Nine out of ten natural disasters are related to climate change. Over the past decade, disasters have claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and affected the lives of almost two billion.
In addition to mitigating climate change, we need the means to adapt to it on a large scale, including ways of predicting and preparing for weather and climate risks. This is where meteorology – one of Finland’s development policy priorities – can be of assistance.
The Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI) is a veteran when it comes to international cooperation in the field of weather and climate: they have carried out international projects in more than 100 countries. The Finnish company Vaisala is the world’s leading supplier of weather systems, and sells weather observation and measuring equipment to more than 150 countries every year. Together, the FMI and Vaisala cover both equipment (such as weather radar, sounding stations and lightning location systems) and weather forecasting and warning systems, end products, and meteorological training.
With the aid of civic organisations and other local actors, those requiring information can obtain it in a timely and intelligible format. The FMI’s local partners include the Red Cross and Red Crescent.
It is seamless cooperation like this, between public and private-sector actors – the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the FMI, Vaisala and the Red Cross – that makes Finland’s offering so special.