16 April 2010: The First Conference of African ministers responsible for meteorology adopted the Nairobi Declaration in response to the increasing risks and threats to development posed by climate variability and change. The Conference, which was organized by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), in partnership with the African Union Commission, gathered around 30 ministers in Nairobi, Kenya, on 15-16 April 2010.

In their Declaration, the Ministers agree to strengthen National Meteorological and Hydrological Services and enhance inter-regional cooperation. They recognize the importance of weather and climate information services and products for social and economic development in various sectors, particularly agriculture, natural resource management, food security, transport, health, energy and disaster risk reduction.
The Conference also established a high-level mechanism, the African Ministerial Conference on Meteorology (AMCOMET), which is expected to meet every two years to further develop meteorology and its applications in the continent. The Ministerial Conference called on technical and financial partners, and the UN system and its agencies to support AMCOMET and the implementation of the African Strategy and Plan of Action to be developed by this new mechanism.
The Ministerial Conference also took note of the recommendations of the Experts’ Segment, which was held earlier in the week and agreed on, amongst other decisions, the creation of a sub-regional structure for climate monitoring and adaptation in Central Africa. [WMO Press Release] [Conference Website] [Nairobi Declaration] [IISD RS Summary Report]