Dubbed: Saving Lives and Protecting Agriculture-based Livelihoods in Malawi: Scaling Up the Use of Modernized Climate Information and Early Warning Systems (M-CLIMES), the project will reach an estimated three million people across the whole country.
Communications and Resource Mobilization Analyst at UNDP, Madalitso Mbendera said the project is expected to deliver lifesaving early warnings, and improve the monitoring, packaging and distribution of valuable climate information that can save lives, protect livelihoods, and inform decision-making on development plans.
“Drought and floods are major climate change-related effects that impede progress in Malawi and threaten the country’s hard-won development gains. The floods in 2015 affected over one million people, killing over 100 people and displacing some 300,000. Recent droughts induced by a severe El Niño weather phenomenon challenge government-led initiatives to improve food security, safeguard people’s livelihoods and protect Malawians from fast-acting storms, severe weather and other changes in climate,”reads part of the statement released by the UNDP.
Commissioner for Disaster Management Affairs Clement Chinthu Phiri said the project is about saving lives and sharing valuable climate information across the last mile.
“Key innovations of the six-year project will be the deployment of next-generation weather and water monitoring technologies, the use of mobile networks to get information in the hands of people who need it most, and participatory approaches to more effectively connect vulnerable communities with actionable climate information,” said Clement Chinthu Phiri.
UNDP Portfolio Manager for Resilience and Sustainable Growth, Andrew Spezowka, said responding to the climate challenge requires collective action from all people and stakeholders.
“The new project is aligned with the priorities of the Malawi Government in empowering Malawians to make informed decisions on climate change and take necessary actions to mitigate and adapt to climate change effects,” said Spezowka.
The M-CLIMES project will also be supported by other key lead institutions such as the Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services, Department of Water Resources, Department of Fisheries, Department of Agriculture and Extension Services, and the National Smallholder Farmers Association (NASFAM).
