Past investments in strengthening weather and climate observing capacity, supported by the international community through time-bound projects, have not, in many instances, yielded lasting benefits. The main reasons for this are: First, traditional development projects respond to national requirements and capabilities. While a country-driven approach is important, it is not sufficient for investments in observing systems as it ignores the trans-boundary nature of weather and climate prediction. Second, past international engagement has focused on supporting infrastructure investments while relying on the unrealistic expectation that supported countries will cover all costs related to the operation and maintenance of their basic observations system which has a global public good dimension. Third, effective collaboration among the several scientific, financial, and operational partners involved in the implementation of the weather and climate observing system has proved to be very challenging. While several development partners are striving to overcome these barriers, the reality is, that due to their governance and country delivery models they are not in a position to deliver GBON support in a sustainable and effective manner.
SOFF will overcome the shortfalls of the current financing model by providing both technical and financial assistance in new ways: First, SOFF will apply an optimal and internationally agreed global design to guide investments – the GBON requirements. Second, SOFF will contribute to cover operation and maintenance costs by providing long-term support beyond time-bound investment projects through results-based finance to enable sustained data sharing. In other words, data sharing is used as a measure of success. Third, SOFF will create local benefits while recognizing the contribution of local observations for a critical regional and global public good.
SOFF will be created as a fit-for-purpose mechanism that will enable streamlined delivery and collaboration among the many financial, operational, and scientific partners required for the sustained implementation of the GBON.
