Consultancy for Hydromet Diagnostic Analysis to Strengthen Early Warning Systems in Eastern and Southern Africa

Malawi's inclusion will prioritize the management of the transboundary Shire River Basin, which is significant for the region, particularly for Malawi and Mozambique. It will also enhance coordination between Comoros, Madagascar, Malawi, and Mozambique in improving early warning systems and sharing information, as these countries are often affected by the same tropical cyclones.

The participation of the AU will support the coordination among all five countries and three regional organizations involved in RCRP-1 and RCRP-2; advance the objective of knowledge sharing, coordination, and promote a harmonized approach to addressing climate change in a gender equitable and inclusive manner.

The AU's involvement will scale up the support provided by SADC and ENTRO, facilitate knowledge exchanges and address gender gaps in resilience. Furthermore, the AU's participation will allow other member states to benefit from the studies, trainings, and secondment programs conducted under the project.

This could potentially encourage more countries to adopt a coordinated approach to managing the effects of climate change, both within future phases of the project and beyond, for a broader impact at the regional level. Successive SOPs will either expand the geographical coverage or scale up investments in RCRP countries.

The overall objective of RCRP2-AU is to strengthen resilience of communities to water-related disasters in Africa which is structured around the following components: Risk Management and Climate Financing​. Infrastructure Investments and Sustainable Asset Management for Climate Resilience​. Adaptive Climate Services for Resilient Communities​. Project Management​. Contingent Emergency Response Component.

The project's five components integrate regional and national dimensions, promoting policy harmonization, knowledge generation, capacity development, and coordination across RCRP countries.

The AUC Africa Multi-Hazard Early Warning and Early Action (AMHEWAS) Programme is specifically implementing Sub-component 1.4 of the project document which include: (i) the development of regional hydromet diagnostic and roadmap for data collection and transmission to support the operationalization of the AMHEWAS Program; (ii) a comprehensive study on raising climate finance in member countries, (iii) trainings for decision makers and technical experts on various thematic topics including hydromet, disasters risk management, and climate finance, and (iv) expanding the Africa Union’s (AU) secondment program by bringing hydrologists, meteorologists, and disaster management experts to improve collaboration on water resources and disaster risk management.

. 3.

Overall objective of the Consultancy The overall objective of this assignment is to conduct a diagnostic study using the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) methodology and regional standards, as well as assessments carried out by development partners (including the World Bank), to establish the capacity of meteorological, hydrological and climate services in selected Member States and regional centers (RCRP plus), and provide technical assistance for a capacity building initiative informed by the study, to strengthen data/ICT, policy and institutional capacities of Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and Member States that contribute to overall Multi-Hazard Early Warning.

Shortlisting Criteria African Union Commission now invites eligible consulting firms (“Consultants”) to indicate their interest in providing the aforementioned consultancy services. Interested Consultancy Firms should provide information demonstrating that they have the required qualifications and relevant experience to perform the aforementioned consultancy services.

Interested firms are invited to submit their expressions of interest in accordance with the following shortlisting criteria. Please ensure that your submission shall address only the below specified shortlisting criteria. Shortlisting Criteria 1.

Firm’s core business: The Consultancy firm should have a core business on water resources management; environmental and climate consulting; geospatial and data analytics; public policy and institutional analysis; and research and capacity building. 2.

Years in Business : The Consultancy firm should have Minimum of 5 years’ experience in developing or applying conceptual frameworks and assessment methodologies for water security, especially using the World Bank Water Security Diagnostics Framework. Moreover, strong experience in water resource modeling, climate impact analysis, and use of geospatial and satellite data are critical areas. 3.

Specific Experience : The Consultancy firm should complete a minimum of 5 relevant similar assignments and consultancy services financed by the World Bank or other international financing Institution. It should specifically have demonstrated experience in in the African continent. 4.

The Consultancy Firm should have an adequate staff with the required skill and qualification, specifically in water resources, climate change, environmental science, economics, and policy analysis. Interested Consultancy Firms are not required to submit technical proposals, technical approach and methodology, work plan and key experts.

Key Experts will not be evaluated at the shortlisting stage and firms are not required to submit CVs of their key experts. The detailed Terms of Reference (TOR) for the assignment are attached to this request for expressions of interest.

The attention of interested Consultants is drawn to Section III, paragraphs, 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s “Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers” July 2016, revised November 2020 (“Procurement Regulations”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest.

Consultants may associate with other firms to enhance their qualifications but should indicate clearly whether the association is in the form of a joint venture and/or a sub-consultancy. In the case of a joint venture, all the partners in the joint venture shall be jointly and severally liable for the entire contract, if selected.

