Meteorological services in Kenya provide WCIS that are largely geared towards addressing drought risks.
Short-term forecasts such as alerts and daily forecasts are reported to be more accurate, timely and easier to understand by end users.
The Health sector tends not to be targeted by WCIS provision and feedback mechanisms are not established consistently. County level can offer a suitable context for local governments to raise awareness of WCIS provision and create demand from different sectors. Feedback mechanisms between WCIS users and producers need to be formalised so that WCIS producers understand what the needs of health actors are and can tailor information accordingly.
The Kenyan Meteorological Department (KMD) must coordinate and strengthen observation stations across the country, equip observation stations, including mobile ones, to systematically collect data on air quality and make it publicly accessible.
Funding schemes must be designed in a way that supports the co-production of WCIS across sectors and create accountability to address the needs of end-users from the health sector.
The main factors limiting targeted forecasts for different sectors and specific locations are limited resources – human, financial and equipment. WCIS providers can draw lessons from the Maintains programme6 for building the climate shock-responsiveness of Kenya’s health system.Key Messages
