ResAlert II: Making early warnings work for everyone

Every rainy season, floods reach people’s homes in Thies, Kafrrine and Niamey. Warnings exist, but they don’t reach everyone, and those who get them aren’t always told what to do next.

Through the ResAlert II project, Practical Action is working with communities, public institutions and technical partners to strengthen inclusive flood early warning systems in Thiès and Kaffrine in Senegal and Niamey in Niger. Building on lessons from the first phase of this project, this new phase combines weather and climate information with local knowledge and accessible communication channels.

In Senegal, the project will strengthen the existing system in the city of Thiès and adapt the approach for Kaffrine. In Niamey, Niger, it will develop a locally managed river-flood warning system. By involving women, young people, older people and people with disabilities in designing and testing warnings, ResAlert II aims to help more people understand flood risks, take timely action and protect their lives and livelihoods.

Why inclusive early warnings matter

Flooding is a recurring challenge in Senegal and Niger. In Thiès and Kaffrine, urban and peri-urban areas face recurrent flooding, while Niamey is exposed to seasonal flooding from the Niger River. Floods can damage homes and infrastructure, disrupt livelihoods and essential services, and increase health and protection risks.

Not everyone faces these risks in the same way. Women, children, older people, people with disabilities and other marginalised groups can encounter additional barriers to receiving, understanding and acting on warnings. Lessons from the first phase of the project highlighted gaps in the reach of existing warning systems, including limited geographic coverage, language and literacy barriers, and insufficient guidance on protective action.

Through ResAlert II, we will address these gaps by bringing communities and public institutions together to improve how warnings are developed, communicated and used. The aim is to make flood preparedness more accessible and locally owned, helping communities act earlier and strengthening the long-term sustainability of warning systems.

Project approach

Our goal is to strengthen flood early warning systems in the three project locations, making them more inclusive, accessible and sustainable. We combine technical improvements, institutional capacity building and community participation to help ensure warnings reach people in ways they can understand and act on.

• In Thiès, we will expand the existing warning system, strengthen community relays and improve how alerts reach people in flood-prone areas.
• In Kaffrine, we will adapt and replicate this approach through local assessments, training and collaboration with communities, local authorities, the National Agency of Civil Aviation and Meteorology (ANACIM) and Jokalante.
• In Niamey, we will develop a river-flood early warning system with national institutions, supporting local ownership and its long-term management.

Partnerships with meteorological services, local authorities, communities, civil society and technical organisations are central to this work. The project will also apply a gender equality and social inclusion approach, drawing on Practical Action’s Missing Voices approach to involve groups whose perspectives are often overlooked.

Alongside strengthening inclusive warning systems, the project will build evidence and support learning, advocacy and policy engagement to inform future investment and the wider use of inclusive early warning approaches.

By the end of the project, we will…

• Thiès: Expand the existing early warning system, aiming to send alerts directly to approximately 1,500–2,000 registered usersin flood-exposed areas and strengthen community capacity to prepare and act.
• Kaffrine: Establish an inclusive early warning system targeting approximately 1,500 registered users, involving women, young people, older people and people with disabilities in its design and testing.
• Niamey: Develop an inclusive digital warning system for urban river flooding and support its transfer to the Direction Générale de l’Hydraulique, strengthening national capacity to manage flood warnings.
• Across all locations: Improve communities’ and institutions’ ability to use weather and climate information to prepare for floods, while generating evidence to inform future policy, financing and replication.