A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the Consultants’ Quality and Cost-Based Selection (QCBS) method set out in the Procurement Regulations. Further information can be obtained at the address below during office hours i.e. 0900 to 1700 hours .

Expressions of interest must be delivered in a written form following the above shortlisting criteria to the address below (by e-mail) before 06 th February 2026 at 15:00 Hours Local Time, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Only submitted Expression of Interests (EoIs) mentioning the reference number “ ET-AUC-506713-CS-QCBS “ in the subject field of the e-mail, will be considered.

African Union Commission, Attn: Head, Supply Chain Management Division - Operations Support Services Directorate Building C, 3rd Floor, P.O Box 3243, Roosevelt Street Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Tel: +251 (0) 11 551 7700 – Ext 4305 Fax: +251 (0) 11 551 0442; +251 11-551-0430 E-mails: tender@africanunion.org TERMS OF REFERENCE CONSULTANCY: Conduct a Diagnostic and Strategic Analysis of Hydromet in Selected RCRP Plus Countries and Regional Institutions, with recommendations to strengthen Weather, Climate and Hydrological systems for Improved Multi-Hazard Early Warning Services Summary Duty Station: Remote Position Title: Conduct a Diagnostic and Strategic Analysis of Hydromet Selected Countries and Regional Institutions, with recommendations to strengthen Weather, Climate and Hydrological systems for Improved Multi-Hazard Early Warning Services Duration: Six Months Estimated start date: 1st April 2026 Estimated end date: 1st April 2027 Funding: RCRP 2 AU Procurement Reference Number: ET-AUC-506713-CS-QCBS Background 2.1 The Regional Climate Resilience Program for Africa 2 The African Union Commission (AUC) is implementing the Regional Climate Resilience Program (RCRP) for Eastern and Southern Africa which is a World Bank funded program where a regional multi-phase Series of Projects (SOP) are implemented to respond to the increasing frequency, intensity, and impact of climate shocks on people, livelihoods, infrastructure, and ecosystems.

The Regional Climate Resilience Program for Eastern and Southern Africa 2 Project (RCRP2) includes Malawi (RCRP2-MW) and the African Union (RCRP2-AU) and scales up the Regional Climate Resilience Program for Eastern and Southern Africa (RCRP-1) in Comoros, Madagascar, Mozambique, South Sudan, the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC), and the Eastern Nile Technical Regional Office (ENTRO).

Malawi's inclusion will prioritize the management of the transboundary Shire River Basin, which is significant for the region, particularly for Malawi and Mozambique. It will also enhance coordination between Comoros, Madagascar, Malawi, and Mozambique in improving early warning systems and sharing information, as these countries are often affected by the same tropical cyclones.

The participation of the AU will support the coordination among all five countries and three regional organizations involved in RCRP-1 and RCRP-2; advance the objective of knowledge sharing, coordination, and promote a harmonized approach to addressing climate change in a gender equitable and inclusive manner.

The AU's involvement will scale up the support provided by SADC and ENTRO, facilitate knowledge exchanges and address gender gaps in resilience. Furthermore, the AU's participation will allow other member states to benefit from the studies, trainings, and secondment programs conducted under the project.

This could potentially encourage more countries to adopt a coordinated approach to managing the effects of climate change, both within future phases of the project and beyond, for a broader impact at the regional level. Successive SOPs will either expand the geographical coverage or scale up investments in RCRP countries.

The overall objective of RCRP2-AU is to strengthen resilience of communities to water-related disasters in Africa which is structured around the following components: Risk Management and Climate Financing​. Infrastructure Investments and Sustainable Asset Management for Climate Resilience​. Adaptive Climate Services for Resilient Communities​. Project Management​. Contingent Emergency Response Component.

The project's five components integrate regional and national dimensions, promoting policy harmonization, knowledge generation, capacity development, and coordination across RCRP countries.

The AUC Africa Multi-Hazard Early Warning and Early Action (AMHEWAS) Programme is specifically implementing Sub-component 1.4 of the project document which include: (i) the development of regional hydromet diagnostic and roadmap for data collection and transmission to support the operationalization of the AMHEWAS Program; (ii) a comprehensive study on raising climate finance in member countries, (iii) trainings for decision makers and technical experts on various thematic topics including hydromet, disasters risk management, and climate finance, and (iv) expanding the Africa Union’s (AU) secondment program by bringing hydrologists, meteorologists, and disaster management experts to improve collaboration on water resources and disaster risk management.

