About the Commission for Agricultural Meteorology

The importance of meteorology to agriculture, internationally, was probably recognized at least as early as 1735 when the Directors of European meteorological services first met to discuss meteorology on an international scale. The first reference to co-operation between meteorology and agriculture was in correspondence between the International Meteorological Organization (IMO) and certain national institutes of agriculture and forestry, seeking an exchange of meteorological Information and data.
A formal Commission for Agricultural Meteorology (CAgM) of IMO was appointed in 1913 but a meeting was delayed by the First World War. The Commission was re-constituted in 1919 and held its first meeting at Utrecht, The Netherlands, in 1923. Subsequently it held six additional meetings; the seventh and last being at Toronto in Canada 1947. Policies and programmes of this last meeting of the IMO/CAgM became the foundation of the new CAgM under WMO.

IMO underwent re-organization after 1947 and, in 1951, became the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), one of the specialized agencies of the United Nations. The Organization comprises of the Congress, the Executive Council, the six Regional Associations, the eight Technical Commissions of which the Commission for Agricultural Meteorology is one, and the WMO Secretariat. Click here for an history and overview of the CAgM.

As defined in the General Regulations (Annex III - Structure and terms of reference of technical commissions) of the Basic Documents No. 1 (2007 edition) of WMO, each technical commission shall:

1. To study and review advances in science and technology, keep Members informed and advise Congress, the Executive Council and other constituent bodies on these advances and their implications;

2. Develop, for consideration by the Executive Council and Congress, proposed international standards for methods, procedures, techniques and practices in meteorology and operational hydrology including, in particular, the relevant parts of the Technical Regulations, guides and manuals;

3. Under the technical guidance of Congress and the Executive Council, carry out functions -with other bodies as necessary - relating to the planning, implementation and evaluation of the scientific and technical programme activities of the Organization;

4. Provide a forum for the examination and resolution of relevant scientific and technical issues;

5. Promote training by assisting in the organization of seminars and workshops and in the preparation of related material and the development of other suitable mechanisms for the transfer of knowledge and methodology, including the results of research, between Members;

6. Promote international cooperation and maintain, through appropriate channels, close cooperation on scientific and technical matters with other relevant international organizations;

7. Make such recommendations as it may consider necessary.

Terms of reference of the Commission for Agricultural Meteorology:

As defined in the General Regulations (Annex III - Structure and terms of reference of technical commissions) of the Basic Documents No. 1 (2007 edition) of WMO, the Commission shall be responsible for matters relating to:

a) Applications of meteorology to agricultural cropping systems, forestry, and agricultural land use and livestock management, taking into account meteorological and agricultural developments both in the scientific and practical fields;

b) Development of agricultural meteorological services of Members by transfer of knowledge and methodology and by providing advice in particular on:

The most practical use of knowledge concerning weather and climate for agricultural purposes such as conservation of natural resources, land management, intensification of crop production, increase in the area of agricultural production, reduction of production costs, the improvement of agricultural products and the selection of varieties of plants and breeds of animals that are better adapted to the climatological conditions and their variability;
The combating of unfavourable influences of weather and climate on agriculture and animal husbandry, including weather-related pests and diseases;
The protection of agricultural produce in storage or in transit against damage or deterioration due to the direct and indirect influences of weather and climate;
The use of weather and agrometeorological forecasts and warnings for agricultural purposes;
The interactions between air pollution and vegetation and soil.

c) Methods, procedures and techniques for the provision of meteorological services to agriculture including farmers and forestry and rangeland operators;

d) Formulation of data requirements for agricultural purposes;

e) Introduction of effective methods for disseminating agrometeorological information, advice and warnings to agriculture by mass media;

f) Meteorological aspects of desertification;

g) Fisheries (food aspects only).

Sessions of the CAgM:

The CAgM of WMO, which meets approximately once in four years, has so far held twelve sessions as follows:

CAgM-I: Paris, France (3-20 November 1953)

CAgM-II: Warsaw, Poland (29 September-17 October 1958)

CAgM-III: Toronto, Canada (9-26 July 1962)

CAgM-IV: Quezon City, Manila, Philippines (15-29 November 1967)

CAgM-V: Geneva, Switzerland (18-29 October 1971)

CAgM-VI: Washington, USA (14-25 October 1974)

CAgM-VII: Sofia, Bulgaria (17-28 September 1979)

CAgM-VIII: Geneva, Switzerland (21 February - 4 March 1983)

CAgM-IX: Madrid, Spain (17-28 November 1986)

CAgM-X: Florence, Italy (2-13 December 1991)

CAgM-XI: Havana, Cuba (13-24 February 1995)

CAgM-XII: Accra, Ghana (18-26 February 1999)

CAgM-XIII: Ljubjana, Slovenia (10-18 October 2002)

CAgM-XIV: New Delhi, India (28 October - 3 November 2006)

CAgM-XV: Belo Horizonte, Brazil (15 - 23 July 2010)

At CAgM-XIII, the Commission adopted a new structure based on the Open Programme Area Groups (OPAG) concept to allow for both flexibility and rigour in delivery of its programmes.

Click here for more information on CAgM's OPAGs.

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