A Pathway towards Climate Services for the Agricultural Sector

Abstract

Climate change is already having a negative impact on many areas of human activity, affecting life globally. It is more urgent than ever to increase our adaptive capacity to respond to current and future climate change risks. Climate services refer to a specialized sector that encompasses both research and operational activities. This sector is primarily focused on interpreting and communicating knowledge and information about climate risks in a manner that is tailored to meet the specific needs of diverse user communities. Climate services offer a range of specialized outputs, including forecasts, assessments, and advisories, which enable users to make decisions that are based on an understanding of the potential impacts of climate change. The outputs of climate services are designed to help diverse user communities effectively manage risks and capitalize on opportunities arising from climate variability and change. An attempt is made to outline the fundamental elements of climate services and point out their contribution to various aspects of human activity, focusing on their essential role in the adaptability of the priority for action agricultural sector, which appears as considerably vulnerable to the change of considerably susceptible to climate conditions. This article is structured to answer basic questions about climate services in general and to show the specificities of climate services in the agricultural sector.