BY OLAPEJU OLUBI
The Director General of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), Professor Charles Anosike, participated in a high-level dialogue on climate science, climate finance and disaster preparedness organised by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) in Beijing, China.
The event, which took place from September 14 to 18, 2026, brought together senior officials and experts to explore ways of improving access to climate finance and strengthening weather forecasting and early warning systems.
The discussions focused on strengthening the leadership role of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs) in attracting climate funding for projects that can help countries respond to climate change and its effects.
Participants also examined ways to connect scientific knowledge and technical expertise with early warning systems that put people’s safety at the centre of disaster preparedness.
The dialogue further explored how countries could move beyond short-term technical assistance to long-term, sustainable investments in weather and climate services.
This included improving cooperation between national meteorological agencies and international financial institutions.
The WMO also highlighted the need to strengthen the strategic thinking and leadership skills of meteorological agency heads while promoting partnerships that can support climate resilience and development.
Held alongside the high-level dialogue was the 53rd Senior Official Field Exchange (SOFE), which took participants to Fujian Province for practical learning and technical exchanges.
The field visit provided participants with first-hand exposure to China’s Multi-hazard, Alert, Zero-gap and Universal (MAZU) platform, an artificial intelligence-powered meteorological early warning system.
The platform supports the Early Warnings for All (EW4All) initiative, which seeks to ensure that people worldwide have access to timely warnings about dangerous weather and climate-related events.
Through technical discussions, field visits and peer learning, participants examined China’s approach to disaster risk reduction and the use of technology to improve early warnings.
Anosike’s participation in the international engagements provided an opportunity for knowledge sharing and the exchange of ideas on strengthening weather and climate services, particularly in the areas of early warning systems, climate finance and disaster preparedness.
Olapeju is a journalist and aviation reporter.
