[SatNews] The 11th EUMETSAT User Forum in Africa will take place in Benoni, South Africa, on September 8-12, 2014, hosted by the South African Weather Service.
The biennial forum continues the well-established dialogue between EUMETSAT and the African user community to facilitate the use of EUMETSAT satellite data throughout the continent. Satellite data enable more accurate weather forecasts and therefore support operations in various socio-economic sectors such as transportation, agriculture, environment and disaster risk reduction. This year, delegates at the forum will discuss the increasingly important role of satellites in monitoring weather and climate, which will grow with the next generations of systems such as EUMETSAT’s Meteosat Third Generation (MTG). The first MTG satellite will be launched in 2019 and the series will provide coverage over Europe and Africa for two decades until at least 2040.
EUMETSAT Director-General Alain Ratier said, “We must ensure that these new investments fully benefit Africa, not only in the field of meteorology, but also for other applications essential for sustainable development of the continent, such as agriculture, management of water and marine resources, prevention and management of natural disasters and climate risks.”
Delegates at the forum will also discuss the exploitation of satellite data in Africa for weather, climate and environmental monitoring and identify actions and initiatives that could strengthen the use of Earth observation in Africa in the service of African citizens. Particular attention is being given to the use of satellite data for monitoring climate change and improving disaster resilience in Africa. With more than 30 years of consistent data, meteorological satellites are an invaluable asset for climate monitoring and understanding the changing climate. The meeting will bring together some 170 participants from 56 countries representing National Meteorological and Hydrological Services from Africa and Europe, African regional institutional bodies, government agencies and regional scientific and technical institutions. Some 48 African countries will be represented.
To find out more about EUMETSAT and its activities in Africa, please visit http://www.eumetsat.int/website/home/AboutUs/InternationalCooperation/Africa/index.html
To find out more about EUMETSAT’s climate monitoring activities, select:
http://www.eumetsat.int/website/home/AboutUs/WhatWeDo/MonitoringClimate/index.html
http://climateblog.eumetsat.int/