WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas has met with the Prime Minister of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, Yahya Ould Hademine, to agree on the preparation of a development plan for its National Meteorological and Hydrological Service.
The meeting came as Mr Taalas addressed a national consultation workshop for the National Framework for Climate Services of Mauritania on 20 February. The workshop brought together experts of the Office National de Météorologie and key decision-makers to discuss how the challenges posed by climate variability and change can be addressed using climate information and transformed through climate services into opportunities for different socioeconomic sectors.
“I wish to reassure you of the commitment of WMO to continue assisting Mauritania in strengthening its Office National de Météorologie so that it can play a more meaningful role in the sustainable development efforts of the country. In this effort we will require the support of the government of the Islamic Republic or Mauritania so that collectively we can enable effective weather and climate services,” said Mr Taalas, who also met ministers of transport, agriculture, education and fisheries.
Mauritania belongs to the African Sahel zone, which is exposed to extreme weather and climate events, including recurrent droughts and flooding. Environmental degradation and desertification compound the challenges.
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