Innovating ways to support developing countries in closing their basic weather and climate data gaps

The 193 countries and territories of the World Meteorological Congress established the Global Basic Observing Network (GBON). It defines the most basic weather and climate data that countries must generate and internationally exchange to improve forecasts worldwide. While mandatory for all countries since 2023, major data gaps exist. According to the GBON baseline established by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS) - more than one third of all countries worldwide - only share about 10 percent of the required data given major capacity and financial constraints.

In order to close this data gap, Congress requested WMO, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to jointly establish the Systematic Observations Financing Facility (SOFF) as a specialized United Nations Fund. SOFF opened doors for business in July 2022 and has been operating at speed and scale, thanks to more than USD 150 million mobilized so far. More than 60 countries have already been receiving support for detailed assessments of their data gaps and required investments, and more than 20 countries are so far receiving investment support to close their data gaps.

SOFF has been developed by a rapidly growing group of people and organizations - the majority members of the European Meteorological Society - committed to making a difference in systematic observation of developing countries.

SOFF is innovating the way it supports countries. SOFF acknowledges that the internationally mandated GBON data represent a global public good. Therefore, it provides long-term, grant only, results-based financial support - including for operation and maintenance - and peer-to-peer technical assistance provided by advanced national meteorological services, including from more than ten European countries.

With this approach, SOFF creates a new systematic observation partnership with developing countries. It is a partnership on equal footing between developed and developing countries, a partnership built on mutual trust and responsibility, not on “aid” and charity. It is a partnership that has at its heart the commitment to invest in basic observation where it matters most, in the data sparse regions of the globe, in developing countries.

SOFF not only innovates how support is provided but also how resources are mobilized. While so far 12 pioneer funders – largely European governments – have enabled its rapid take-off, SOFF needs to mobilize additional USD 150 million by 2027 to respond to the demand and commitment from more than 100 developing countries to close their GBON data gap. Therefore, SOFF is developing the Systematic Observation Impact Bond as complementary resource mobilization vehicle, aimed at broadening the group of funders to also include philanthropies and private sector and frontloading resources committed over a long period of time through a bond structure. Bond development was announced at UNFCCC COP30 in Belem and the first Bond is expected to be launched at COP31 in November 2026.