Scaling Innovative Approaches to Climate Services for Agriculture

View Event Livestream

WMO and partners are working to enhance the application of climate services in the agriculture sector, including through innovative coproduction, enhanced capacity building for NMHSs and extension actors and integration of advanced technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning.

AI models are transforming the speed, precision, and affordability of weather forecasting. This new generation of tools has the potential to open access to world-class forecasts for every country—helping governments deliver timely, tailored information that supports farmers’ decisions and strengthens livelihoods.

AIM for Scale, in partnership with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), national meteorological agencies, ministries of agriculture, and other partners, is working to make this vision a reality by facilitating access to AI model benchmarking, strengthening institutional capacity, and working with governments to embed relevant processes within their agencies.

The side event aims to:

• Highlight the importance of generating actionable forecasts for farmers, local communities, and decision-makers.
• Spotlight AIM for Scale and WMO’s partnership to enhance climate services for the agriculture sector.
• Introduce AIM for Scale’s new training program on AI-based weather forecasting for agriculture, hosted by the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI) and NCM WMO RTC, developed by the University of Chicago in collaboration with WMO and other partners.
• Showcase the WMO CREWS Pilot Project in Malawi, integrating the BRIS model into ECMWF’s Forecast-in-a-Box to deliver a complete, high-resolution local forecasting system.
• Share the importance of observation (WIGOS) and data exchange (WIS) for Climate Services for Agriculture and WMO AI-related activities.

Agenda

Moderator: Dr Paul Winters, Executive Director, AIM for Scale and Professor at Notre Dame University Keough School of Global Affairs

09:15 – 09:25 UTC-3 
Welcome & Opening Remarks 

• Dr Albert Fischer, Director, WIGOS Division: WMO’s Activities on End-to-End Climate Services for Agriculture (Observations, Data Exchange, Services) and AI Initiative
• WMO-CREWS pilot project in Malawi: AI weather forecasting Bris model with Forecast-in-a-Box (Video)

09:25 – 10:00 UTC-3 
Panel Discussion

• Mr Qingfeng Zhang, Senior Director for Agriculture, Food, Nature, and Rural Development Office, Asian Development Bank (ADB)
• Dr Ousmane Ndiaye, Director-General, African Centre of Meteorological Applications for Development (ACMAD)
• Dr Ana Maria Loboguerrero, Director, Adaptive and Equitable Food Systems, Gates Foundation
• Dr Maja Schling, Senior Economist in the Environment, Rural Development, and Disaster Risk Management Division, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)

10:00 – 10:15 UTC-3 
Closing Remarks

• Dr Paul Winters, Executive Director, AIM for Scale and Professor at Notre Dame University Keough School of Global Affairs