The Global Hydrometry Support Facility (WMO HydroHub) Phase II kicked off just over a year ago, in September 2021, for a period of five years. In its first year, Phase II has already achieved several goals, but there is much more to come.
The objective of WMO HydroHub Phase II is to further support National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs) with hydrological monitoring for the effective delivery of hydrological services aimed at disaster risk reduction, social and economic development, and environmental protection. WMO HydroHub Phase II uses three tools to strengthen the hydrological monitoring and services of NMHSs: capacity development, the operationalization of innovation and by enhancing engagements.
Phase II already counts a number of major achievements in the last year:
- The Innovation Workshop "WMO HydroHub Phase II Innovation Roadmap" – which helped identify key innovation areas that the WMO HydroHub could support
- The WMO-OGC (Open Geospatial Consortium) Workshop "GroundWaterML2 standard" - which introduced and demonstrated implementations of an OGC and WMO standard for the exchange of groundwater data
- The launch of the WMO Hydrology Dashboard - which provides valuable information on operational hydrological services worldwide collected through the WMO Global Hydrology Survey (completed by 101 Members)
- The WMO-UNEP-UNESCO-WHO-OGC Workshop on Water Quality Monitoring – which helped (1) identify potential synergies between participating organizations in the area of water quality monitoring and (2) define the roadmap for an international OGC Interoperability Experiment on Water Quality data
- The Distance Learning course "Interoperable Data Exchange in Hydrology" which was attended by 105 participants from 52 countries, with a course completion rate of 81%
- The WMO HydroHub Youth Symposium, which counted more than 200 young participants and helped prepare Youth Statements to be used as a contribution to youth inputs at the various United Nations events in 2023
The WMO HydroHub Innovation Call in the Pacific – awarded to the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) of New Zealand to implement a project titled "Non-contact measurement of river flows in the Pacific region, using innovative surface image velocimetry and stereoscopic methods".
For the next four years, the WMO HydroHub Phase II has many more activities in the pipeline. Among these, Innovation Calls focusing on various topics and/or geographies will help to operationalize new technologies and address specific needs identified by NMHSs. WMO HydroHub Phase II has also planned several Innovation Workshops to promote dialogue on innovation, new technologies and citizen science between academia, entrepreneurs and NMHSs. One, on "Innovative approaches and technologies for Water Quality Monitoring", will be organized with the United Nations Environment Programme and other partners.
Trainings sessions will also be conducted to address specific technical expertise deficits, especially those identified at regional levels. The Distance Learning Training Hydrology Technician Course is being prepared for delivery in South Sudan in 2023 and will be followed by face-to-face training. User-Provider Workshops are also planned to strengthen collaboration and communication mechanisms between NMHSs and data users. The first two User-Provider Workshops will take place in Samoa and Fiji in 2023.
Furthermore, the WMO HydroHub Phase II will carry out Capacity and Needs Assessments in selected countries, including South Sudan, to assess their institutional, human and technical capacities and to better understand NMHSs gaps and needs. Several Ministerial Roundtables are also planned to increase the visibility of NMHSs and promote the evidence-based hydrological information and services they can provide for better decision-making.
The WMO HydroHub Phase II is financially supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
Second Innovation Call |
|
 |
 |
| Project implemented in the Himalayan region by Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee | Project implemented in Tanzania by Trans-African Hydro-Meteorological Observatory (TAHMO) |
