The Samoa Meteorology office is undergoing training on better managing of meteorological data gathered by experts since 1890.
It is these information that Meteorological Office Chief Executive Officer Mulipola Ausetalia Titimaea says will be critical to efforts by Samoa in resilience to extreme events.
“We are the only country in the Pacific with more than a hundred years of weather patterns and meteorological data records. Since 1890 we have been recording and keeping track of the patterns and these will be used again in the future,” he said.
“So it is important we learn to manage data, and as well as read them and interpret them,” he added.
The training is done in partnership with an Australian special meteorology group called Climate and Ocean support program, and is joined by more than eight countries in the pacific.
“They’ve provided us with the software program that will be used to sort, and manage these recorded data,” he added.
The training will cover all areas that a meteorological officer needs to understand in record keeping. This includes from storing to sorting data using computer software to compare and contrast events
“For Data alone, there are many parts that needs to be managed. Tide page monitoring, climate watching, website management, and the communication with the public,” said Mulipola.
The $33million tala project aims to educate and equip meteorological officers in the pacific in making informed decisions, compiling factual information and understanding situations when needed.
The training concludes this week.