Kenya Unveils Climate Curriculum to Leverage Weather Data for Private Sector Resilience

NAIROBI, Kenya, May 26 – ​As extreme weather events become increasingly frequent across Africa, the Institute for Meteorological Training and Research (IMTR) has unveiled its new Training Curriculum on Weather and Climate Information Services for the private sector, IMTR designated as the Africa Regional Training Centre for English speaking countries by the World Meteorological Organization and a directorate of the Kenya Meteorological Service Authority (KMSA) aims to equip sector experts from Agriculture, Energy, Finance, Insurance and ICT with the critical skills needed to translate complex climate data into actionable early-warning services.

Spearheaded by IMTR and KMS alongside technical partners Mercy Corps AgriFin, Kenya National Quality Assurance (KNQA) and The Technical and Vocational Training Authority (TVETA) the Training Curriculum launch marks a significant step in strengthening how climate information is understood, interpreted and applied across Kenya’s economy, particularly by private sector actors operating in climate-sensitive economic sector.

The launch convened over 70 participants, including government institutions, climate investors, innovators, development partners and agri-food entrepreneurs, underscoring the growing recognition of climate services as a critical driver of resilience, productivity, and economic stability.

It aims to equip private sector stakeholders in Kenya with the skills to accurately interpret, apply and disseminate KMSA weather and climate forecasts, Strengthen public-private collaboration in climate services delivery while improving the resilience of small-scale producers to climate variability and change.

Developed through a rigorous, multi-stakeholder collaboration, the curriculum reflects the combined insights of public institutions, academia, regulatory bodies, technical experts and industry leaders.

This highly participatory co-creation and validation process ensures the training remains deeply practical, market-driven, and perfectly aligned with the evolving realities of climate risk across diverse sectors.

Bernard Chanzu, Director of the Meteorological Training and Research Directorate (MTRD) while speaking during the launch noted that the curriculum represents a shift toward deeper collaboration between public institutions and private sector actors in climate services delivery.

“This curriculum demonstrates that strengthening climate services is not only about improving access to climate data, but also about building the leadership and institutional capacity needed to transform information into meaningful action”, said Mr. Chanzu.

“It recognizes the private sector not as a passive recipient of climate information, but as a critical partner within the climate services ecosystem, helping ensure that weather and climate information reaches those it is intended to serve”, He added.

“This program aims to equip participants with practical competencies to interpret, apply, communicate, and integrate climate information into sector-specific decision-making, while fostering stronger  public–private collaboration.”

Edward Maina Muriuki, Ag. Director General of KMSA said the curriculum promotes a culture of preparedness and resilience noting that businesses that understand climate risks are better positioned to minimize losses, protect assets, ensure operational continuity and identify emerging opportunities within the economy.

He stated that the initiative represents an important milestone in strengthening the integration of climate information into national development planning, enterprise resilience and sustainable economic growth.

“Collaboration and partnerships between our institutions recognizes that weather and climate information is no longer a peripheral scientific function”, said Mr Maina.

“It is a strategic national asset supporting, policy formulation, investment planning, disaster risk reduction and socio-economic transformation”.

The curriculum launched responds directly to this need in that; It recognizes that climate information only becomes meaningful when translated into practical action that supports preparedness, resilience and adaptive capacity. Designed to strengthen the interface between meteorological science, policy implementation and private sector application.

It will enhance understanding and utilization of weather and climate products, support informed risk management, strengthen early warning systems and promote climate-smart investments and business continuity planning.

Advance the policy objective of mainstreaming climate information services into socio-economic planning and institutional decision-making processes.

“The curriculum targets five priority private sector professionals from Agriculture, Energy, Finance, Insurance, and ICT central to the generation, interpretation and application of climate information”, added Maina.

Sieka Gatabaki, Program Director at Mercy Corps AgriFin, emphasized the importance of public–private engagement in unlocking the value of climate data for decision making noted Mercy Corps AgriFin’s Weather and Climate Services (WCS) program continues to support partners in designing, testing and scaling digital climate solutions that strengthen smallholder farmers’ productivity and resilience in the face of climate change.

“This progress has been driven by strong public–private partnerships that enable coordinated climate service delivery, catalyze innovation through data, research, and pilot programs, and promote the sharing of evidence and learning across regions to strengthen climate service systems”, said Mr. Gatabaki.

“I am also optimistic that this curriculum can be scaled beyond Kenya to support climate resilience efforts across Africa, While public institutions play a central role in generating climate data, private sector actors remain essential in supporting localization, usability, and lastmile delivery for farming communities.”

The Launch ceremony was presided over by Mr. Ishaam Abader, Director Regional Coordination office of the World Meteorological Organization who stated that “WMO has launched Guidelines for Public-Private Engagement which guide the interactions between the private and public sector to produce and deliver weather and climate information to all users.

“WMO recognizes the impact of highly severe weather events to the private sector which plays a crucial role in climate services by providing innovative solutions, technological advancements, financial support and technical knowledge to developing and implementing Climate friendly technologies.”

In adition, the launch comes at a time when Kenya continues to experience increasing climate variability, including erratic rainfall, prolonged droughts, floods, pest outbreaks and shifting planting seasons

Public institutions responsible for generating and disseminating climate information also continue to face capacity constraints in ensuring timely, localized, and user-friendly delivery.

Strengthening collaboration with private sector actors is therefore increasingly critical to improving the reach, relevance, and usability of climate services.

Further, the curriculum brings together national, regional and global frameworks and best practices, incorporating KMSA forecasting products, guidance from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), as well as quality and accreditation standards from the Kenya National Qualifications Authority (KNQA) and the Technical and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TVETA).

Subsequently, It integrates insights from regional climate outlook forums, satellite and reanalysis datasets and dissemination systems, while drawing on lessons from collaborations among meteorological agencies, research institutions, agritech innovators and development partners.

The launch marks a significant milestone in strengthening Kenya’s climate services ecosystem by deepening collaboration between public institutions, private sector actors, and research organizations’ building technical and institutional capacity across key sectors.

The program aims to improve the translation of climate data into localized, practical and farmer-centered advisories that support resilience, productivity and informed decision-making.