Overall objective of the Consultancy The overall objective of this assignment is to conduct a diagnostic study using the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) methodology and regional standards, as well as assessments carried out by development partners (including the World Bank), to establish the capacity of meteorological, hydrological and climate services in selected Member States and regional centers (RCRP plus), and provide technical assistance for a capacity building initiative informed by the study, to strengthen data/ICT, policy and institutional capacities of Regional Economic Communities (RECs) and Member States that contribute to overall Multi-Hazard Early Warning.

Scope of work To achieve the above objective, the consultant will work closely with AUC, AU Member States which will include Hydrometeorological Agencies, Natiional Disaster Management Agencies, Ministry of Water, RECs, and other stakeholders. The AUC will facilitate communication between the consultant and the relevant national agencies and ensure coordination with all stakeholders.

The consultant will carry out the following tasks: Task 1: Diagnostic Undertake desk review and conduct a comprehensive analysis to assess existing hydromet systems at national and regional levels, using existing diagnostics already completed for RCRP+ countries and for the region, including review of existing reports. Where assessments are available this may be limited to updating.

Identify recommendations for capacity and needs of the hydromet systems in selected countries and regions. Identify gaps and opportunities through AMHEWAS and elaborate on other existing regional initiatives, including (but not limited to) SADC and IGAD for supporting improved early warning – development and services delivery.

Task 2: Regional and Country engagement and validation Organize workshops and conduct meetings to engage with and consult relevant national and regional stakeholders, including hydromet and DRM agencies, to gather information and validate results. This will include support for the regional Hydromet forum and any successive meeting.

Task 3: Operational Tools and Results Develop actionable recommendations on how hydromet systems would help strengthen the AMHEWAS, regional guidance and national MHEWS in RCRP Plus countries’ hydromet services, including on policy and interoperability frameworks. Clarify roles and responsibilities (mandate) of AMHEWAS and their relevance to the RCRP Plus countries.

Explore global good practices on integration of hydromet and water resources and other disaster early warning systems to develop comprehensive MHEWS at national level and guidance for regional products and services based on demand from countries.

Task 4: Training Priorities and Facilitation of Training for RCRP plus countries Identify needs for training of staff for RCRP plus countries, Regional Specialised Meteorological Centres and Regional Climate Centres and specific priorities for training (and potential opportunities through different partners) based on the mandate (and depending on the gaps) through an online questionnaire.

Develop capacity building roadmap for training of Member States and RECs on establishment and operationalisation of MHEWS that integrate hydromet early warning systems with early warning systems in other sectors (agriculture and food security, health and infrastructure) based on designation of regional centres.

Facilitate training of trainers workshops for staff from RECs and selected Member States and partners, based on the recommendations and guidelines from the study.

Develop recommendations on how hydromet systems would help strengthen the AMHEWAS and regional guidance and national MHEWS Expected Deliverables The following outputs/deliverables are expected from the consultant: Under Task 1: Diagnostic Draft report on the status of Hydromet services in the selected regions and Member States.

This should clarify the existing services, their capacities and gaps An analysis of the gap, opportunities and recommendations on how hydromet systems should be strengthened to support AMHEWAS and national MHEWS.

Under Task 2: Reginal and country engagement/validation Stakeholder engagement report documenting consultations with national and regional stakeholders, including hydromet and DRM agencies Communication and coordination plan facilitated by the AUC between the consultant and relevant national agencies Validation workshop outcomes and feedback report Under Task 3: Operational tools and results Actionable recommendations on how hydromet systems can strengthen AMHEWAS and regional guidance and national MHEWS Documentation of global good practices on the integration of hydromet, water resources, and other disaster early warning systems to develop comprehensive MHEWS Under Task 4: Capacity building Training needs assessment report for staff from RCRP Plus countries from NHMSs, NDMAs, Regional Specialised Meteorological Centres and Regional Climate Centers based on an online questionnaire Guidelines for development of training programme to build capacity of MS to integrate Hydromet services into functional multi-hazard Early warning systems Facilitation and training of trainers' workshops for staff from RECs and selected Member States and partners.

Reporting: An inception report, including the conceptualization, the roadmap and work plan for the assignment. Progress reports , and workshop reports.

Draft report on training of trainers workshop Final report with associated materials, including data, meta data/information on operational tools and training videos Timeline of Deliverables and Reporting and Payment The following table shows the expected payment schedule associated with the deliverables N Deliverable and Reporting Timelines Payment schedule Reviews and approval 1 Submission of acceptable inception report, including the stakeholder engagement plan 1 month after contract signing 10% 2 weeks after report submission 2 Submission of acceptable report on diagnostic of hydromet services including capacities, gaps, opportunities in existing regional and national hydromet systems and recommendations on integration of hydromet services into MHEWS and AMHEWAS 4 months after inception report 30% As above 3 Regional engagement (virtual and/or in person) – countries and regional meeting 2 months after No.

