RIYADH: The Arab Red Crescent and Red Cross Organization and the Saudi National Center of Meteorology signed a memorandum of understanding on Sunday to strengthen their partnership in forecasting disasters in the Arab world, the Saudi Press Agency reported. The MoU was signed by ARCO Secretary-General Dr. Saleh bin Hamad Al-Tuwaijri and the center’s CEO Dr. Ayman bin Salem Ghulam.  Al-Tuwaijri described the agreement as a “groundbreaking step” toward disaster preparedness in the region, utilizing the center’s latest techniques and technologies that monitor early warning signs and reduce human and material losses.  The MoU also outlines cooperation between the two institutions in the areas of training and research in weather and climate monitoring, as well as rapid response to disaster risks.  ARCO previously established an Arab center for disaster preparedness in Riyadh’s Diplomatic Quarter, which monitors signs of their occurrence, follows up on developments, and analyzes data, specifying the measures that may be taken and raising humanitarian appeals to request aid for affected areas.