Somaliland Ministry of Aviation and Air Transport have successfully installed and launched the “MESA” weather system at the Egal International Airport, Hargeisa.
A formal ceremony meant to mark the launching of the new weather system was held at earlier today the Ministry of Aviation headquarters.
Hon. Farhan Aden Haybe, “Minister of Aviation and Air Transport speaking during the ceremony said, “On behalf of the people of Somaliland thanked the IGAD for providing us with weather system and Mr. John and Mr Abdirashid from ICAO who played a vital role in the setting up of the weather system.
The Aviation Minister added, “The Installation of MESA weather system will enhance our services for managing existing and potential climate and weather related risks and to meet the challenge of coping with providing critical services and products in the face of changing climatic conditions. We also plan to provide local media outlets with the meteorological data in the future.
The MESA programme will increase the information management, decision-making and planning capacity of the African continental, regional and national institutions with mandate on environment, climate, food security and related sectors; by enhancing access to, and exploitation of relevant Earth Observation applications in Africa.
The Monitoring for Environment and Security in Africa (MESA) programme is being implemented simultaneously with the IGAD Drought Disaster Resilience and Sustainability Initiative (IDDRSI). IDDRSI provides a road map for ending drought emergencies in the IGAD region by the year 2027 and the MESA programme will contribute to one of the pillars of the initiative.
Mr. Abdirashid Ali Hadi, head of the Meteorological department at Ministry said, “The new weather instruments were donated to the Somaliland Ministry of Aviation and Air Transport by IGAD under the MESA project (Monitoring for Environment and Security in Africa) to with the aim improving access to Meteorological Services in particular for the Aviation Sectors in our country.
Mr. John Asayo, IGAD representative speaking during the occasion, “FIrst and foremost, I would like to thank the government of Somaliland for inviting me to this important occasion and for taking part in the installation of this weather system which is based on satellite observation from the UNITAR’s Operational Satellite Applications Programme (UNOSAT) satellites .
“So what we get from this system are many Meteorological weather products that are used for weather forecasting in this nation and I do believe through proper usage of this system, Somaliland will be well represented and the forecast will be more improved in terms of improving the livelihoods of the people of Somaliland”, Mr. John said.
Mr. Abdirashid Omer Jama from ICAO while demonstrating the working of the newly installed weather system said, “The system is crucial in our increasingly weather-dependent society, satellite data has become indispensable for the Meteorological Services to forecast the weather at all ranges and to produce timely warnings and other information.
