The workshop, themed “Advancing Early Warnings for All: Media as a Lifeline,” brought together reporters from various media houses including print, broadcast, and online platforms.

It was hosted at the Capital View Hotel and featured expert-led sessions on marine and public weather services, impact-based forecasting, and strategies for effective communication during extreme weather events.
Dr. Ignatius Kweku Williams, Ag. Deputy Director General in charge of operations, GMet, who delivered the opening remarks, emphasized the critical role of journalists in building resilient communities.

“Early warnings only save lives when they are timely, accurate, and understandable. The media is our bridge to the public,” he said.

Mrs. Felicity Ahafianyo, Head of the Central Analysis Unit of GMet, provided insights into Ghana’s climate patterns, noting that the country experiences alternating dry and wet seasons.

“The southern sector has a bimodal rainfall pattern, with major rains from March to July and minor rains from September to November. The northern sector, however, experiences a unimodal rainfall season from April to October,” she explained.
She added that the dry season, commonly known as harmattan, occurs between December and February.

“Long-term records show that annual rainfall in Ghana ranges from 700 millimetres to 2,030 millimetres, with average minimum and maximum temperatures of 22°C and 32°C respectively,” Mrs. Ahafianyo said, citing data on climate records from 1976 to 2018.

The workshop also addressed the intersection of climate and public health. Mrs. Ahafianyo highlighted the risks posed by climate variability to the health sector, particularly the spread of diseases.

She called for strengthened public education through national disaster risk reduction platforms, including radio, television, information vans, churches, mosques, and other community-based channels.

Participants engaged with senior meteorologists including Joshua Asamoah, Thomas Biney, and Esther Egbuka, who facilitated sessions on GMet’s services and the forecast for the minor rainfall season in southern Ghana.
The training also tackled challenges such as misinformation, limited access to meteorological data, and the need for stronger collaboration between media and scientific institutions.

Journalists expressed appreciation for the initiative, noting that the workshop improved their understanding of weather systems and reporting techniques.
“This training has equipped us to better serve our communities with life-saving information,” Ms. Candida Dery said.

The event forms part of GMet’s broader strategy to integrate media into Ghana’s national early warning framework, with plans to replicate similar workshops in other regions.