The Mainstreaming of Climate Change and Variability Information into Planning and Policy Development for Africa

The economies of Africa, however, are predominantly dependent on rainfed agriculture and the associated industries. Current and future sustainable socio-economic development of the African nations will therefore heavily depend on the ability to cope with the current climate variability as well as adaptation to future climate changes. Some lessons and experiences that have been gained from many years of operations at the IGAD(Intergovernmental Authority on Development) Climate Prediction and Applications Centre (ICPAC) on issues related to mainstreaming climate change/variability information into the planning/policy development in the Greater Horn of Africa (GHA) are described. A short summary of the lessons and experiences from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Drought Monitoring Centre (DMC-SADC); and the African Centre of Meteorological Applications for Development (ACMAD) is provided.