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Press
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UNESCAP News Services
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17 July 2003
Press Release No: L/20/2003
WMO AND ESCAP TO STRENGTHEN COOPERATION IN
WEATHER, CLIMATE AND WATER-RELATED ISSUES
Geneva,
16 July 2003 - The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and
the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and
the Pacific (ESCAP) will strengthen cooperative activities in
the fields of meteorology including climate, of hydrology and
water resources, capacity building in mitigation and preparedness
against tropical cyclones, drought and other water-related natural
disasters, training and research, environment monitoring and
sustainable development in the Asian and Pacific region.
To that effect a memorandum of understanding (MOU)
between the WMO and ESCAP was signed today at the WMO headquarters
in Geneva (Switzerland) by Prof. G.O.P. Obasi, Secretary-General
of WMO, and Mr Kim Hak-Su, Executive Secretary of ESCAP.
"I am confident that this new framework will
enable WMO and ESCAP to meet common concerns and priorities
of their Members at the regional level in relation to science
and technology development and their applications to economic
and social well-being and development", Prof. Obasi stated
during the signing ceremony. It establishes a true partnership
between two United Nations' entities that have a joint responsibility
for carrying out the Johannesburg Implementation Plan of the
World Summit on Sustainable Development in the Asian and Pacific
region.
For Mr Kim Hak-Su, "the scientific knowledge
and capacity-building activities of WMO in its fields of competence
are an asset for ESCAP in helping the Asia-Pacific countries
protect their environment and promote sustainable development.
The exchange of information and pooling of capacity-building
skills will benefit the economic and social development of the
region."
The MOU targets activities such as capacity building
of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services, the promotion
of studies and coordination of the exchange of knowledge about
tropical cyclones, drought, severe weather and flood warnings,
remote sensing, Asian monsoon climatology and prediction, regional
climate modelling, regional climate change including sea level
rise and their impacts, El Ni?o/Southern Oscillation (ENSO),
atmospheric pollution including haze and its impacts on the
region, assessment of water resources, and natural disaster
mitigation and management. With regard to the latter, WMO and
ESCAP will also organize training and capacity building activities
for natural disaster preparedness and response.
Cooperation within specific "thematic programme
areas" will include the development of common programmes
for strengthening institutional capacity for freshwater resources
monitoring and assessment at the river basin level, and for
water-related disaster monitoring and impact assessment, including
effects of global climate change. Among other planned joint
activities are the development of hydrometeorological monitoring
network to promote the integration of environmental and water-related
hazard monitoring into the socio-economic development process,
and the promotion of the use of space technology applications
for disaster mitigation and preparedness.
The MOU broadens cooperative activities, undertaken
to date within the framework of the ESCAP/WMO Typhoon Committee
(established in 1968) and the WMO/ESCAP Panel on Tropical Cyclones
for the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea (established in 1972).
A similar MOU was signed in 1999 by WMO and the
United Nations' Economic Commission for Africa.
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For more information please contact:
at WMO
Ms Carine Richard-Van Maele
Chief, Information and Public Affairs
World Meteorological Organization
Tel: +41 (0) 22 730 83 14/5
Fax:+41 (0) 22 730 80 27
E-mail: ipa@gateway.wmo.ch ipa@gateway.wmo.ch
Internet website: http://www.wmo.ch
or
at ESCAP
Mr David Lazarus
Chief, UN Information Service
Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific
Tel: +(66 2) 288 1866
Fax: +(66 2) 288 1052
E-mail: unisbkk.unescap@un.orgunisbkk.unescap@un.org
Internet website : www.unescap.org/unis
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