The principal aim of the DEWFORA proposal is to develop a framework for the provision of early warning and response to mitigate the impact of droughts in Africa. The proposal has been built to achive three key targets:

1. Improved monitoring: by improving knowledge on drought forecasting, warning and mitigation, and advancing the understanding of climate related vulnerability to drought ¿ both in the current and in the projected future climate.

2. Prototype operational forecasting: by bringing advances made in the project to the pre-operational stage through development of prototype systems and piloting methods in operational drought monitoring and forecasting agencies.

3. Knowledge dissemination: through a stakeholders platform that includes national and regional drought monitoring and forecasting agencies, as well as NGO´s and IGO´s, and through capacity building programmes to help embed the knowledge gained in the community of African practitioners and researchers.

To achieve these targets, the DEWFORA consortium brings together leading research institutes and universities; institutes that excel in application of state-of-the-art science in the operational domain; operational agencies responsible for meteorological forecasting, drought monitoring and famine warning; and established knowledge networks in Africa. The consortium provides an excellent regional balance, and the skilled coordinator and several partners have worked together in (European) research projects, implementation projects and capacity building programmes, thus building efficiently on previous and ongoing projects in Europe and Africa. The main impact of DEWFORA will be to increase the effectiveness of drought forecasting, warning and response. DEWFORA will provide guidance on how and where drought preparedness and adaptation should be targeted to contribute to increased resilience and improved effectiveness of drought mitigation measures.