On February 8, Caritas Switzerland signed an implementation agreement with the Agency of Hydrometeorology of Tajikistan (Hydromet) for joint implementation of the “Leveraging weather water climate services for sustainable livelihoods and rural well-being” (WWCS) initiative. The project is funded jointly by the Government of Switzerland through the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and Caritas Switzerland.
According to press release issued by Caritas Switzerland, WWCS aims to improve the density of weather observations through deployment of low-cost weather stations throughout the country to generate and deliver reliable local weather forecasts. It will also produce a suite of weather-water-climate services (e.g., when to plant, when to irrigate) to support farmers, and more effective early warning systems for extreme climate events. This investment capitalizes on memorandums of understanding signed in 2019 between the Governments of Switzerland and Tajikistan on integrated water resources management and a second on climate change and disaster risk reduction.
A higher-level agreement on WWCS between the SDC, Caritas Switzerland, Ministry of Agriculture, Committee for Environmental Protection and Emergencies Committee is forthcoming.
These agreements will frame and support an even closer and deeper working-relationship between the Government of Tajikistan, the Government of Switzerland and Caritas Switzerland.
Caritas Switzerland is a Swiss NGO, founded in 1901 with headquarters in Lucerne, Switzerland. Caritas Switzerland assists people in need within more than 50 countries abroad as well as in Switzerland. Caritas Switzerland has been active in Tajikistan since 1996. Within its country program strategy for 2021-2025, contextually relevant approaches for inclusive, effective and sustainable weather-water-climate services are developed and institutionalized for tangible improvements in human and environmental well-being within rural communities.
The Swiss Cooperation Office in Tajikistan represents the Government of Switzerland and supervises Swiss funded projects implemented in Tajikistan Switzerland funds projects in the following domains: Water, Infrastructure and climate change; Governance, human rights and service delivery; Inclusive and sustainable economic development.
