Environmental (Commonwealth Union)_ Chad’s struggle to manage extreme weather underlines Africa‘s dire need for reliable climate forecasting infrastructure. At the National Meteorological Agency (ANAM) headquarters in N’Djamena, broken instruments and outdated systems hinder accurate weather monitoring. The situation is emblematic of a continent with the world’s weakest climate observation network, leaving millions vulnerable to increasingly frequent and severe disasters fueled by climate change.
At COP29, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reiterated the urgency of closing these data gaps, targeting universal protection from extreme weather via early warning systems by 2027. For Chad, where 80% of weather equipment is non-functional and only two trained forecasters manage a nation-sized territory, meeting this target seems far-fetched.
Recent floods across Chad’s 23 provinces have wreaked havoc, displacing 1.9 million people, killing over 570, and destroying livestock and crops. “Everything is destroyed now because no one warned us,” lamented Josiane Allasra, a displaced mother of four, reflecting on the absence of warnings that could have mitigated the disaster’s toll.
Africa’s inadequate weather infrastructure has deadly consequences. The continent experiences more frequent floods than Europe and North America combined but suffers four times the fatalities due to insufficient preparedness and alerts. Chad exemplifies the challenges: outdated technology, insufficient funding, and a lack of trained personnel. Only one of its weather stations meets international standards, and most of its data is inaccessible or poorly maintained.
Efforts are underway to address these deficiencies. The Systematic Observations Financing Facility (SOFF) aims to help Chad establish 34 weather stations that meet global standards, up from just one currently. SOFF’s strategy emphasizes sustainable support, including training local experts and ensuring international data sharing. However, the program faces its own hurdles, having raised only $94 million of its $200 million target for 2025.
“We finally have one fund dedicated to long-term support,” said Albert Fischer of the World Meteorological Organization, but fundraising remains a challenge amidst global crises. SOFF’s impact, already evident in 23 African countries, hinges on securing further investments, with COP29 serving as a critical juncture for mobilizing resources.
Timely and effective climate data could be crucial for Chad and other vulnerable nations. To equip these countries to forecast, prepare, and protect their populations against the escalating threats of climate change, global collaboration and sustained funding are essential.
