The seventh session of the Regional Conference on Management of Meteorological and Hydrological Services (RECO-7) started on Friday in Abu Dhabi, ahead of the 16th session of the Regional Association II (RA II-16) meeting, to be held on 12th February. Both events are hosted by the UAE government.

Participants in the two-day event will share national experiences and regional priorities.

The RA II RECO-7 aims to share information on the activities of the working groups and pilot projects, identify regional strategies for enhancing private sector engagement in the region, and enhance entrepreneurial skills in the management of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services, NMHSs.

RA II RECO will bring together directors and senior officials of NMHSs, providing a platform to discuss emerging issues and challenges regarding regional co-operation and capacity development.

Climate change, environmental degradation, population growth and urbanisation are putting pressure on water supplies in many parts of the Asian region, and exposure to extreme weather conditions and other hazards is increasing, according to the World Meteorological Organization, WMO.

The World Meteorological Organization’s Regional Association for Asia, which has 35 countries across diverse geographic and climatic zones, will also hold its quadrennial conference from 12th to 16th February that will consider how to meet these challenges. The meeting will focus on how to strengthen weather, climate, water and environmental services to keep pace with rapidly evolving needs.

"2016 was the hottest year on record, beating even the exceptionally high temperatures of 2015 because of a combination of long-term climate change and the strong El Nino," said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas.

"In the last decades, the countries in the Asian region have been exposed to weather and climate events of increased intensity and frequency. The year 2016 was no exception," he noted.

India, Iraq, the Islamic Republic of Iran and Kuwait all saw peak temperatures of more than 50?C last summer. Many other parts of Asia also saw heat waves. On the other hand, the most significant cold wave of 2016 occurred in late January in Asia, with extremely low temperatures extending southwards from eastern China to as far as south Thailand.

China’s Yangtze basin had its most significant summer floods since 1999, causing many casualties and an estimated US$14 billion in damage. Flooding and landslides in Sri Lanka displaced several hundred thousand. Conversely, parts of India and Southeast Asia suffered from drought.

Typhoon Lionrock hit the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea with catastrophic flooding while China, Japan and the Republic of Korea suffered disruption and economic losses from a number of tropical cyclones.

In view of these environmental catastrophes, the meeting will consider how best to support the implementation of the Paris Agreement on climate change and all associated moves towards a low-carbon economy through targeted climate services for energy, water, transport, industry, agriculture and land sectors.

Improvements in the global weather and climate observing and information systems will also be considered, including the Himalayan region known as the "Third Pole."

"The primary responsibility of the National Meteorological and Hydrological Services is to provide timely and accurate forecasts and warnings. But for governments, economic sectors and the public to take appropriate action, they need to know the impact of these meteorological hazards on lives, property and the economy," Taalas said.

"The capabilities of the WMO members need to be upgraded and strengthened on a continuous basis to cope with the optimum delivery of new services to inform decision makers, ranging from day-to-day operations to much longer timescales," he added.