JEDDAH: The World Meteorological Organization has praised Saudi Arabia for its creation of a Regional Program for Climate Change. The initiative aims to understand the effects of climate change at the regional and international level, study renewable energy sources such as wind and solar, and contribute to global knowledge sharing. The program was announced during the Middle East Green Initiative Summit, which took place in Riyadh last year. Two other initiatives — the Regional Center for Early Warning from Sand and Dust Storms and the Regional Program for Cloud Seeding — were also announced at the summit as part of the Kingdom’s ongoing commitment to international efforts in the field. The latest program has social, environmental and economic implications, by raising public awareness of climate change issues, helping the Kingdom to find natural resources to tackle the effects of those issues, and mitigating their impact. In a statement issued on March 23 — World Meteorological Day — WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas said the Kingdom played a major role in the regional system for tackling climate change and had established a specialist center to help achieve its goals. The Kingdom marked this year’s World Meteorological Day with the slogan “Early Warning and Early Action.” Saudi Arabia has been a member of the WMO since 1959. The UN agency is dedicated to promoting international cooperation on issues of weather, climate and the distribution of water resources. The WMO has praised the Kingdom for its contribution to the organization, its work in the field of meteorology, and the regional efforts made by the National Center of Meteorology.