Kampala — THE Meteorology department in the water and environment ministry cannot provide sufficient data to determine weather changes.

Participants attending a four-day training on disaster preparedness, which ended last Thursday, heard that the unit, which is a key player in disaster management and riskreduction, was poorly funded and understaffed.

Lawrence Arribo, a meteorologist, who also works as a senior programme officer in the adaptation toclimate change unit, said the department had only four employees.

Arribo said the country had only 12 meteorology stations, from which they gather data.

"We need more staff to be based at the districts so that they can take regular readings," Arribo said.

He, however, added the Government was planning to increase funding to the department.

Closing the training, Maj. Gen. Julius Oketta, the national coordinator of civil-military cooperation in disaster management and risk reduction, said people should not neglect traditional methods, which were used to predict weather changes.

Oketta said some of these methods saved people from natural disasters.

The training was organised by the office of the Prime Minister and private partners in the fight against climate change at Gracious Palace Hotel in Lira district.

The participants included members of the district disaster management committees and international consultants in disaster management and risk reduction.