The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has convened a two-day workshop in Multan to develop Impact-Based Weather Forecasting (IBF) for cotton and rice crops across South Punjab, providing farmers with crop-specific climate advisories to reduce agricultural losses.
FAO launches climate forecast tool for crops in South Punjab
MULTAN, Jun 18 (APP): The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has convened a two-day workshop in Multan to develop Impact-Based Weather Forecasting (IBF) for cotton and rice crops across South Punjab, providing farmers with crop-specific climate advisories to reduce agricultural losses.
The workshop, brought together representatives from the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD), Agriculture Extension, On-Farm Water Management, civil society organisations, academia and farming communities from five Punjab districts.
The initiative falls under FAO’s GCF-funded project “Transforming the Indus Basin with Climate Resilient Agriculture and Water Management,” implemented across five Punjab and three Sindh districts. The project is expected to benefit 1.3 million people directly and 16 million indirectly.
The FAO and PMD have already installed 24 automatic weather stations, 15 in Punjab and nine in Sindh, under the project. IBF was previously designed and disseminated for the Rabi 2025-26 wheat crop. The Multan workshop extended the framework to Kharif 2026 crops, focusing on three key climate risks: extreme rainfall, water stress and extreme temperature.
Participants developed crop-stage-specific adaptation strategies and agreed on forecast verification and dissemination mechanisms. The workshop also incorporated indigenous knowledge and farmers’ lived experience to ensure advisories remain practically relevant.
FAO Punjab Provincial Head Emelda Berejena said weather and climate information must reach farming communities in a form that they can use, at the right time, for the right crop.
PMD Chief Meteorologist Dr. Zaheeruddin Baber said IBF shifts the focus from what weather will be to “what the weather will do,” making climate information more actionable for farmers at different crop stages.
Agriculture Department’s Crop Reporting Service Director Dr. Muhammad Muneer said climate-resilient practices being trialed under the FAO initiative are “producing remarkable results, increasing yield of crops using less resources.”
The workshop is expected to improve dissemination pathways, refine impact tables and strengthen early warning systems for South Punjab’s farming communities.
