WMO WEATHER, CLIMATE AND WATER INTELLIGENCE
Financing the world's public weather and climate infrastructure – the invisible global backbone of systems, standards and coordination that keeps weather, climate and water intelligence working worldwide.
Every
forecast.
Every
warning.
Every
climate-risk decision.
Every
investment decision.
All depend on a shared, trusted, global flow of weather, climate and water data.
The WMO Commons sustains and modernizes the international cooperation behind this critical public infrastructure - enabling resilience, economic stability, market confidence and informed decision making worldwide.
Yet this shared foundation is underfunded and under increasing pressure with growing demand, aging infrastructure, mounting operational complexity and evolving requirements. The consequences fall on billions of people and the economic systems they depend on.
Reliable, forward-looking risk intelligence is essential for governments, financial markets, insurers, supply chains, communities, and businesses. In an increasingly AI-powered world, systems are only as strong as the data they depend on. Ensuring that critical data streams remain continuous, open, and trusted is not just a technical challenge. It is a global commitment.
The WMO Commons seeks to mobilize at least USD 100 million over 5 years to finance global weather, climate and water monitoring, prediction, and service delivery systems.
Our Partners
United Arab Emirates
The state of global weather, climate and water intelligence
Click each figure to learn more.
Why now
The systems the world depends on for forecasts, warnings and climate intelligence are under growing pressure. The moment to act is now.
More frequent and severe weather, climate and water extremes are driving higher losses, disruption and humanitarian need.
Advanced models depend on continuous, authoritative observations, internationally agreed standards and open data flows. Innovation can accelerate insight, but only when grounded in trusted infrastructure.
Escalating risk is increasing claims, pricing volatility and protection gaps, reinforcing the need for stronger forecasting and risk intelligence.
The global system depends on a chain of shared investment, cooperation and stewardship. When one part weakens, it weakens all countries.
Global production, transport and trade networks are increasingly vulnerable to weather shocks, water stress and cascading disruptions.
The WMO Commons is a WMO-managed pooled financing mechanism that sustains, strengthens and modernizes the globally mandated backbone of weather, climate and water intelligence.
The mechanism leverages Member State contributions by mobilizing additional financial resources to address critical gaps and high-priority global system needs that deliver benefits across borders.
Resources are allocated by WMO through the WMO Commons Annual Workplan , ensuring system-wide coherence, reducing fragmentation and maximizing collective impact.
to sustain, strengthen and modernize the global backbone of weather, climate and water intelligence.
Governance & Accountability
The WMO Commons is:
Administered in line with WMO financial rules and regulations
Contributions are received and managed under WMO’s established financial rules and regulations, ensuring full legal and fiduciary accountability.
Subject to WMO audit, oversight and accountability systems
All operations are subject to WMO’s internal audit, oversight and accountability systems — the same standards that govern all WMO activities.
Driven by WMO’s Results-Based Management framework
Resource allocation and reporting are grounded in WMO’s Results-Based Management framework, linking every contribution to measurable system outcomes.
Designed to complement, not duplicate, existing financing mechanisms
The WMO Commons fills genuine gaps in the global system, carefully avoiding overlap with bilateral, regional or other multilateral financing mechanisms.
Governed with active management of organizational and reputational risk
Including structured due diligence for all contributors. The integration into WMO management systems reduces fragmentation, improves planning certainty and maximizes system-wide impact.
The integration into WMO management systems reduces fragmentation, improves planning certainty and maximizes system-wide impact.
What It Supports / Why It Matters
Critical functions and outcomes
The WMO Commons helps finance critical gaps in globally mandated functions, including:
Overseeing the sustained operation and modernisation of its globally coordinated observing systems.
Why This Matters
WMO Members already invest in and rely on these shared systems. The WMO Commons ensures they are adequately resourced, modernized and globally coherent, so that all countries can:
Share meteorological observations across borders in real time.
Coordinating global meteorological data exchange and prediction infrastructure.
Why This Matters
WMO Members already invest in and rely on these shared systems. The WMO Commons ensures they are adequately resourced, modernized and globally coherent, so that all countries can:
Contribute to and benefit from global weather and climate prediction models.
Leading development, governance, and oversight of international standards and data policies.
Why This Matters
WMO Members already invest in and rely on these shared systems. The WMO Commons ensures they are adequately resourced, modernized and globally coherent, so that all countries can:
Maintain internationally agreed standards, protocols, and coordination mechanisms.
