The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) and the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) have moved to deepen bilateral cooperation with a fresh partnership aimed at strengthening weather forecasting, early warning systems and climate services through Artificial Intelligence (AI).
The agreement was reached during a bilateral meeting between the Director-General/Chief Executive Officer of NiMet and Permanent Representative of Nigeria to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Prof. Charles Anosike, and the Administrator and Director-General of the China Meteorological Administration, Dr. Chen Zhenlin, on the sidelines of the 80th Session of the WMO Executive Council.
According to a statement issued on Friday, both officials reaffirmed the long-standing partnership between Nigeria and China and agreed to expand collaboration in key areas of meteorology and climate services.
A major highlight of the meeting was the commitment by both countries to adopt and customise the MAZU AI Early Warning Platform for Nigeria to improve weather forecasting and disaster preparedness.
The two countries also agreed to leverage emerging Artificial Intelligence technologies to strengthen weather and climate services for the benefit of citizens.
The statement disclosed that both parties endorsed the adoption of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will provide the framework for wider cooperation between NiMet and the China Meteorological Administration.
The proposed agreement covers the deployment of the MAZU AI platform, staff exchange programmes, joint scientific research, data sharing, remote sensing, aviation meteorology research, knowledge exchange and scholarship opportunities.
The collaboration is expected to enhance Nigeria’s meteorological capabilities, strengthen early warning systems for extreme weather events and promote capacity building through technology transfer and human capital development.
Prof. Anosike reaffirmed NiMet’s commitment to leveraging innovation and international partnerships to improve weather and climate services, while both countries expressed optimism that the expanded cooperation would deliver significant socio-economic benefits to Nigeria and China.
