remarks, emphasised the need for WMO backing to advance Nigeria’s ambition to become a Regional WIGOS (WMO Integrated Global Observing System) Centre and a Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) Centre of Excellence.
He acknowledged WMO’s support in training Nigerian meteorologists and reiterated the country’s readiness to assist other nations within the region.
In response, WMO Secretary-General, Professor Saulo, recognised Nigeria’s leadership role in promoting meteorological development in Africa and praised the government’s ongoing support for NiMet.
She underscored the importance of resource mobilisation for improved service delivery and the enhancement of early warning systems, particularly for extreme weather events in developing nations.
Professor Saulo pledged continued WMO support for Nigeria, given its strategic importance to the advancement of meteorological services across the region.
The AeroMetSci-2024 conference is expected to culminate in further collaboration between global meteorological bodies, with Nigeria positioning itself as a regional leader in aeronautical meteorological services and climate change mitigation.