2 20% As above 4 Operational tools recommendations 2 months after number 3 above 20% As above 5 Submission of training, final report and materials on assignment completion End of nine months from the start of the assignment 20% As above Reporting Arrangements The consultant shall perform the assigned tasks under the guidance and direct supervision of the Project Coordinator for the RCRP-SOP-2.

S/he will also report to the Director of AUC-SEBE. The approval of the deliverables of the consultant will be through a technical team under the leadership of the Technical Coordinator for DRR. Qualifications and experiences The team will include the following skills and qualifications. No. Key Personnel Minimum Qualification Minimum Professional Experience Months 1.

Team Leader/ Lead Drafter Master’s or PhD in the field of hydromet, disaster risk management, natural resources, Gender, environment management, or related field (this position can be combined with any of the other experts required in the Team) At least 10 years’ experience in the relevant field with over five years at the Managerial level; Good project management skills; Expertise with different early warning systems, hydromet, and hydrology; Disaster risk management experience, with an understanding of the early warning, humanitarian response and development nexus will be an added advantage; e) Demonstrated experience in working with governments, partners, and other stakeholders in public policy development, especially around Disaster Risk Management; f) Experience in coordinating assessments; and h) Demonstrated experience in similar assignments will be a plus General Professional Experience: (a) Must be result-oriented, a team player, exhibiting high levels of enthusiasm, tact, diplomacy, and integrity.

(b) Demonstrate excellent leadership, interpersonal and professional skills in interacting with government and development partners. (c) Excellent report writing and editing capabilities. (d) Fluent in spoken and written English. Working knowledge of French and/or Portuguese is an added advantage. (e) Computer literate with good working knowledge of the standard Microsoft Office suite of programmes.

(f) Proven experience with virtual conferencing systems (ZOOM, WEBEX, Microsoft Teams, Google meet etc.) g) familiarity with web developer technologies and ecosystems 6 months of which at least 3 months in person in the region 2.

Early warning Expert Master’s in the field of disaster risk management, or related field At least 10 years’ post-graduate experience working on disaster risk and hazard early warning systems meteorology, climate change modelling and early warning systems; Familiarity and experience with regional early warning systems; Disaster risk management experience with an understanding of and knowledge and experience with the humanitarian landscape in the region.

Knowledge and experience with early warning systems at the national level; Demonstrated experience dealing with complex engagement as a dialogue facilitator. f) Demonstrated experience in working with various government partners and other stakeholders in public policy development, especially around Disaster Risk Management. j) Demonstrated experience in similar assignments.

General Professional Experience: (a) Must be result-oriented, a team player, exhibiting high levels of enthusiasm, tact, diplomacy, and integrity. (b) Demonstrate excellent interpersonal and professional skills in interacting with government and development partners. (c) Experience in workshop facilitation and stakeholder engagements. (d) Excellent report writing capabilities.

(e) Fluent in spoken and written English. Working knowledge of French and/or Portuguese is an added advantage. 6 months of which at least 3 months in person in the region Q Hydrological Expert Masters or PhD in Hydrology, Hydrogeology, Water Resources Engineering or related discipline, with strong transboundary water resources planning skills.

At least 15 years’ experience in water resources management or planning At least 10 Years’ experience in hydrological and hydraulic modelling work Experience in the use of GIS and flood risk mapping Knowledge of drought preparedness plans and their use Experience in climate information interpretation and its use in flood forecasting and early warning information generation Knowledge of SADC Protocol on shared water courses and SARCOF and related products is an added value.

Fluency in English. French and Portuguese are added advantage. 6 months of which at least 3 months in person in the region Climate Expert Masters or PhD in Meteorology or Climate Science or related discipline, with experience in water related climate or meteorological products preparation.

At least 10 in the production of regional climate products At least 10 Years’ experience in hydrological modelling work At least 5 years’ preparing or using SARCOF products for early warning systems and advisory to users include the Water Sector at country or regional levels.

General appreciation of tailor-making weather and climate products for use by clients such as water and DRR General appreciation of climate information interpretation and its use in flood forecasting and early warning information generation Fluency in English. French and Portuguese are added advantage.

6 months of which at least 3 months in person in the region Duration The assignment is expected to be delivered within a maximum of 12 months.

