Revitalizing Rain Enhancement: UAE's Decade-Long Commitment to Water Security

Clean water, an indispensable and finite resource vital for the survival of all living beings, is diminishing at an unsustainable rate due to climate change, rising populations and rapid urbanization. 联合国儿童基金会 predicts that, as soon as 2025, half of the global population could confront water scarcity, potentially displacing around 700 million people due to intense water shortages by 2030. Cloud seeding has emerged as a promising solution in this scenario, offering the potential to modify atmospheric conditions and positively influence weather patterns. The World Meteorological Organization Peer Review Report on Global Precipitation Enhancement Activities underscores the effectiveness of various international cloud seeding initiatives in yielding average seasonal precipitation increases ranging from 5 to 25%, further emphasizing the importance of investing in such strategies to advance global water security.

To address this challenge, the UAE, recognizing water security as a fundamental component of national security due to its arid climate with minimal annual rainfall, launched the The UAE Research Program for Rain Enhancement Science (UAEREP) in 2015 under the patronage of Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister, and Chairman of the Presidential Court, with the aim of advancing the science, technology and implementation of rain enhancement.

Managed by the UAE National Center of Meteorology (NCM) , the primary national source of meteorological and seismological information in the UAE, the program seeks to develop local and global capacities in rain enhancement science and encourage productive research collaboration, establishing a global reputation as a hub for ground-breaking innovation needed to tackle the challenge of global water stress.

In every award cycle, the UAEREP offers grant assistance of up to US$1.5 Million distributed over three years to selected teams of researchers who present innovative ideas and project proposals relevant to rain enhancement research. To date, the program has allocated US$23 million to support 14 innovative research project and multiple R&D initiatives, significantly contributing to closing the funding gap for climate financing. Through these efforts, the program has successfully revitalized the field of rain enhancement science, ensuring that it continues to attract the expertise and investment essential for realizing the full potential of this vitally important research domain.

The program unveiled the awardees of its Fifth Cycle at a recent event held in Abu Dhabi, which I had the honor of attending alongside numerous leading researchers, scientists, and experts in weather modification applications, hydro-meteorology, weather and climate modeling, among others. The recipients are anticipated to utilize their grants to expedite the transformation of their project proposals into tangible solutions for addressing the water scarcity crisis.

I extend my heartfelt congratulations to the awardees of this cycle. I am confident that their groundbreaking project proposals, built on the program's UAEREP's decade-long dedication to advancing rain enhancement research, will have a lasting positive impact on rain enhancement science. This legacy aligns with WMO's vision of fostering global collaboration and innovation to address pressing challenges, including water scarcity, and contributes to the realization of a more sustainable and resilient world.