Stewarding coordination mechanisms that safeguard system integrity and interoperability.
Why This Matters
WMO Members already invest in and rely on these shared systems. The WMO Commons ensures they are adequately resourced, modernized and globally coherent, so that all countries can:
Ensure interoperability between national systems within the global network.
Why WMO
193 Members plus partners and expert networks; neutral, science-based convening authority.
Safeguards the free and unrestricted data exchange underpinning global early warnings.
Global standards for weather, climate, and water data and services.
Designs and sustains the global observing systems powering every forecast.
Transforms scientific advances into actionable services with everyday impact.
Empowers vulnerable nations, strengthening systems for global knowledge access.
Where funding goes
Every contribution is allocated through the Annual Workplan across four pathways. Hover or click each pathway to see what your investment concretely supports.
Pathway 1: Sustain & Optimize the Global Observing System
Without data, there are no forecasts. This secures the invisible backbone of all intelligence.
Pathway 3: Expand High-Impact Services & Early Warnings
Ensuring the best forecasts reach people in a form they can act on, saving lives and protecting economies.
Pathway 2: Strengthen Global Data Interoperability and Prediction
Translating raw data into high-resolution forecasts across timescales.
Pathway 4: Capacity & User Co-Creation
Building strong institutions and embedding co-creation to ensure science translates into action.
Pathway 1
Without data, there are no forecasts.
This pathway strengthens the observing backbone that powers warnings, forecasts and climate services across the atmosphere, oceans, hydrology, cryosphere and greenhouse gas domains.
Contributions help close critical coverage gaps, modernize systems and ensure compliance with WMO standards.
Pathway 2
Data only creates value when it can be exchanged, processed and transformed into actionable intelligence.
This pathway strengthens global data exchange systems, modelling capability and prediction infrastructure across timescales, from minutes to seasons to decades.
Pathway 3
Forecasts only save lives when people receive and trust them.
This pathway expands multi-hazard early warning systems, impact-based forecasting and climate services for sectors such as agriculture, water, health, energy, transport and humanitarian operations.
Pathway 4
Technology alone cannot deliver resilience.
This pathway strengthens institutions, workforce skills, sustainable financing models and user-centred service delivery.
It supports NMHS capabilities, fellowships and training, partnerships, and co-design with users ranging from farmers to financial institutions.
Hydromet investments, investments that track weather and water, are among the highest-return public investments documented. The WMO Hydromet Gap Report identifies three compounding dividends.
Scroll to reveal all three dividends
36:1
Hydrometeorological services have consistently been shown to deliver benefit-cost ratios up to 36:1 (WMO, 2024).
USD 30 billion
Estimated annual benefit of improved weather forecasting across weather-sensitive sectors - agriculture, energy, transport, and construction.
4:1
The Global Commission on Adaptation estimates that USD 1.8 trillion in climate adaptation investment between 2020 and 2030 could generate USD 7 trillion in net benefits, providing a return of almost 4:1.
Strong weather, climate and water intelligence systems are critical economic infrastructure.
Why contribute through the WMO Commons
Each contribution strengthens infrastructure that multiplies the value of billions in existing investments.
Support systems that benefit all countries and especially vulnerable populations.
Managed under WMO financial, audit and accountability frameworks.
Eligible contributors participate in dialogue through the Advisory Group.
Recognition through global campaigns, major events and public reporting.
One pooled mechanism reduces fragmentation and transaction costs.
Contribution tiers
HOW TO JOIN
The process is straightforward and typically takes four to eight weeks from initial conversation to fund transfer.
Meet with WMO to confirm how your contribution aligns with WMO Commons priorities, agree an indicative contribution level, and discuss visibility preferences.
Provide the information needed for WMO's standard financial and integrity screening. For private sector entities, this includes a structured reputational risk assessment in line with WMO's Private Sector Due Diligence Policy.
Sign a legal instrument setting out the contribution amount, reporting arrangements, and applicable terms under WMO financial regulations.
Transfer funds to the WMO Commons Fund. You will receive consolidated financial and results reporting through the WMO Commons Results and Impact Report, and invitations to briefings and events as applicable to your tier.
Get in touch
Whether you are a government, philanthropic foundation, multilateral institution or private-sector leader, your contribution can help strengthen the global system that protects lives, economies and communities.
Every contribution matters. Every contribution strengthens the commons.
Contact us
commons@wmo.int