World Meteorological Organisation (WMO)

The World Meteorological Organization is a specialized UN agency that is tasked with supporting the activities of meteorological services around the world by fostering international networking and standardisation of observation data and the statistical basis for data evaluation. The WMO’ s activities are particularly important for the maritime shipping, aviation and agricultural sectors and have a huge practical impact on investigating and gaining better insight into climate change and the related risks.

This multilateral international cooperation format in the field of meteorology dates back to the year 1873 when the International Meteorological Organization (IMO) was established at the first International Meteorological Congress in Vienna based on the initiative of the Österreichische Zentralanstalt für Meteorologie und Geodynamik (Austrian Central Institute for Meteorology and Geodynamics). 

Headquartered in Geneva since 1951, the World Meteorological Organization succeeded IMO and became a UN specialised agency in the same year. The WMO has 189 members, consisting of 183 independent states and six territories. 

In 2012, Austria’s contribution to the WMO’s budget amounts to 548,100 Swiss francs or a share of 0.84 per cent.