The Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NIMET) is to provide technical know-how to support National Water Resources Institute (NWRI) in manpower training on operational hydrology in Africa.
Prof. Sani Mashi, the Director-General of the Agency disclosed this when he received a delegation from the Institute in his office.
According to him, such move will upgrade NWRI hydrology center to regional center of excellence recognised by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) for manpower training in operational hydrology in Africa.
“We saw the need for the institute to visit NiMet in order to solicit for support, get necessary information, exchange views and learn more about each other.
“NWRI is concerned with water which is an element that affects all lives. Even without the WMO factor, we are together by virtue of our interactions with the water component.
“ We are happy that the WMO is giving Nigeria another opportunity to demonstrate its capacity and capability toward managing the affairs at the regional level,” he said.
The director-general said such confidence by WMO in Nigeria’s capability to host an operational hydrology center was premised on the track record demonstrated by NiMet at the global stage.
Mashi, who was also representative of WMO in Nigeria, said the organisation felt there was need to also adopt a center that would deal exclusively with training on operational hydrology.

Prof. Sani Mashi
NiMet Director General
“WMO has asked us to comment and recommend a reputable Water Resources Institute that can serve the aforementioned purpose.
“ We have therefore, submitted the name of the National Water Resources Institute as a prestigious option for WMO to adopt,” Mashi said.
He, however, said in spite of NWRI’s long standing history in water resources management, the institute still needed some guidance on how to navigate their relationship with the WMO.
He said that the institute could leverage on NiMet’s experience with the world body, garnered since 1954 when the Nigerian WMO Regional Training centre was established in Lagos.
The director-general urged the institute to deploy the use of technology to deliver training in order to make their request more compelling and appealing to the World Meteorological Organisation.
“This will enable the institute to place itself in good stead ahead of other competing African countries.
“ Really, this meeting marks the beginning of a fruitful relationship which will eventually culminate into in signing of a formal Memorandum of Understanding between the two parties,” he said.
Earlier, NWRI Executive Secretary, Prof. Emmanuel Adanu, who led a delegation from the Institute to NiMet , solicited the agency’s cooperation in the quest to actualise the institute’s mandate.
He said the institute would also like to cooperate with NiMet to set up a regional training center.
Adamu highlighted mandate of the institute to include researching and analysing of water distribution, modifying systems for the benefit of Nigerians among others.
The executive secretary appealed to NiMet to assist the institute in the areas of capacity building, skill and manpower interchange between the two Federal Government organisations.