Pakistan unveils AI weather forecasting platform NIGRAAN at COP31
Pakistan has unveiled a new AI weather forecasting platform, NIGRAAN, at the COP31 climate conference in Antalya, Türkiye. The platform was launched on 13 November at the Pakistan Pavilion, in the presence of Minister of State for Climate Change Dr Shizra Mansab Khan Kharal and international climate experts.
What NIGRAAN does
Developed by AI Geo Navigators, NIGRAAN uses hyperlocal weather data and artificial intelligence to spot potential hazards, assess vulnerable locations and estimate the risks to infrastructure and other assets. It brings together AI-driven risk screening, weather monitoring, a conversational AI that explains climate information in plain language, and a scenario-based Hybrid Lab where users can examine possible future climate events and what they might mean on the ground.
Why Pakistan needs it
Speaking at the launch, Dr Kharal said Pakistan contributes less than one percent of global greenhouse gas emissions yet remains among the countries most vulnerable to climate change. Emerging technologies, she said, have to strengthen climate preparedness and give the public reliable information about the hazards around them. AI Geo Navigators chief executive Asim Javid also addressed the ceremony, which drew representatives from Germanwatch, ZERO13, WaterAid Pakistan and the Sustainable Development Policy Institute, and was moderated by GIS analyst Laiba Tanvir.
The weather department’s own pitch
The freshest news from Antalya came on Sunday, when Pakistan Meteorological Department Director General Dr Muhammad Afzal presented the department’s own AI and digital meteorology initiatives at a COP31 side event, joining virtually. It is not Pakistan’s first step into AI forecasting — the department has already been using China’s MAZU AI weather system for about a year and a half to sharpen monsoon and flood forecasts.
