Early warning, early action: an evaluation of IFRC West and Central Africa zone flood preparedness and response, 2008

This report examines how the West/Central Africa Zone (WCAZ) used climate information in 2008, as well as the decisions for action, which were made based on seasonal forecasts. Interviews were conducted with a number of WCAZ staff, as well as the Disaster Managers and Coordinators in the National Societies (NS) of the Gambia, Ghana, Togo and Senegal. In addition, the report identifies what the Zone did well, opportunities for improvement, and the concrete benefits from the WCAZ’s first-time implementation of early warnings into early action (EW>EA). A framework is also proposed for future quantitative monitoring and evaluation of the value of climate information and EW>EA in improving disaster management. In the future, data collected in the areas of flood severity, the extent of EW>EA implementation, timeliness of RC response, and resource requirements would enable more quantitative impacts of EW>EA to be monitored.