21 July 2010: The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Commission for Agricultural Meteorology held its 15th session from 15-21 July 2010, in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

The meeting was attended by about 120 representatives from 62 countries and international organizations, and adopted a programme of work to enhance agrometeorological services to assist the farming community to cope with the increasing impacts of climate variability and climate change. In particular, the Commission for Agricultural Meteorology identified several priorities for its future work until 2014, namely: developing enhanced services for the agricultural, livestock, forestry and fisheries communities and partner agencies; encouraging the development of a knowledge-sharing interface between forecasters/scientists and agricultural decision makers; supporting agrometeorological training at regional, national and local levels; and encouraging the sharing of resources among WMO members and other organizations in order to build synergies and support human health and economic development.

The 15th session of the Commission for Agricultural Meteorology was preceded by the international workshop on “Addressing the Livelihood Crisis of Farmers: Weather and Climate Services,” organized by WMO and a number of partner organizations, which took place from 12-14 July 2010, at the same venue. The workshop was attended by about 150 participants from over 50 countries and resulted in a set of recommendations aimed at exploiting the full potential of weather and climate services for reducing the vulnerability of farming communities. These recommendations were forwarded to the Commission for its consideration. [WMO Press Release on the Commission for Agricultural Meteorology] [WMO Press Release on the Workshop] [Workshop Website] [15th Session Website]