The delegation of Saudi Arabia attending the nineteenth session of the World Meteorological Conference (Cg-19) hosted a reception for the heads and members of the delegations of the countries participating in the conference currently taking place in Geneva, Switzerland, during which they reviewed the programs and regional initiatives of the Kingdom in weather and climate.
Dr. Ayman Ghulam, Head of Delegation and Director General of the National Center for Meteorology, confirmed that the Kingdom has been working to expand its weather and climate capabilities and capabilities locally, regionally and internationally in close collaboration. with the World Meteorological Organization and adhere to its standards, results and decisions.
He reviewed the Kingdom’s efforts in this regard, including the restructuring of the meteorological and environmental sector and the establishment of a national meteorological center with great potential to achieve excellence in this area, indicating that this was due to its key role and geographic location. which requires more attention given the problems it faces. Challenges presented in the absence or lack of monitoring systems in the countries of the region, despite the variety of different weather phenomena affecting them.
And Ghulam pointed out that the Kingdom has launched targeted geographic coverage programs and initiatives to work towards reaching more than 70% of its geographic area by 2025 by increasing the number of automatic and manned stations and distributing them to reach the optimal number. monitoring, management and climate information.
He noted that the Kingdom had increased the number of meteorological radars to 17 (Doppler) in order to be able to cover most of the inhabited geographic area today, which is the highest level in the Arab region and was associated with the Persian Gulf. a network to enable the countries of the region to realize their potential in improving the level of accuracy Meteorological information and early warning of weather phenomena.
He noted the launch of the Kingdom’s meteorological system, which ensures the independence of the meteorological sector, increasing the level of authority, investment opportunities and partnership with the private sector, noting that the Kingdom is one of the innovative and reliable countries in this area. exchange of information, being one of the first countries to host the Meteorological Communication Center in Jeddah as well as the Global GISC Center, and soon, God willing, it will complete the establishment of the Early Warning Information Center, which is one of the most famous meteorological works that allow agencies and institutions play their part in combating weather events by providing beneficiaries with accurate meteorological data.
He also reviewed a number of regional initiatives directly related to meteorological and climate work, which were launched by Saudi Arabia last year, and the National Center for Meteorology was appointed to implement and operate them, namely: the Regional Center for Climate Change, the Regional Center for Dust and Dust storms and early warning; and the Regional Cloud Seeding Program.
