Kulima begins supporting humanitarian organisations to use climate information in their programming

The SADC Climate Risk Capacity Building project, funded by USAID and implemented by CSIR, Kulima and the Climate Systems Analysis Group at the University of Cape Town, has recently been extended for a further 3 years.  As part of this project, Kulima will be working with a variety of humanitarian organisations in order to facilitate their use of climate information in decision-making.  RIACSO is a forum of UN agencies and NGOs, headed by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, which supports SADC in emergency preparedness and response.  As they gear up for contingency planning for the 2011-12 summer season, Kulima has communicated the essence of a range of seasonal forecasts (from SARCOF, IRI and CSIR) and is currently facilitating a process of assessing potential risks and vulnerabilities, using this information.