RA II-16/INF. 7, p. 19

World Meteorological Organization
REGIONAL ASSOCIATION II (ASIA)
Sixteenth Session
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
12 to 16 February 2017 / RA II-16/INF. 7
Submitted by:
Secretary-General
1.II.2017

WMO REGIONAL OFFICE FOR ASIA AND THE SOUTH-WEST PACIFIC INCLUDING WMO OFFICE FOR WEST ASIA

1. Regional Office for Asia and the South-West Pacific

1.1 The Regional Office for Asia and the South-West Pacific has played a role as a focal point for information on regional activities and for assisting Members in implementing WMO Programmes and activities that had a regional focus. The Regional Office has continued efforts to facilitate the provision of appropriate advice and assistance through relevant technical departments in the Secretariat and to assess the needs of the Region and individual Members as well as to maintain partnership and collaboration with relevant United Nations agencies and inter-regional organizations.

1.2 The Regional Office supported the facilitation of the provision of assistance for the regional meetings and activities in cooperation with Members and relevant technical departments in the Secretariat. The Regional Office also coordinated with Members who hosted various regional/sub-regional events during the intersessional period. [List of regional events in 2012–2016 is given in the Appendix.]

1.3 The Regional Office will continue and further strengthen inter-regional cooperation activities to promote weather-, climate- and water-related issues and to increase the awareness of policy-makers in the Region of the role of NMHSs and WMO in contributing to sustainable development. In this connection, the Intergovernmental Council of Hydrometeorology of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) decided to establish a special WMO office for the Euro-Asian sub-region and supported this proposal as an effective mechanism for further strengthening inter-regional cooperation with Regional Association VI.

1.4 Members continued to benefit from development cooperation activities carried out within the framework of various funding sources such as the WMO VCP and Trust Fund arrangements [see also RAII16/Doc. 4.8(3)]. Trust fund projects have been implemented by the Regional Office in Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka and the countries in the Bay of Bengal for the procurement and installation of equipment, education and training, and improvement of services and VCP projects in Bhutan, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar and Uzbekistan.

1.5 A WMO Post-Typhoon Haiyan Expert Mission to Viet Nam was carried out from 14–16April 2014 by representatives and experts of the Hong Kong Observatory, RSMC Tokyo – Typhoon Centre/Japan Meteorological Agency, UK Met Office and the WMO Secretariat. The mission assessed the current capacity and capability of NMHSs and requirements of the relevant authorities in Viet Nam and made recommendations to address specific aspects identified during the mission. The Regional Office is expected to enhance support for such missions to identify Members’ needs and requirements and to support the restoration of key operational hydrological and meteorological facilities and for human resources development.

1.6 RA II Members in Southeast Asia actively participated in the realization of a RA II WIGOS project regarding capacity-building in radar techniques with a possibility of integration of other surface-based remote sensing data to enhance the observational data and product utilization for better early monitoring and warning of extreme events.

2. WMO Office for West Asia

2.1 The WMO Office for West Asia has been supported by the Government of Bahrain since its inauguration at the UN House in Manama, Bahrain, on 12 March 2007. The Office has played a key role in coordinating communications with NMHSs in West Asia for identifying the requirements for the development of the NMHSs.

2.2 The Office have developed and maintained close working relationships with other UN agencies and regional and sub-regional organizations in West Asia, including LAS, GCC, UNEP and WHO, in particular in the areas of disaster risk reduction, sand and dust storms, and climate change. The Office also contributed to development of Strategic Cooperation Framework with other UN agencies.

2.3 The Office has been centred around the support to individual WMO Members in West Asia and to the UN Country Team in Bahrain on hydrometeorology-related matters in cooperation with other UN regional agencies.

2.4 Through the WMO Office for West Asia, the Regional Office is expected to promote interregional coordination among Regional Associations I (Africa), II (Asia) and VI (Europe), and further strengthening of the WMO Office for West Asia is desirable through increased financial and human resources. The WMO Secretariat is expected to take the necessary actions for thanking the Government of Bahrain on behalf of RA II and for seeking continued support to the Office.

3. Review of Regional Office location

3.1 On the recommendation of Cg-XVI, the Secretariat initiated a comprehensive review of resources and location of the Regional Office for Asia and the South-West Pacific, with a special focus on efficient and effective management and operation of the Office including an analysis of benefits for the location of the Regional Office in Geneva or in the Region.

3.2 In response to the WMO circular letter to Members of RAII and RAV, five Members (India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Qatar and Singapore) indicated their Governments’ interest in hosting the Regional Office.

3.3 In accordance with WMO Congress Resolution 55 (Cg-17) and the procedures and criteria established after consultation with the RA II and RA V Management Groups, the Secretary-General decided that Singapore was the most appropriate location for the Regional Office based on the results of the evaluation along established criteria of efficiency, cost-effectiveness, as well as sustainability and quality of environment, the findings from site visits and with due consideration of the geographical balance.

