Development and Implementation of EWS-Beni

Technical assistance supported the development and implementation of a flood Early Warning System for the Beni region, aimed at minimizing the adverse effects of floods through improved monitoring, forecasting, and warning dissemination, together with the transfer of these technologies to the relevant Bolivian institutions

The Beni region, part of the Amazon basin, is one of Bolivia’s most flood prone areas, with recurring high-water events on the Beni and Mamoré rivers affecting communities, livestock, and crops. The project combined hydrologic modelling and simulation with technology transfer to Bolivian institutions, so the system could be operated and sustained locally. Alongside monitoring and forecasting, the work gave equal weight to warning dissemination, communication, and emergency preparation and response.

To ground the system’s design in real needs, research was carried out through interviews with experts and community members with direct flood experience, combined with a review of existing literature and analysis of the current Early Warning System. This identified the key stakeholders, including disaster agencies, national and local governments, local businesses, local communities, residents, and vulnerable communities, each requiring forecasts at different lead times. The analysis also revealed gaps in the monitoring network’s operation, maintenance, and coordination, and found that despite using channels like radio, TV, phones, and door-to-door notification, many people still received no warning at all, pointing to a need for tools such as loudhailers and sirens.

The research showed that a warning’s effectiveness depends on its accuracy, reliability, credibility, and timeliness, and on who delivers it. In terms of response, saving family, belongings, and livestock were the main priorities for residents, while farmers often took no action to protect crops, with risk awareness and prior flood experience shaping how people perceived and responded to danger. These findings directly informed the specifications for improving the region’s Early Warning System.

The project contributed to strengthening flood early warning in the Beni region by:

• Developing and implementing a flood Early Warning System based on hydrologic modelling and simulation, adapted to the needs of the groups on the frontline.
• Transferring monitoring and forecasting technologies to Bolivian institutions for autonomous operation.
• Producing feasible specifications for improved warning dissemination and emergency response.
• Developing and implementing a capacity building programme for SENAMHI and MMAyA, so that the institutions can develop the system autonomously.