The state, on Monday, awarded the contract to establish automatic weather stations in six additional islands of Maldives. The project is supported by the Green Climate Fund (GCF).
These stations are planned be developed at Shaviyani Atoll’s Komandoo, Raa Atoll’s Alifushi and Dhuvaafaru, Alif Dhaalu Atoll’s Mahinbandhoo, Faafu Atoll’s Bilehdhoo and Addu Atoll’s Hulhumeedhoo.
The agreement to supply equipment required for the operation of the weather stations was awarded over to Italian company CASCP for a sum of EUR 119,200 (MVR 2,229,167), while local company Maxstar Maldives was tasked with setting up the stations for MVR 737,760.
According to the Environment Ministry, the weather stations are part of the “Supporting Vulnerable Communities in Maldives to Climate Change and Induced Water Shortage” project, carried out in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The ministry stated that the weather stations are being set up with the aim of predicting weather patterns more accurately in area where Maldives Meteorological Centre is not stationed. Under this project, the ministry will establish a network connecting all the weather stations in Maldives.
Due to the large distances between the currently established weather stations, the ministry noted that acquiring accurate information proved challenging.
However, the development of the new stations will solve this problem and predict more accurate weather changes, allowing the state to find solutions for the shortage of drinking water during periods of drought.
In addition, developing a weather application for mobile devices is also a part of the five-year project, kicked off in 2017 to ensure clean drinking water for everyone.
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