Green Climate Fund evaluation highlights SOFF’s role in sustaining weather and climate observation systems
A recent independent evaluation of Green Climate Fund (GCF) investments in climate information and early warning systems underscores the importance of long-term support for weather and climate observation systems and highlights the Systematic Observations Financing Facility (SOFF) as a core actor and good practice in addressing persistent sustainability challenges in developing countries.
The evaluation notes that many investments focus primarily on installing observation equipment, such as automated weather stations and other monitoring infrastructure. While these are essential, they often do not address the funding and support required to operate, maintain and calibrate these systems over time. As a result, observation networks may struggle to remain functional once project funding ends.
The report highlights SOFF’s unique approach in addressing this gap. By providing sustained, results-based financing and technical assistance, SOFF supports countries in maintaining basic weather and climate observation networks and ensuring that the data collected are shared with global monitoring systems. This contributes not only to stronger national forecasting and climate services, but also to the global exchange of observations that underpin weather and climate predictions worldwide.
Examples of collaboration in practice
Several GCF-supported initiatives are already exploring or implementing complementary arrangements with SOFF to ensure the sustainability of observation infrastructure. In Timor-Leste, for example, the National Meteorological and Hydrological Service involved in a GCF project secured SOFF support to maintain and calibrate automated weather stations after the project ends, helping ensure that the observation systems continue to operate and deliver reliable data.
In the Maldives, a GCF-supported project managed by UNEP is highlighted as a positive example of complementarity with SOFF. As an implementing partner of both SOFF and the GCF, UNEP was able to leverage the comparative advantages of each mechanism—combining GCF’s investment in infrastructure with SOFF’s focus on sustaining observation networks over time. This coordination helps ensure that investments go beyond equipment installation and are aligned with long-term operational needs.
These examples illustrate how collaboration between the GCF and specialized financing mechanisms like SOFF can help ensure that investments in observation infrastructure remain operational and continue delivering benefits well beyond the lifespan of individual projects.
Opportunities to strengthen partnerships
The evaluation highlights opportunities to deepen collaboration between the GCF and SOFF. It concludes that the collaboration framework between SOFF and climate funds, including the GCF, has not been fully utilized yet, resulting in missed opportunities. Strengthening these partnerships could further enhance the sustainability of observation-related investments and help ensure that countries continue to generate the reliable data needed for forecasting, early warning and climate risk management.
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