The European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT) has completed the deployment of 56 satellite reception stations across Africa, giving national meteorological services access to a new generation of weather observations from its Meteosat Third Generation (MTG) satellite system.
The completion of the network was announced as about 150 meteorologists, scientists and representatives from across Africa gathered in Eswatini for a five-day User Forum organised by EUMETSAT and the Eswatini Meteorological Service.
The forum is focused on how African meteorological agencies are using MTG data in operational forecasting, particularly as the continent faces increasing risks from severe weather events, floods, droughts and other climate-related hazards.
According to EUMETSAT, the first PUMA-2025 reception station was installed two years ago, with the full network now operational. The stations receive MTG data through EUMETSAT’s EUMETCast Africa service and distribute it to national meteorological services and regional centres.
The development is particularly important for Africa, where ground-based weather observation stations remain limited across large parts of the continent, leaving satellite observations as one of the most comprehensive sources of information available to forecasters.
MTG can provide a new image of Africa every 10 minutes, compared with the 15-minute interval provided by the previous generation of Meteosat satellites.
The shorter observation interval means meteorological agencies can track rapidly developing weather systems more frequently, including the formation and movement of storms.
The satellite system also provides lightning observations, which can be used to support warnings for severe storms and lightning strikes and help authorities identify areas where people and infrastructure could be at risk.
The timing of the expanded satellite infrastructure is particularly relevant as African countries prepare for the potential effects of a strong El Niño event, which can bring shifts in rainfall patterns and increase the risk of floods, droughts and disruptions to livelihoods in different parts of the continent.
Participants at the forum have backed a joint declaration calling for reliable satellite observations, effective early-warning systems and stronger infrastructure and technical capacity to convert satellite data into information that can help protect lives and livelihoods.
“MTG is no longer a future promise for Africa. It is now in the hands of forecasters across the continent,” said Phil Evans, director-general of EUMETSAT.
“With the PUMA reception station network now fully deployed, every African national meteorological service can access this new generation of observations. This shows what sustained partnership between the African Union Commission, the European Union, EUMETSAT and African meteorological services can achieve,” Evans added.
The 56 reception stations were initially deployed through the European Union-funded ClimSA programme. The Strengthening Early Warning in Africa (SEWA) project is now building on the infrastructure by supporting African capacity to process satellite imagery and develop early-warning services.
SEWA forms part of the Africa-EU Space Partnership Programme and is funded by the European Union under its Global Gateway strategy. It is jointly led by EUMETSAT, the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts and the African Union Commission, alongside African regional climate centres and national meteorological and hydrological services.
Beyond weather forecasting, participants at the Eswatini forum are examining the use of satellite data for climate services, hydrology, air-quality monitoring, agriculture and renewable energy.
EUMETSAT said the discussions will also help shape the next phase of its cooperation with African meteorological and hydrological agencies, following more than three decades of collaboration on satellite data, weather products and technical training.
