What does WIGOS mean at a National Level•Demonstrating national leadership in observations•Compliance with WMO TR (WMO-No. 49) – standard and recommended practices and procedures•Culture change and change management•N-WIGOS must be aligned with National needs/priorities(strategic and operational)•National leadership through WIGOS•Strong national coordination & cooperation will assist in building strong regional coordination & cooperation

WIGOS provide means and opportunities:•To enhance national observing networks for benefit of all users•To enhance sharing and accessibility of observations•To reinforce central role of MSD through partnerships & a network of networks•To strengthen national mandate and authority

•Partnerships with stakeholders/organisations ((benefits include sharing of expertise, cost implications, data and information for, among others, early warning, monitoring of evolution of systems.)•Acceptance/understanding of the WIGOS concept by all stakeholders•Win-win concept to be at the forefront (highlighting benefits as well as opportunity costs e.g. costs, optimisation, containment, reliability of observations)•Commitment & engagement & support to WIGOS & its implementation at a national level (ownership)•Building trust among all partners•Success stories/ demonstration projects

•Compliance with Minamata Agreement on banning of mercury•Equipment calibration and maintenance•All stations to be added to the synoptic network should comply with WMO requirements and be given station identifiers•Collaboration and consultations are critical, including across political boundaries

1. Identified our shortcomings:o Observational networks/systems not sustainable and stableo Design and planning not coordinatedo Lack of compliance with set standardso Inconsistence in data formatso Lack of maintenance and calibrationo Lack of qualified staff

2. Identified possible areas of cooperationo Disaster Risk Reductiono Climate Changeo Resource pressures and accountabilityo Observing technology

3. Identified potential partners in the above mentioned areas of interest

4. Collaborations initiated

The Department has signed a number of MOUs in the field of climate change. The following are the current partners: ICRIST is one of the partners working with the

department to come up with drought resistant crops for the semi-arid regions.

It also signed an MOU with OXFAM has received three AWS and established community climate observing stations in 15 wards in the following districts Gutu, Chirumanzu and Zvishavane. The Department is also giving three day forecast directly to the communities involved in this project. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8B81k57zOQ

ZIMNAT and MSD are in partnership under a weather insurance index project, with 17 Automatic Weather Stations installed in various parts of the country

The Department has signed an MOU with the largest mobile network service provider ECONET under a project Ecofarmer; focusing on crop insurance, consultancies on the installation and maintenance of meteorological equipment. Another MOU for the Weather Online project is under discussion.

Among others MSD is also working with the following organisations in the implementation of WIGOS:o Department of Agricultural Technical and Extension

Serviceso Zimbabwe National Water Authorityo National Parks and Wildlife Zimbabwe

o Assessment of existing stations for compliance with set standards and interoperability

o Station identifiers and metadatao Establishment of more cooperation with stakeholderso Data policy formulation for data sharing