WCSSP Kenya

What is the Weather and Climate Science for Service Partnership (WCSSP) Kenya?

The WCSSP Kenya project is supporting the underpinning science research to improve weather and climate services in Kenya. The project is also advancing the understanding of key weather, seasonal and climate drivers in the country to improve advice and mitigate potential socio-economic impacts. Co-development is a core principle of the partnership, ensuring that Kenyan operational and research priorities guide the direction of the collaborative science research. 

Launched in early 2026, WCSSP Kenya is the 6th project since the WCSSP programme was established in 2014. It is supported through the UK Government’s International Science Partnerships (ISPF) fund. 

What is the project focusing on? 

The project is aimed at strengthening the protection of lives, livelihoods and critical sectors that are highly exposed to weather and climate risks in Kenya. It focuses on building and delivering collaborative scientific research to enhance national capability to understand, predict and respond to high-impact weather. This includes a strong focus on translating research into operational capability, enabling forecasts and climate information to inform actionable warnings and advice for Kenyan communities. 

This includes improving knowledge of extreme events such as heavy rainfall and flooding, advancing global and regional forecasting systems across weather, seasonal and climate timescales. It also involves ensuring forecasts are effectively translated into actionable warnings and advisories for Kenyan communities.  

Who is involved in the project?

The project is a collaboration between the Met Office and the Kenya Meteorological Society (KMS). Colleagues are working collaboratively alongside those involved in WISER (Weather and Climate Information Services) Kenya and WISER ActionFirst™ in Africa to ensure the critical underpinning scientific research is pulled through into operational capability to save lives and livelihoods. 

What has happened so far? 

The project had two collaboration events in Nairobi, Kenya and Exeter, UK in early 2026. These events brought together Kenyan and UK partners from research, forecasting and academic institutions to align priorities, share progress and strengthen institutional relationships. 

The Nairobi event in January brought together Kenyan and UK partners from research, forecasting and academic institutions to share progress, align priorities and strengthen connections across organisations. Sessions focused on extreme rainfall and flooding, seasonal and climate prediction, regional modelling, and improving the translation of forecasts into actionable early warnings for Kenyan communities. 

The Exeter event in March involved technical sessions, collaborative workshops and planning discussions. The visit provided dedicated space for building new links, reinforcing existing collaborations and opening avenues for future cooperation between the Met Office, KMS and wider Kenyan institutions. The visit also supported professional development, mentorship and discussions on academic pathways, helping to strengthen long‑term scientific leadership within Kenya. 

What is coming up? 

The WCSSP Kenya partnership will focus on: 

• finalising a co-developed science Plan, focused on Kenyan priorities, 

• developing targeted research activities and how these can be pulled through to operations, 

• supporting scientific leadership and capacity building in Kenya, 

• ensuring aligning with other projects and programmes including WISER and CLARE (Climate Adaptation and Resilience) 

• maintaining regular scientific exchanges between UK and Kenyan partners. 

This page was published in April 2026.