The WMO Regional Association VI (Europe) met in Geneva from 7 to 9 February to agree on priorities for future work and to elect a new President, Vice-President and Hydrological Advisor.
The meeting, which brought together delegations from 44 Members, agreed on the following top priority areas:
- The future role of National Meteorological Hydrological Services and collaboration with the private sector in the Global Weather Enterprise, focusing on the need to enhance protection of life and property
- Improving service delivery and disaster risk reduction, including development of a global multi-hazard alert and early warning system
- Impact based services: Training and sharing information
- Hydrology: observation networks, data exchange and the regional implementation of the World Hydrological Observing System
- Arctic and high mountain areas: strengthening observations, research and services
- WMO Integrated Global Observing System - implementation and regional centres.
Michael Staudinger, the Permanent Representative of Austria with WMO and the Executive Director of the Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics, was unanimously elected as President of the Association for the next four years, replacing Ivan Cacic of Croatia. Kornélia Radics, the Permanent Representative of Hungary with WMO and the President of the Hungarian Meteorological Service, was elected vice-president. Cristina Alionte Eklund, the Hydrological Adviser to the Permanent Representative of Sweden with WMO, was elected as Hydrological Adviser of the Association.
