Met urges action on early warning messages
The Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services says while it is working hard to enhance weather and climate early warning messages, there is little action to utilise the information.
The department disseminates early warning messages on a daily basis through various platforms. It believes that if society acted on a fraction of the updates on climate change, the situation would have been better.
The department’s director Jolamu Nkhokwe expressed the sentiments in Blantyre yesterday as Malawi joined the international community in commemorating the 67th anniversary of the World Meteorological Day under the theme Understanding Clouds: Enhancing Weather Early Warning.
The department held public lectures for people from climate sensitive sectors as well as meteorological and climate science students from Malawi University of Science and Technology (Must).
Nkhokwe said climate information users need to understand that they can gain a lot by using weather and climate information as there is now strong evidence on the linkage between climate knowledge and action.
In an interview, one of the participants, Sheliff Kajombo, an area civil protection committee (ACPC) chairperson from Traditional Authority (T/A) Chigalu in Blantyre, said the public lecture was an eye opener to them.
Rodney Naminyuku, a second year student at Must, said the public lecture taught him that there are plenty of job opportunities for them.
The World Meteorological Day commemorates the entry into force, on March 23 1950, of the Convention establishing the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and the essential contributions that the meteorological agencies around the world contribute to the safety from loss of life and property from natural disasters related to weather and climate. n