Annex: Mapping of institutionally mandated EWS by agency across RCRP countries National Meteorological Service National Hydrological Service DRM Service Comoros Direction de la Météorologie (as part of Agence Nationale de l’Aviation Civile et de la Météorologie de l’Union des Comores) Limited activity or non-existent Direction Generale de la Protection Civile, represented by Centre National de Documentation et de Recherche Scientifique Madagascar Direction General de la Météorologie Direction General de la Météorologie National Bureau for Disaster Risk Reduction Malawi Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services Department of Water Resources Department of Disaster Management Affairs Mauritius Mauritius Meteorological Services Ministry of Energy & Public Utilities (Water Resources Unit) National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Center Mozambique Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia Direcção Nacional de Gestão de Recursos Hídricos Instituto Nacional de Gestão e Redução do Risco de Desastres) South Sudan South Sudan Meteorological Services Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management Tanzania Tanzania Meteorological Authority Ministry of Water - Directorate Water Resources Prime Minister’s Office - Disaster Management Department Zambia Zambia Meteorological Department Zambia Water Resources Management Authority Disaster Management and Mitigation Unit RCRP Plus Countries – Existing Diagnostics Countries Assessment & Implementation Documents Information/Status Comoros Hydromet Diagnostic MHEWS Diagnostic (in French) Draft EW4All Implementation Roadmap Climate Services Checklist EW4All Pillar 2 Scorecard EW4All Pillar 2 Rapid Assessment July 2024 August 2023 2024-2027 (Drafting) December 2021 Madagascar Hydromet Diagnostic MHEWS Diagnostic (in French) Climate Services Checklist November 2023 September 2023 November 2021 Malawi Hydromet Diagnostic Roadmap for modernization of meteorological services National Framework for Water and Climate Services December 2023 2025 (in publication) September 2024 Mozambique Climate Services Checklist Hydromet Diagnostic EW4All Roadmap December 2021 November 2023 2024 South Sudan Hydromet Diagnostic August 2023 Tanzania Hydromet Diagnostic February 2024 Zambia Hydromet Diagnostic April 2024 Regional Entities/Centres Regional Services Information/Status AU Policy Brief on the status of MHEWS in Africa Africa Institutional and Operational Framework on MHEWS AMHEWAS Co-Production and Coordination Mechanism Meeting 2024 February 2023 June, 2023 April, 2024 SADC Climate Services Centre IGAD/ICPAC https://www.icpac.net/ SAWS SAWS Warnings NBI-ENTRO https://nilebasin.org/ River flow forecast Flood and Flash flood forecast Hydrological monitoring Drought monitoring Climate database UpToDate RSMC Tropical Cyclone (La Reunion) http://www.meteo.fr/temps/domtom/La_Reunion/webcmrs9.0/anglais/index.html RSMC SWF (Nairobi and Dar Es Salaam) https://community.wmo.int/en/swfp-eastern-africa (require login credentials) A Regional Analysis of Weather, Climate, Water and Early Warning Services in Southern Africa: Status Quo and Proposed Actions.

https://mcas-proxyweb.mcas.ms/certificate-checker?login=false&originalUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fdocuments1.worldbank.org.mcas.ms%2Fcurated%2Fen%2F974411636364188920%2Fpdf%2FRegional-Analysis-of-Weather-Climate-Water-and-Early-Warning-Services-in-Southern-Africa-Status-Quo-and-Proposed-Actions.pdf%3FMcasTsid%3D15600&McasCSRF=d4404957b44950a16fba061c4ec00b14e5fb49f0bf2df9ee1b0ec31be3cfce52 2021 Africa Partner Coordination Mechanism https://community.wmo.int/en/activity-areas/apcm APCM Projects Dashboard Resources: WMO Assessment Guidelines for End-to-end Flood forecasting and Early Warning Systems WMO Checklist for Climate Services Implementation WMO Climate Services Dashboard WMO Hydrology Dashboard WMO Designated Centres: WMO Regional Climate Centres for Africa, Caribbean, and the Pacific WMO Integrated Global Observing System WIGOS Centre Southern Africa WMO Integrated Global Observing System WIGOS Centre Tanzania WMO Regional Information Centres WMO Regional Training Centres WMO Integrated Processing and Prediction System WMO Unified Data Policy Alliance Hydromet – Hydromet Diagnostic Methodology A Regional Analysis of Weather, Climate, Water and Early Warning Services in Southern Africa: Status Quo and Proposed Actions Report https://www.climatelinks.org/resources/nmhs-capacity-assessment-tools-and-findings Resilience and Preparedness to tropical cyclones across Southern Africa (REPRESA) Agency: Africa Union Commission Procurement method: Quality And Cost-Based Selection Notice type: Request for Expression of Interest Status: Published Value: 500000.0 USD