Cooperation with National Hydrometeorological Services of the Sava countries

The informal conference of directors of National Hydrometeorological Services (NHMSs) of South-Eastern Europe is organized annualy, with the primary aim to exchange information on performed and ongoing activities, as well as to agree on further joint actions in this field.The 8th conference was held on September 29-30, 2008, in Podgorica (Montenegro). More than 40 participants gathered at the conference, including not only representatives of NHMSs, but also representatives of the World Bank, World Meteorological Organization, EUMETNET, EUMETSAT, ECMWF and the Sava Commission.

The most interesting conference topics, from the viewpoint of the Sava Commission, were the work of the regional centers of excellence (i.e. Center for Climate Changes in Belgrade, and the Center for Drought Management in Ljubljana), and the „Sava project” (full title: „Development and Upgrade of the Hydrometeorological Information, Observation, Forecasting and Warning System for the Sava River Basin”), which is important for realization of certain activities specified in the Strategy of the Sava Commission. The Sava project was initiated in 2003 by the NHMSs of the Sava countries, and the project proposal was finalized at the end of 2007. During the discussion, it was found out that the NHMSs should play a key role in seeking financial support for the project implementation, while the WMO and the Sava Commission can only support the NHMSs in this process.

The main mechanism of future cooperation between the Sava Commission and the NHMSs of the Sava countries, not only in relation to this project, but also to other issues, should be provided by the new Expert Group of the Sava Commission for Hydrometeorological Issues, which is in the process of establishment and is expected to start working early in 2009.