By Miriam Humbe, Abuja
As the world marked the World Meteorological Day on Thursday, Director General of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency, (NiMet), Prof. Mansur Bako Matazu called on individuals and institutions to invest in the future generations by creating awareness on the dangers of climate change such as extreme weather and loss of livelihoods.
Represented by the Director, Research &Training, Prof. Effiom Oku, the
NiMet Director General said this in a keynote address on the occasion in Abuja.
Prof. Matazu also stressed the importance of providing opportunities for the young persons to proffer solutions thereby making the World a safer place for all.
He said: “We must catch them young.”
Themed: “The future of weather, climate and water across generations”, NiMet’s Director General said that the Agency had placed special importance in the future generations by working with the young minds in the country.
Recall that the World Meteorological Day had been celebrated on March 23, every year since March 23, 1950 to mark the coming into force of the Convention establishing the World Meteorological Organisation.
Prior to this date, the International Meteorological Organisation existed since 1873, as a cooperation of international bodies or institutions working tirelessly together, exchanging data and making forecasts for the good of all.
Matazu said that NiMet’s weather observers were largely youths who began their careers in the field of meteorology at a very young age.
He said that as an Agency, NiMet was also working to preserve the past resources in terms of publications and instrumentation while developing new ones, thereby providing a robust knowledge base for the upcoming generations.
NiMet’s Director General said: “Similarly, we have designed, developed and implemented a programme called Young Meteorological Ambassadors whose members are here today.
“We have signed Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) with several universities in Nigeria to promote the science of meteorology within the academic institutions at tertiary level.
“To support national and regional development, NiMet continues to render services in support of aviation, agriculture, construction, tourism, defence, water resources management, telecommunications, environment, communications, etc.
“The development of our products and services includes the effective utilisation of young minds as well as the experience within the Agency creating innovations to what we do and how we do them.
“This has positively impacted on our routine publications and on-demand services such as the Seasonal Climate Prediction as part of the Agency’s meteorological Early Warning System in line with the United Nations Early Warning for ALL.”
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