This project aims to build capacity in Azerbaijan to deliver reliable climate information services and a people-centered, impact-based multi-hazard early warning system (IB-MHEWS). 

Background

Azerbaijan is projected to warm faster than the global average, with temperatures rising by up to 2 °C by 2040 under RCP4.5, a moderate greenhouse gas scenario. By the end of the century, heatwaves could increase by 20 days under RCP4.5, and 60 days under RCP8.5, a high-emission pathway.

Rainfall will become more unpredictable, bringing longer dry periods, intense storms, and higher risks of floods and droughts. These changes threaten water resources, agriculture, and infrastructure. Public health will also be impacted, with greater heat stress, an extended season for vector-borne diseases, and worsening air quality.

Funded by the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the project is implemented by UNEP together with a coalition of national and international partners, including the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Finnish Meteorological Institute, the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics, the Regional Environmental Centre for the Caucasus and UNICEF.

Outcomes of the project

This technical assistance aims to support the establishment of data‑driven climate information services. It also seeks to develop a multi-hazard early warning system for the benefit of the government, public and private sectors and communities in Azerbaijan.

The project targets all four pillars of effective early warning systems:

1. Establishment of a state-of-the-art forecast production and verification system
2. Strengthened risk assessment capabilities
3. Dissemination of warnings and advisories through multiple channels, guided by a new strategy for socially inclusive, child- and gender-responsive communications
4. Enhanced climate change literacy by a nationwide public awareness campaign

UNEP-DHI’s role:

1. Identify, map, and quantify risks linked to climate‑related hydrological hazards
2. Train stakeholders in hydrological data management and quality assurance
3. Develop, apply, and interpret hydrological and hydraulic models that will underpin the early warning system
4. Co‑develop climate information products tailored to the water sector.