ICOS ERIC and collaborators have published a white paper outlining the findings and recommendations from the KADI project, a pan-African initiative co-designing the climate research infrastructure Africa urgently needs.
Africa is on the front lines of climate change. Droughts in the Horn of Africa, floods in West and East African cities, rising sea levels threatening coastal communities in Senegal and Mozambique – the impacts are severe, and they are accelerating. Yet the continent contributes minimally to the global greenhouse gas emissions driving these changes. Addressing this injustice requires robust, Africa-led climate action grounded in reliable data and inclusive services.
That is the challenge at the heart of KADI, Knowledge and Climate Services from an African Observation and Data Infrastructure, an EU-funded project coordinated by ICOS ERIC and carried out in partnership with African institutions, scientists, and communities. For three years (2023-2025) the KADI project laid the groundwork for Africa’s climate resilience by strengthening observation networks, improving data access and fostering knowledge exchange. The project’s findings are now published in a new white paper, Co-Creating Data-Driven Climate Solutions for Africa.
A Continent-Wide Knowledge Infrastructure
The KADI white paper makes the case for a pan-African Research and Knowledge Infrastructure that goes beyond fragmented, project-by-project approaches. Effective climate action in Africa, the authors argue, demands coordinated data systems, interoperable observation networks spanning local to continental scales, and climate services that are genuinely co-created with the communities they are meant to serve.
“Climate resilience in Africa depends on more than just data,” says Theresia Bilola, KADI project manager. It relies on a shared, trusted infrastructure that can transform data into practical solutions quickly enough to meet the needs of communities and decision-makers. KADI was built with the African context from the outset, engaging with existing initiatives and policy processes and a strong bearing on continuous knowledge exchange rather than prescriptive, one-off interventions.”
One of the clear bottlenecks identified in the white paper were data gaps. Africa currently lacks sufficient ground-based monitoring stations, and institutional fragmentation, limited funding, and coordination challenges obstruct data sharing and integration. Bridging these gaps requires investment not only in physical infrastructure, but in people, particularly young African scientists who can operate monitoring systems, analyse data, and develop locally relevant climate services.
Co-Creation at the Core
A defining feature of the KADI approach is its insistence that climate services must be demand-driven and co-created. This means bringing together scientists, local communities, city councils, civil society, and policymakers from the very start – from setting research priorities and collecting data through to delivering actionable knowledge.
The white paper highlights concrete pilots that tested this approach in practice. In urban climate observation, low-cost sensors were combined with community knowledge to address data gaps at a city scale. The Resilience Academy model, piloted in one of KADI’s partner cities, demonstrated how universities, practitioners, and communities can work together to equip young professionals with practical, field-based climate skills. These examples show that inclusive co-creation is not just an aspiration, it is achievable.
Four Priorities for Action
The white paper closes with a clear call to move from knowledge to action, structured around four priorities:
- Changing the research and knowledge mindset: embedding participatory, cross-cultural approaches that respect local and indigenous knowledge alongside scientific data.
- Collaboration: fostering multidisciplinary, cross-sector partnerships, aligned with governance frameworks such as the WMO National Framework for Climate Services.
- Long-term sustainable investments: securing financing beyond individual project cycles through innovative multi-stakeholder funding that combines governments, donors, philanthropy, and the private sector.
- Anticipating the future: building Africa’s capacity to model and forecast climate change decades ahead, powered by improved observational data and digital infrastructure.
“KADI’s legacy lies in the institutions, people and networks that have become part of the Communities of Practice, carrying forward the vision for the research and knowledge infrastructure set out in KADI’s blueprint,” add’s Theresia. “Through its commitment to open science, investment in knowledge exchange and empowerment of young professionals, KADI has laid the groundwork for Africa’s research and knowledge infrastructure, owned, sustained and continuously improved from within the continent.”
The Road Ahead
The KADI project represents both a milestone and a launch pad. The white paper’s recommendations are directed at a broad audience – African and European policymakers, research funders, national meteorological services, regional bodies, and the private sector. Together, they are called upon to build climate research infrastructure that is owned on the African continent, grounded in open science, and designed to last.
The full white paper, Co-Creating Data-Driven Climate Solutions for Africa, is available here.
KADI project received funding from European Union’s Horizon Europe programme under grant agreement 101058525