Climate Exchange

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Climate outlooks for food

security in Central America

Patricia Ramírez and Adriana Bonilla,

Regional Committee on Hydraulic Resources of the Central American Integration System

n the Central American countries, the Climate Forum (FCAC)

and the Forum on Applications of Climate Outlooks to Food

and Nutrition Security (FAPC) processes have enabled the

provision of weather services and the reduction of obstacles such

as limited human resources and data infrastructure. Regular

publication of seasonal climate outlooks has made national

meteorological and hydrological services (NMHSs) visible and

shown the benefits of climate information in reducing vulnerabil-

ity to climate variability. The focus on food security as a priority

for the states in the region has created synergies among regional

technical organizations, which are contributing to transform

climate information into climate risk scenarios. This is the ulti-

mate goal of benefiting Central American communities that are

exposed to food insecurity associated with climate variability.

Central America is characterized by significant climate variability,

manifested in high vulnerability to disasters. According to the Long-

Term Climate Risk Index (Germanwatch, 2011), some countries

in the region such as Honduras and Nicaragua were among the 10

most affected by climate-related events between 1991 and 2010.

Extreme weather events increase the risk of food insecurity in many

communities of the region, some already in precarious nutrition

situations. Reducing this risk is a high priority on the agenda of

Central American governments.

Since 2000, NMHSs have jointly developed a process for regular

issuance and dissemination of climate outlooks. This weather service

is intended to support decision-making among the sectoral entities

responsible for food security programmes in the seven countries of

Central America, with special emphasis on key sectors for food and

nutrition security and areas seasonally or chronically affected by

food production or access problems.

In order to provide this service, it has been necessary to strengthen

regional capacities and to:

• Analyse global, regional and local weather information and place

it in a relevant context and scale

• Enable the highlighting of different climate areas in each of

the countries

• Promote synergies with institutions and organizations linked to

food and nutrition security (FNS)

• Add value to climate forecasting through situational analyses

that translate seasonal climate outlooks into climate

risk scenarios.

To address the first need, the NMHS used the coordination

mechanism provided by the Regional Committee on Hydraulic

griculture

Resources, Executive Secretariat of the Central

American Integration System (SICA), responsible for

coordinating meteorological and hydrological activi-

ties in the region and consolidating the FCAC. This

forum reunites human resources skilled in climatol-

ogy, hydrology and atmospheric sciences throughout

the region. Currently, the FCAC working group uses

weather information from the NMHSs, model results

and the forecasts of the international weather centres

of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO)

network, as well as statistical tools in order to issue

seasonal climate outlooks on a scale relevant to national

and sub-national levels in the seven countries.

Women from Tacana, Guatemala, carrying water to their

households; through the PRESANCA and PRESISAN initiatives,

beneficiaries in the vulnerable communities become FCAC and

FAPC end users

Image: SICA