Identifying Climate Information Services Users and Their Needs in sub-Saharan Africa: A Learning Agenda

This paper presents a learning agenda for acquiring further knowledge about the users of climate information services (CIS) and their needs in sub-Saharan Africa. It reviews the state of current knowledge on this subject as well as gaps in knowledge and what is needed to fill these gaps. 

The paper begins with a case study on the Mali Agrometeorological Advisory Program, which illustrates the complexity that can arise in characterizing CIS users and their associated needs, the significance of targeting specific users and needs, and the challenges in delivering broad-based benefits through a CIS. 

The paper then reviews 44 CIS projects and studies in sub-Saharan Africa through the lens of three primary questions: (1) How are CIS users identified or targeted? (2) Who is targeted? (3) What needs are targeted? 

An overview of gaps in current practices and literature is presented along with what is needed to answer or fill those gaps in knowledge. Questions that need to be answered to inform CIS research and practice include: “How are we to identify and assess user needs in a manner that does not swamp information from the users with biases from the designers?” and “Are there broad categories of social constraints to CIS use that might inform CIS design and co-production efforts?”.  

The paper concludes by prioritizing the identified gaps, thereby organizing a process of inquiry that builds upon itself to inform both CIS research and practice. 

Learn more about climate services in sub-Saharan Africa.