SADC countries commit to collaborate on minimizing adverse effects of severe weather and climate phenomena

By Wallace Mawire Southern African Development Community (SADC) Ministers responsible for Transport and Meteorology have committed to collaborate to minimize adverse effects associated with severe weather and climate phenomena affecting the region in a communique recently released in Malawi. The 2017 edition of the SADC meeting of Ministers responsible for Transport and Meteorology sectors took place from 30 October to 3 November 2017. The Government of Malawi hosted the meeting in Lilongwe, Malawi. SADC holds annual sector ministers meetings as part of the governance and programme management strategy. The purpose of the meeting was to consider the progress made in the sectors of Transport and Meteorology in the implementing of the SADC Protocol on Transport, Communications and Meteorology and the derivative policies and programmes and to provide guidance to implementing national, corridor and regional institutions including the secretariat. According to the communique, the meteorological sector’s main purpose is to establish meteorological systems and infrastructure that are fully integrated, efficient and cost effective to meet the requirements of the users, and to minimise adverse effects associated with severe weather and climate phenomena. The ministers also noted progress on implementation of programmes and projects. The ministers have urged member states that have not yet signed the Meteorological Association of Southern Africa (MASA) Constitution to do so as soon as possible in order to ensure operationalization of the association. The ministers have also noted that member states are obliged to be compliant with the Quality Management System (QMS) standard for the provision of the aeronautical meteorological services to airlines. They said that non-compliance to the obligatory regulations on QMS of the Chicago Convention will have far reaching consequences on the member states and could find their airspaces declared unsafe for air travel by ICAO due to safety considerations. The ministers have also urged member states which have not yet been ISO 9001-2008 or ISO 9001-2015 certified to take necessary and urgent action to comply to avoid their countries from being flagged as a high safety risk zones.