Namibia hosts early warning system forum

An Early Warnings for All (EW4All) multistakeholder forum was hosted in Windhoek earlier this week. The forum aimed to bring together stakeholders from governments, United Nations (UN) agencies, non-governmental organisations, civil society and the private sector to assess progress and strategies toward achieving continent-wide early warning systems by 2027.

This was a call echoed by UN secretary-general António Guterres in 2022.

According to the World Meteorological Organisation, early warning systems are put in place to analyse and identify potential weather- and climate-related risks and hazards. All early warning systems aim to enable early action to save and protect lives, livelihoods and assets of people at risk.

Speaking at the event, deputy prime minister and minister of works and transport John Mutorwa reaffirmed Namibia's commitment to EW4All, citing the country's decision to host the forum and ongoing efforts to establish a national situation room connected to regional and continental emergency systems.

"I urge accelerated implementation of multi-hazard warning systems in Namibia," Mutorwa said, and expressed readiness to learn from other nations while sharing Namibia’s progress.