Regional Association II (ASIA) - E-Library - WMO

40 ABRIDGED FINAL REPORT OF THE THIRTEENTH SESSION OF RA IIto actively participate in the VCP, not just as VCPrecipients but also as donors.10.6 The Association expressed its satisfactionwith the education and training activities through theprovision of short- and long-term fellowships underUNDP, VCP, trust funds and the WMO RegularBudget, and requested the Secretary -General tocontinue his efforts to secure more funding in orderto meet the increasing demand of Member countriesfor training of meteorological and hydrological stafffor the development of their Services.10.7 The Association reiterated the importanceof Technical Cooperation among DevelopingCountries (TCDC) as a means of promoting regionaland international cooperation. The Association waspleased to note that a number of activities in the formof expert missions, familiarization visits, study tours,periodical seminars, workshops and training hadbeen implemented during the reporting period, andChina and the Republic of Korea were planning tocontinue to organize such events. The Associationurged Members to take an active part in thatimportant activity. In addition, the Associationstressed the importance of close cooperationbetween developing and developed countries inorder to reduce the gap between NMHSs of thecountries concerned and to ensure regionalintegration and harmony. Furthermore, theAssociation encouraged Members to exchange andshare experiences of the development and operationof new technologies related to NWP, including stormsurge models.10.8 The Association also noted that NMHSshad benefited from support through bilateral andmultilateral arrangements in the promotion of theirmeteorological and hydrological services and urgedMembers to provide the WMO Secretariat withrelevant information on such assistance, asrequested by the WMO Executive Council.10.9 The Association noted that the World Bankand regional development banks had recognizedfurther the importance of meteorological andhydrological information and products for majorsocial and economic development programmes aswell as for national disaster preparedness andmitigation activities. The Association noted withsatisfaction that Memoranda of Understanding hadbeen concluded between the World Bank and aregional development bank for cooperation in areasof mutual interest that included climate change,natural disaster prevention and mitigation, El Niñophenomenon and integrated water resourcesmanagement. The Association also noted that theSecretary -General was negotiating similararrangements with other banks, including the AsianDevelopment Bank, to foster stronger cooperationand implementation of projects of common interestto WMO and to the banks. The Associationencouraged Members to participate in national andregional initiatives related to bank -fundedprogrammes.10.10 The Association noted with satisfaction thata number of regional initiatives had been developedand were now either being finalized or were underconsideration by respective countries and/or thedonor community. The Association requested theSecretary -General to assist Members in securing therequired resources from different financial schemesin order to enable the implementation of thoseproposals as soon as possible.10.11 The Association discussed the futureneeds of the Region and endorsed its support to theTCOP as a high priority programme which formed anintegral part of the Organization’s mandate andwhich supported the implementation of the scientificand technical programmes. The Association agreedthat future needs would be based on requirements inmajor areas such as:(a) Maintenance and further development ofWWW facilities (observations, telecommunicationsand data processing), andimprovement of use of NWP productsavailable from GDPFS centres;(b) Use of new information technology for thedistribution of data and information tousers;(c)Natural disaster mitigation and preventionthrough the implementation of improveddetection, prediction and warning systems;(d) Climate monitoring, research andapplication including regional climateprediction;(e)Development of effective public weatherservices;(f) Capacity-building, including humanresources development throughfellowships, training seminars andworkshops, as well as the use of moderntechnology;(g) Planning and management of waterresources.10.12 The Association requested the PermanentRepresentatives of Members and other seniorofficials of NMHSs to play a more important role inresource mobilization for fulfillling futurerequirements through strong partnerships withpossible sources of funding, including governmentagencies, bilateral/multilateral sources, the privatesector and United Nations programmes such asUNDP. The Association also requested theSecretary -General to continue assisting Members inthe mobilization of resources for that purpose.10.13 The Association noted that a few affectedcountries in the Region had received support withinthe framework of the Natural Disaster AssistanceFund for Meteorological and Hydrological Services,through donations of Member countries and privatecompanies, for rehabilitating networks of stations andassociated facilities destroyed by natural disasters.The Association urged Members to contribute to theFund.