CPC International Desks
Introduction
The International Desks of the Climate Prediction Center are an
expansion of the African Desk. The
African Desk was established in 1994 following the recurrent droughts that
occurred in Africa in the 1970s through the early 1990s, which caused demand
for water for human and agricultural use to exceed reliable supply. National Meteorological and Hydrological
Services were faced with enormous challenges to respond to governments and the
public requirements for timely and reliable climate information and services that
could be used in decision making. CPC’s
unique position as an international climate service center with expertise in
climate forecasting, and product dissemination provided a strong basis for
establishing an African Desk. The CPC
International Desks include the African
Training Desk, the Monsoon Forecasters
Training Desk, and promote a U.S. Department
of State-sponsored training program that enhances the scientific capacity
of the participating national services.
The CPC International Desks also include a program to provide support to
the US Agency for International
Development (USAID)’s humanitarian mission in developing countries
including food security and disaster risk reduction. Projects include: (1) Regional hazards
outlooks for Africa, Afghanistan, the Caribbean, and Central America; (2) the
preparation of special products in support of the Asian Flood Network Project
for the Mekong River Basin; (3) Capacity building through international climate
training workshops. In addition, the CPC
International Desks work to provide support to the Joint Agricultural Weather
Facility (JAWF), a partnership
between NOAA and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). Contact Wassila Thiaw
wassila.thiaw@noaa.gov for more
information on the CPC International Desks.