Swiss, Finish and World Bank socio-economic benefits analyses of enhanced climate services in Peru deliver compelling arguments

Better weather and climate services will be increasingly important to help countries cope with the impacts of climate variability, extreme events and long-term climate change. The initial cost of investment is minimal compared to the dividends of improved safety and well-being, especially of the most vulnerable, according to this side event at COP20.

Entitled The Socio-Economic Benefits of Weather and Climate Services, the side event focussed on COP20 host Peru, and the potential to boost support for key development sectors like agriculture, disaster risk management, health, water management, tourism, infrastructure, public services and transport.

Peru is one of the 16 mega-diverse countries in the world, it has the second largest Amazon forest after Brazil, the most extensive Andean mountain range, 27 out of 32 climates of the world*, 71% of the tropical glaciers in the world and 84 out of 117 identified life zones on the planet.

Organizers included the National Meteorological and Hydrological Service of Peru (SENHAMI), the World Meteorological Organization, the World Bank Group, the Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology MeteoSwiss, the International Centre for the Investigation of El Niño (CIIFEN), the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland.

WMO Secretary-General, Michel Jarraud said the need for climate change adapation is gaining in urgency as greenhouse gases reach new records, increasing global land and ocean temperatures, disrupting traditional weather patterns and leading to more extreme events. The WMO-spearheaded Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS) is designed to strengthen coping mechanisms by sharing scientific knowledge with those who need it most on the ground, he said.

The Global Framework for Climate Services – GFCS is a collective, coordinated effort between many different partners. «Nobody can do it alone», said Mr. Jarraud, «We can’t work in silos».

Source: World Meteorological Organization – WMO

 

Why investing in weather, climate and water services matters?

Michel Jarraud Secretary-General, World Meteorological Organization WMO

Lucas Bretschger Chair, Center of Economic Research, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich

Policy briefs:

• Policy brief results (PDF)

• Brochure Poniendo en Valor los Servicios Ecosistémicos (PDF)

• Estudio de Valoración de Beneficios Socio Económicos de Servicios Climáticos aplicados a Café y Maíz en la Región Cusco (PDF)

• Estudio de Valoración de Beneficios Socio Económicos de Servicios Hidrometeorológicos y climáticos para los cultivos de papa y quinua Región Puno (PDF)

• Valoración económica de los Servicios Meteorológicos Climáticos e Hidrológicos (PDF)

• Programa de Modernización del SENAMHI para la Adaptación a la variabilidad y al cambio climático (PDF)

 

More information:
Program and speakers (PDF)
Dossier CLIMANDES (PDF)

Pictures gallery

Presentations:

 

• «The status of the global climate in 2014 and GFCS: Why investin in hydrometereological services matters». Michel Jarraud, Secretary-General, World Meteorological Organization (PDF)

• «Modernization Program of the Meteorological Services in Peru». Gabriel Quijandría, Deputy Minister for Strategic Development of Natural Resources, MINAM (PDF)

• «Socio-economic Benefits of Weather, Climate and Hydrological Services for Climate Change Adaptation». Gayatri Acharya, World Bank Group (PDF)

• «Case Study on the valuation of socioeconomic benefits of climate services for the cofee and maiz sector in Cusco». Lucas Bretschger, Chair , Center of Economic Research, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (PDF)

• «Case Study on valuation of socioeconomic benefits of hytrometeorological and climate services for potato and quinoa cros in Puno». Daniel Pabón Caicedo, International Director, CIIFEN (PDF)

Links of Interest:
CLIMANDES project, Fact sheet, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation – SDC
Web Climandes
Web Servicio Nacional de Meteorología e Hidrología del Perú
Web Universidad Agraria La Molina
Web Organización Meteorológica Mundial
Web MeteoSwiss
Web Meteodat