Blog Regional Watch Room: AGRHYMET leads a new era for climate resilience in West Africa and the Sahel
The Regional Watch Room, a state-of-the-art facility launched through the collaboration of AGRHYMET, AICCRA and the World Bank’s Food Systems Resilience Program (FSRP), positions West Africa and the Sahel at the forefront of climate risk anticipation, early warning, and regional coordination.
The Watch Room turns real-time data on climatic, hydrological, and environmental extremes into actionable intelligence, strengthening resilience across the region.
West Africa and the Sahel have long experienced climatic extremes, but in recent years, droughts, floods, and heatwaves have become increasingly frequent due to climate change, posing serious threats to populations, agriculture, and ecosystems.
It was against this backdrop that AGRHYMET, the Regional Climate Center for West Africa and the Sahel, with support from the Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) program and the World Bank’s Food Systems Resilience Program (FSRP), unveiled the Regional Watch Room, a platform designed to anticipate, monitor, and respond to climatic, hydrological, and environmental extremes.
As climate extremes intensified, it became clear that periodic observations were no longer enough. The region needed a real-time system to detect hazards, analyze data, and issue actionable alerts across borders. In response, the Watch Room now represents a major step forward, delivering a fundamental transformation in how West Africa and the Sahel confront climate risks.
‘’We can no longer treat climate extremes as optional challenges; forecasting and responding to them is essential to protect the future of our region,” said Robert Zougmoré, AICCRA Director and Alliance Scientist
Under the High Patronage of His Excellency the Prime Minister of the Republic of Niger, AGRHYMET RCC-WA officially inaugurated the Regional Watch Room on Climatic, Hydrological, and Environmental Extremes. (Credit : AGRHYMET)
Picking up the pace: From slow monitoring to rapid response
Traditionally, AGRHYMET’s work has focused on drought monitoring, a gradual process that made it possible to only issue forecasts on a recurring ten-day basis.
" Originally, attention was mainly on drought risk. Drought being a relatively slow phenomenon, monitoring occurred every ten days,” recalled Abdou Ali, Head of the Water and Meteorology Department at AGRHYMET.
For decades, such a pace was considered fast enough. But today, the region faces sudden onset hazards including flash floods, heatwaves, and storms that can strike with little warning. In such a context, the pattern of ten-day monitoring and forecasts is no longer sufficient. Responding to the need for faster and more frequent updates, the Watch Room is powered by high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure, real-time data reception systems, and regionally adapted forecasting models.
We have the HPC, a high-performance machine, which allows us to execute regional forecast models. We also have antennas for real-time data and integration of information from national stations.” explained Ali.
