Liberia: EPA Sends Experts to India to Boost Liberia's Climate Forecasting Capacity

Monrovia — The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of Liberia, through the Enhancing the Resilience of Vulnerable Coastal Communities in Sinoe County (ERVCCS) Project, has sponsored three Liberian technical experts to participate in a one-week intensive training program in India aimed at strengthening the country's climate monitoring and weather forecasting capacity.

The three experts departed Liberia on Sunday, July 12, to participate in a specialized training program designed to equip them with practical skills in the installation, operation, maintenance, calibration, and management of modern hydrometeorological equipment.

The participants are James Kollie of the Liberia Meteorological Service (LMS) at the Ministry of Transport, Kawi G. Badio of the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA), and William J. Wah Jr. of the Liberia Hydrological Service (LHS) at the Ministry of Mines and Energy.

The training forms part of the EPA's ongoing efforts to strengthen Liberia's Climate Information Services (CIS) and enhance the country's capacity to monitor weather conditions, produce accurate forecasts, and support disaster preparedness and climate adaptation.

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The initiative follows a needs assessment conducted under the ERVCCS Project, which identified significant gaps in Liberia's hydrometeorological observation network.

According to the assessment, the country faces inadequate technical capacity, limited weather-monitoring infrastructure, and insufficient coverage of synoptic and automatic rainfall stations, particularly in coastal counties. These shortcomings have hindered Liberia's ability to generate and deliver timely, reliable weather and climate information.

To address these challenges, the ERVCCS Project is supporting the procurement and installation of new synoptic weather stations and automatic rainfall stations in Sinoe and River Cess Counties.

In addition to installing the new equipment, the project is investing in building the technical expertise required to ensure the systems are properly operated, maintained, and sustained.

During the one-week training in India, the participants will receive hands-on instruction in station installation, routine operation and maintenance, equipment calibration, quality assurance and quality control, data collection, and data management.

They will also enhance their knowledge of how to apply hydrometeorological information to improve weather forecasting and multi-hazard early warning systems, in line with the standards of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

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An EPA release added that the training is also expected to foster stronger collaboration among the Liberia Meteorological Service, the Liberia Hydrological Service, and the National Disaster Management Agency, enhancing their collective capacity to improve weather forecasting, climate monitoring, and disaster preparedness.