SEWA satellite early warning launched in NamibiaCEFR B2
5 Jul 2025
Adapted from Adesewa Olofinko, Global Voices • CC BY 3.0
Photo by Birger Strahl, Unsplash
SEWA (Space for Early Warning in Africa), a new satellite-based early warning system, was launched at a high-level forum in Windhoek, Namibia, from June 23–27. The forum combined the Joint Forum on Intra-ACP Climate Services and Related Applications Programme (ClimSA) with the SEWA launch and carried the theme “Accelerating access to climate and weather services for resilient African economies and communities.”
Delegates emphasised that Africa faces acute climate risks despite contributing least to global greenhouse gas emissions and having a sparse land-based observation network. The IPCC sixth assessment notes that key development sectors already suffer losses and damages—biodiversity loss, water shortages, reduced food production, loss of lives and reduced economic growth. In 2022 more than 110 million people were directly affected by weather, climate and water hazards, causing over USD 8.5 billion in economic damages and at least 5,000 fatalities; agricultural productivity growth has fallen by 34 percent since 1961.
After the launch, AU Commissioner Moses Vilakati highlighted concrete outcomes: member states have been supported with 34 weather observation stations across West, East and Southern Africa, which feed situational rooms in regional blocs such as ECOWAS, ECCAS and IGAD to provide real-time data for disaster response. The programme has trained over 200 experts who can then train journalists, civil society and vulnerable communities.
SEWA will focus on building human capacity alongside infrastructure and on an integrated design where partners handle data, translation and local communication. Officials said warnings must reach people in ways they can understand so they can act, and that even in areas with weak infrastructure warnings can guide short-, medium- and long-term interventions and inform policy choices for farmers and urban planners.
- African Union Commission
- Southern African Development Community
- European Union and national governments
- Meteorological agencies, researchers, technical partners
Difficult words
- early warning system — A system that alerts people before hazards.
- sparse — Not dense; spread out with wide gaps.
- losses and damages — Harm or costs from disasters and other events.
- situational room — A centre where staff monitor emergencies.situational rooms
- infrastructure — Basic systems and facilities for services.
- resilient — Able to recover quickly after problems.
Tip: hover, focus or tap highlighted words in the article to see quick definitions while you read or listen.
Discussion questions
- How can training local people and journalists improve the effectiveness of early warnings?
- What challenges might governments face when expanding weather observation stations in Africa?
- How could improved warnings influence decisions by farmers and urban planners in the short and long term?
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