Data sovereignty and ownership are critical issues for national met services all over the world. Some funders and researchers have previously faced challenges in working effectively with met services because the issue of data ownership was an obstacle.
IDEMS approach in EPICSA starts with national data sovereignty and is designed to increase the accessibility and value of national climate data stores (rather than exploit, resell or extract value from these stores for gain elsewhere). This approach builds trust and effective collaboration with national meteorological and hydrological services. Supporting this relationship is capacity building with skills and tools for local data stewards to manage and utilise their own data records – retaining value within the country, Zambia’s Meteorological Department and the communities that use EPICSA.
GIZ’s impact brief highlights this approach, and demonstrates the direct and indirect value that Zambia’s national met service has generated as a result.