The United States is in a good position to help the 

 developing countries by transferring experience in 

 using weather information for agricultural purposes, 

 and by providing improved access to satellite-linked 

 information systems and other U.S. data. This country 

 has a wealth of experience in assembling and analyzing 

 data on the interaction of crops and weather in a form 

 that is useful to the farmer; putting existing 

 historical data into usable form is time-consuming but 

 not expensive. 



The United States would benefit from these 

 activities. As the leading exporter of grain crops, 

 and as an important importer of specialty crops (e.g., 

 coffee) , it needs to monitor world production 

 continuously. Reliable estimates of production widely 

 publicized could contribute to the smooth and equitable 

 operations of world and national markets. By having 

 timely information about weather trends, producers and 

 importers could more nearly adjust to changes in supply 

 and demand. U.S. researchers would also benefit from 

 basic data on crop/weather relationships for crops on 

 which little data now exists. 



Institutional Mechanisms 



Both the United Nations Development Programme and 

 the Voluntary Assistance Program of the World 

 Meteorological Organization (WMO) can provide funds for 

 stimulating and improving weather services in the 

 developing world. Thus new institutional mechanisms 

 would not be needed for effective action, and the time 

 required to step up weather services to improve 

 agricultural productivity would be considerably 

 shortened. Any U.S. initiatives might best be 

 undertaken through these organizations. Moreover, 

 international mechanisms already exist to make weather 

 data available for worldwide use. Further developments 

 could take place on the basis of existing international 

 agreements. 



Constraints which impede efforts in developing 

 countries include lack of training and education and 

 the difficulty in obtaining funding despite clear 

 economic incentives. 



Communications can be another major constraint. 

 Collecting information at central locations can be very 

 difficult, and dissemination can be equally 

 complicated. However, opportunities for early 

 improvement already exist in some developing countries. 

 For example, radio is usually nationally controlled, 

 and agriculture-related forecasts and weather 

 information could be featured on such broadcasts. 



126 