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Appendix: 1

APPENDIX

LIST OF REGIONAL EVENTS IN RA II

(December 2012–December 2016)

Date / Event / Place /
Part I: WMO constituent body sessions and RA II Regional Conferences /
Regional Seminars
2016
23–29 November 2016 / Sixteenth session of the Commission for Basic Systems (CBS-16) / Guangzhou, China
2014
2–4 December 2014 / Sixth session of Regional Conference in Regional Association II (RECO-6) / Doha, Qatar
10–16 July 2014 /

Sixteenth Session of the WMO Commission for Instruments and Methods of Observation (CIMO-16)

/ Saint Petersburg, Russian Federation
2012
13–19 December 2012 / Fifteenth session of Regional Association II (Asia) (RA II-15) / Doha, Qatar
10–12 December 2012 /
Regional Seminar onStrategic Capacity
Development of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs) in Regional Association II (Asia)
/ Doha, Qatar
Part II: RA II subsidiary bodies’ meetings / sessions
2016
7–8 December 2016 / Eleventh session of RA II Management Group / Abu Dhabi, UAE
31 October–1 November 2016 / First meeting of RA II Expert Group on WIGOS (EG-WIGOS) / Abu Dhabi, UAE
25–27 October 2016 / Third meeting of RA II Working Group on Hydrological Services (WGHS) / Seoul, Republic of Korea
15 June 2016 / Tenth session of RA II Management Group / Geneva, Switzerland
2015
15–17 December 2015 / Working Group, Implementation and Coordination Team, and Task Team (WG-ICT-TT) Chairpersons’ Meeting on Strategic Planning in RA II / Doha, Qatar
10–11 December 2015 / Meeting of RA II Expert Group on Public Weather Services Delivery (EGPWS) / Hong Kong, China
25–27 November 2015 / Meeting of RA II Expert Group on WIS (EG-WIS) / Tokyo, Japan
9–10 November 2015 / Meeting of RA II Expert Group on Agrometeorology (EG-AgM) / Pune, India
27 May 2015 / Ninth session of RA II Management Group / Geneva, Switzerland
14–16 April 2015 / Second meeting of RA II Working Group on Hydrological Services (WGHS) / Gyeongju, Republic of Korea
2014
10–12 November 2014 / Meeting of RA II Expert Group on Aeronautical Meteorological Services Delivery (EG-AeM) / Hong Kong, China
30 September–2 October 2014 / First meeting of RA II Working Group on Hydrological Services (WGHS) / Seoul, Republic of Korea
18 June 2014 / Eighth session of RA II Management Group / Geneva, Switzerland
27–28 May 2014 / Working Group, Implementation and Coordination Team, and Task Team (WG-ICT-TT) Chairpersons’ Meeting on Implementation and Development of Strategic Operating Plan in Regional Association II / Doha, Qatar
2013
12 May 2013 / Seventh session of RA II Management Group / Geneva, Switzerland
Part III: Other meetings, workshops and training courses
2016
6–8 December 2016 /

