The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has given nine automated weather stations to the Ghana Meteorological Agency (GMet) to strengthen climate resilience and improve early warning systems in the country.
A handover ceremony was held on May 6 in Accra, organized as part of the ‘Strengthening resilience on water-related disasters under climate change for a sustainable society in Ghana’ project, which is funded by the Japanese government.
The initiative aims to improve Ghana’s ability to respond to climate variability and extreme weather events, such as floods and droughts.
Speaking at the ceremony, Edmond Moukala, UNESCO representative to Ghana, said, “Accurate, timely and reliable meteorological data forms the backbone of effective early warning systems and climate services. These weather stations are not merely pieces of equipment; they are instruments of anticipation rather than reaction, of prevention rather than response, and when effectively utilized, will help save lives and protect livelihoods.”
The director-general of GMet, Dr Eric Asuman, highlighted the importance of data to the agency’s operations, particularly in sectors such as aviation and agriculture.
He said, “Generating and maintaining this data is capital intensive, but advances in technology, especially automated weather stations, are helping to ease the burden. We appreciate UNESCO’s support and hope to see greater national recognition of the value of data. There is still a need for more, and these additional stations will strengthen our operational capacity.”
The weather stations are expected to improve data availability across the country, support more accurate forecasts and strengthen early warning systems.
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