Lake Chad Basin Launches Five-Country Push for Earlier Flood and Drought Warnings

The Adaptation Fund is financing the project, titled Integrated Water Resources Management and Early Warning System for Climate Change Resilience in the Lake Chad Basin, through a US$11,665,500 grant.

A five-year project will help Cameroon, Niger, Nigeria, Chad and the Central African Republic prepare for floods and droughts through better monitoring, forecasts and earlier warnings. The Lake Chad Basin Commission, the World Meteorological Organization and Global Water Partnership Central Africa have launched the initiative to address hazards threatening more than 50 million people. Its work will connect improvements in weather and water information with practical support for communities facing these risks.

The Adaptation Fund is financing the project, titled Integrated Water Resources Management and Early Warning System for Climate Change Resilience in the Lake Chad Basin, through a US$11,665,500 grant. An estimated 22.5 million people with access to radio or mobile phones are expected to benefit directly from improved warnings. Particular attention will go to women, young people, farmers, herders and fishers, whose livelihoods depend heavily on the basin's water.

The basin experienced more than 48 flood and drought disasters between 1970 and 2020, affecting over 31 million people and killing nearly 4,000. These disasters destroyed crops, harvests and livestock, with scarce water also contributing to tensions and social conflict. Droughts and extreme floods are expected to become more frequent and intense, adding pressure as the basin's population is projected to double over the next 30 years.

Restoring monitoring networks and sharing warnings

The network of weather and river-monitoring stations has shrunk since the 1980s, reducing access to the timely, reliable information governments and communities need to prepare. The project will rehabilitate or install stations to improve measurements of rainfall, rivers and lakes, supported by stronger regional information systems. Lake Chad Basin Commission Executive Secretary Ibrahim Babani said shared data, forecasts and warnings would help member states anticipate threats and act together.

A second priority is identifying users' needs and developing weather and water information services, including flood and drought forecasts and a warning mechanism spanning national borders. Decision makers, lawmakers and water users will receive information about the value of these services, with attention to ensuring warnings reach vulnerable groups. WMO Hydrology and Cryosphere Division Director Wayne Jenkinson stressed that reliable observations provide the foundation for warnings that protect lives and livelihoods.

Helping communities turn forecasts into practical action

For farmers, herders and fishers, a radio or phone message received days before a flood or expected rainfall failure could provide time to protect their livelihoods. Depending on the warning, people could move livestock, harvest early, change planting choices or adjust fishing activities. The project will strengthen communities' ability to respond through flood and drought management plans that address different gender needs, alongside pilot adaptation measures.

Pilot communities in each participating country will develop local emergency plans involving women, young people, vulnerable residents and community leaders. Training will help people interpret warnings and understand how to use them when making decisions about their safety and work. Global Water Partnership Central Africa Chair Hervé Christian Didas Amboulou emphasized community participation as essential to making warnings understood, trusted and acted upon.

Regional workshop sets first-year priorities

A two-day regional inception workshop in N'Djamena on 28–29 October 2026 brings together delegations from all five participating countries and the project partners. Participants include national meteorological and hydrological services, Lake Chad Basin Commission focal points and Adaptation Fund Designated Authorities, who will agree on the first-year action plan and governance arrangements. Each country will present the condition of its weather and water services and its priority needs, with Chad's Minister of Water Resources and Energy, Passale Kanabe Marcelin, describing the launch as an expression of regional solidarity in responding to climate change.