Fourth WIS Implementation Workshop

/ Tokyo, Japan
21–22 November 2016 /

CBS-TECO-2016

/ Guangzhou, China
15 November-12 December 2016 /

Training on Instrument Maintenance and Calibration

/ Pune, India
14–18 November 2016 / Seventh ASEAN Climate Outlook Forum (ASEANCOF) / Manila, Philippines
14-15 November 2016 / Southeast Asian RCC-Network Implementation Planning Meeting / Manila, Philippines
8–9 November 2016 / Fourth session of East Asia winter Climate Outlook Forum (EASCOF) / Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
7–9 November 2016 / Arctic Polar Regional Climate Centre (PRCC) Network Implementation Planning Meeting (crosscutting for RAII, RA IV, RA VI) / Geneva, Switzerland
28 October 2016 / 4th Meeting of the RA II WIGOS Project Coordination Group to Develop Support for NMHSs in Satellite Data, Products and Training / Songdo-Incheon, Republic of Korea
24–27 October 2016 / Seventh Asia/Oceania Meteorological Satellite Users' Conference / Incheon, Republic of Korea
3–7 October, 2016 / WMO Workshop on Enhancing Climate Indices for Sector Specific Applications in South Asia region (joint WCAS/CCl ET-SCI) / Pune, India
27–29 September 2016 / Ninth session of the South Asian Climate Outlook Forum (SASCOF) / Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar
26 September–14 October 2016 / International Training Course on Information and Communication Technologies for Meteorological Services / Seoul, Republic of Korea
26–28 September 2016 / Stakeholders Workshop to Initiate the Implementation of Impact-based Forecasting and Risk-based Warnings / Male, Maldives
6–9 September 2016 / Workshop on Implementation of new NWP and Impact-based Forecast and Warning Technics / Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar
29–31 August 2016 / Thirty-eighth Meeting of the ASEAN Sub-Committee on Meteorology and Geophysics / Yangon, Myanmar
23–24 August 2016 / CAP Implementation Workshop / Bangkok, Thailand
15–26 August 2016 / Sixteenth Typhoon Committee Attachment Training Course at the RSMC Tokyo / Tokyo, Japan
10–14 August 2015 / Meeting of the Regional Subproject Management Team of the Severe Weather Forecasting and Disaster risk reduction Demonstration Project for SE Asia / Hanoi, Viet Nam
11–29 July 2016 / International Training Course on Weather Forecasting for Operational Meteorologist / Seoul, Republic of Korea
27 June–1 July 2016 / Joint meeting of the CBS OPAG/PWS Task Team on Impact of Multi-hazard Prediction and Communication (TT/IMPACT) and the Expert Team on Meeting User Needs in Reducing the Impacts of Hydrometeorological Hazards (ET/DPM) / Shanghai, China
27–30 June 2016 / WMO/JMA SIGMET Workshop / Tokyo, Japan
23–26 May 2016 / Task Team on Definitions of Extreme Weather and Climate Events (TTDEWCE) / Guangzhou, China
16–18 May 2016 / Workshop on Managing Climate Risks in Central Asia / Tashkent, Uzbekistan
10–13 May 2016 / Sixth WMO Impact Workshop / Shanghai, China
2–6 May 2016 / Forty-third session of the Panel on Tropical Cyclones / New Delhi, India
26–28 April 2016 / South Asia Flash Flood Guidance (SAsiaFFG) Steering Committee Meeting / New Delhi, India
19–28 April 2016 / Eighth session of the South Asian Climate Outlook Forum (SASCOF-8), Training Workshop (Pre-COF) and Climate Services User Forum (CSUF) for the Water Sector, and CSUF for the Health Sector / Colombo, Sri Lanka
18 April–6 May 2016 / International Training Course on Weather Radar Data Utilization for Meteorological Services / Seoul, Republic of Korea
7–9 April 2016 / Twelfth session of the Forum on Regional Climate Monitoring, Assessment and Prediction for Asia (FOCRAII) / Guangzhou, China
9–11 March 2016 / Regional Consultation on Climate Services for the Third Pole Region / Jaipur, India
22 February–4 March 2016 / Severe Weather Forecasting Demonstration Project (SWFDP) - Central Asia, Workshop on Forecasting and Public Weather Services (PWS) for Forecasters and Users from Central Asia / Almaty, Kazakhstan
22 February–4 March 2016 / Severe Weather Forecasting Demonstration Project (SWFDP) - Central Asia, Workshop on Forecasting and Public Weather Services (PWS) for Forecasters and Users from Central Asia / Almaty, Kazakhstan
22–25 February 2016 / Forty-eighth session of the Typhoon Committee / Honolulu, United States of America
2015
2–27 November 2015 / Training on Instrument Maintenance and Calibration / Nanjing, China
18–19 November 2015 / Fifth ASEAN Climate Outlook Forum (ASEANCOF) / Singapore
17–19 November 2015 / Scoping workshop on climate services for Polar Regions: Establishing Polar Regional Climate Centres towards implementing an Arctic PRCC-network (cutting across RA II, RA IV and RA VI) / Geneva, Switzerland
14 November 2015 / 3rd Meeting of the RA II WIGOS Project Coordination Group to Develop Support for NMHSs in Satellite Data, Products and Training / Tokyo, Japan
10–12 November 2015 / Ninth session of North Eurasia Climate Outlook Forum (NEACOF) / Moscow, Russian Federation
10–12 November 2015 / Sixth Asia/Oceania Meteorological Satellite Users' Conference / Tokyo, Japan
10–12 November 2015 / Workshop on climate change in Asia for weather presenters: communicating the science / Tokyo, Japan
6–7 November 2015 / WMO Sand and Dust Storm Warning Advisory and Assessment System (SDS-WAS) Steering Committee Kick-off Meeting / Amman, Jordan
3–5 November 2015 / Third Session of East Asia winter Climate Outlook Forum (EASCOF) / Seoul, Republic of Korea
2–5 November 2015 / First Africa/Middle East Expert Meeting and Workshop on the Health Impact of Airborne Dust / Amman, Jordan
19–21 October 2015 / National Stakeholder Consultation (NSC) on Climate Services and First National Climate Outlook Forum / Thimphu, Bhutan
19–20 October 2015 / Regional Workshop on Climate Services for Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) NHMSs / Sochi, Russian Federation
18 October–7 November 2015 / Multi-year Capacity Development Programme on ICT for meteorological services / Seoul, Republic of Korea
14–15 October 2015 / Seventh session of the South Asian Climate Outlook Forum (Winter SASCOF) and Climate Services User Forum for Agriculture / Chennai, India
12–14 October 2015 / Joint RA II/RA V Workshop on WIGOS for Disaster Risk Reduction / Jakarta, Indonesia
28–30 September 2015 / Stakeholders Workshop to Implement a Pilot Project on Impact-based Forecasting and Risk-based Warnings / Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar
21–25 September 2015 / Severe Weather Forecasting Demonstration Project (SWFDP) – Regional Subprojects for the Bay of Bengal and Southeast Asia – Training Workshop on Severe Weather Forecasting and Warning Services / Bangkok, Thailand