The public has two weeks to study and give views on a proposed law that criminalises spreading of false weather information.
The Ministry of Environment and Forestry will virtually hold a national validation workshop for the proposed law on December 15.
The Meteorology Policy and Bill was initially published in May last year but has been revised to accommodate new views.
It seeks to turn the Meteorological Department into an independent authority, headed by a director general and funded directly from the Treasury.
Environment Cabinet Secretary Keriako Tobiko said the law will strengthen Met as the single authoritative voice on weather and climate in Kenya.
“This policy document will enable Kenya Meteorological Department meet its mandate in a more structured, efficient and effective manner,” he said.
Met officials told the Star the proposed law crucially frees the department from the red tape it faces as a unit of the Ministry of Environment.
It seeks to consolidate the authority’s powers and also regulate the multiple weather services providers, who must now meet a certain threshold and be registered.
Quack weathermen have also been put on notice. They will “on conviction be liable to a fine not exceeding one million shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to both,” the proposed law says.
It protects the Meteorological Department from being liable for damages arising from its forecasts.
“The authority is not liable for any damage, loss or injury sustained or alleged to have been sustained, by any person as a result of such person’s reliance on meteorological information provided by the authority,” it says.
Environment Principal Secretary Chris Kiptoo said the policy will fashion the new authority along the best practices globally.
“This policy marks a big milestone in the country's response to the growing need for meteorological services in all sectors of the economy,” he said.
Meteorological observations in Kenya date back to 1890 when Mombasa Old Observatory was established.
However, organised meteorological services were established in 1929 as part of the British East African Meteorological Service, which was renamed the East African Meteorological Department in 1948.
With the break-up of the East African Community in 1977, the Kenya Meteorological Department was established as a department in the Ministry of Power and Communications.
It was later moved to the Ministry of Environment and Forestry.
