DPGs for Climate Action Collection
PRISM
All DPGs included in the DPGs for Climate Action Collection must meet the requirements outlined in the accompanying identification framework.
To demonstrate compliance, each applying DPG is required to complete a structured submission. The information below reflects the self-reported responses provided as part of that process.
Verified digital public good
PRISM
Open-source software · World Food Programme (WFP)
https://github.com/WFP-VAM/prism-appAn open-source geospatial dashboard that simplifies access to climate and Earth-observation data for disaster-risk monitoring and forecasting. PRISM turns hazard, forecast and vulnerability data into decision-ready risk indicators and email alerts, building national capacity for anticipatory action within the Early Warnings for All and Sendai frameworks.
DPG Compliance & Profile Page: https://www.digitalpublicgoods.net/r/prism
At a glance
- Climate objectives
- Monitoring · Adaptation · Tech Transfer & Capacity Building · Cross-cutting
- Sectors
- Disaster Risk Reduction · Food Security · Cross-sector
- Deployment
- Regional · National
- Countries active
- 7
- Owner
- World Food Programme
- Type
- Open-source software
- Data extraction
- OGC WMS / WCS / Features API · COG / Zarr · PMTiles
- Year listed
- 2024
Climate DPG Framework · Compliance status
All four layers met
| L1 | DPG Standard | Verified & listed on the Registry (13 Feb 2024) | ✓ Verified |
|---|---|---|---|
| L2 | Climate Alignment | Climate-relevant by design (EW, anticipatory action) | ✓ Met |
| L3 | Infrastructural Approach | Interoperability L3 · Adoption readiness L2 | ✓ Met |
| L4 | Measuring Outcomes | 7 countries equipped; KPI reported | ✓ Met |
✦ Admitted to the Climate Action Collection
Layer 1DPG Standard
PRISM is a verified digital public good, listed on the DPG Registry (MIT licence, https://github.com/WFP-VAM/prism-app), having met all nine indicators of the DPG Standard. Layer 1 is a precondition for entry to the DPGs for Climate Action Collection.
Layer 2Climate Relevance
Climate-relevant problem addressed
PRISM simplifies access to climate and Earth observation data for disaster-risk monitoring and forecasting. Through intuitive software, it builds national capacity for climate monitoring and anticipatory actions. PRISM uses geospatial standards and focuses on interoperability for easy systems integration.
Theory of contribution
PRISM contributes to climate action by providing national meteorological and disaster management agencies with up-to-date climate and Earth observation data. This includes forecast-derived risk indicators which enable anticipatory actions (AA). AA follows standard protocols to trigger assistance when forecast indicator thresholds are met. PRISM visualizes this information and publishes email alerts when conditions are met.
Frameworks it aligns with
- Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction
- Early Warnings for All
How alignment is achieved
PRISM was developed within the context of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, and has since evolved to meet technology needs of national institutions to monitor climate risks. WFP's Country Strategic Plans align with national planning frameworks, and PRISM is positioned as a form of technical assistance by WFP to governments to achieve national capacity development goals on climate disaster risk reduction. PRISM is increasingly integrated within the Early Warnings for All initiative, providing climate risk information to all via national meteorological and disaster management agencies.
Supported Decisions or Actions
- Operational — early-warning activation, service delivery. Decisions are made by WFP and by government institutions, specifically climate-action working groups leveraging early-warning and anticipatory-action frameworks.
Layer 3Infrastructural Approach
Modular design
PRISM is designed as a decoupled, layered geospatial platform rather than a monolithic system. Its frontend deploys independently per country using custom domains and automated scripts, allowing new regional instances to launch without core code modifications. Security and access rely on an abstracted dual-provider authentication system—separating internal staff and external partner sign-in—which decouples identity handling from core business logic. Data processing is fully composable and source-agnostic, using standardized ETL pipelines, canonical keys, and content hashing to ensure auditability across varied climate inputs. To balance performance needs, raster data uses a dual-backend strategy: Cloud-Optimized GeoTIFFs (COGs) serve fast tile-based map visualization, while Zarr handles pixel-level time-series extraction. Finally, visualization relies on standardized, open protocols (such as OGC interfaces and PMTiles), enabling data sources to be swapped or integrated across external systems without disrupting downstream applications.
Data processing
| Ingestion | Source-agnostic ETL pipelines per source type: REST API integrations, OGC web services (WMS, WCS), event-based alert feeds (serverless), and cloud-native archives (e.g. CHIRPS precipitation). Ingestion runs as scheduled/serverless jobs, so new countries or data sources are onboarded through configuration, not rebuilding one. |
|---|---|
| Validation | Anchored in provenance: each dataset is authoritative at its system-owner source; WFP-sourced inputs come from established global providers (NASA, ECMWF) with downstream indicators computed by WFP using peer-reviewed methodologies, so data enters PRISM carrying institutional accountability. |
| Dissemination | Interactive map visualization via WMS/COG tile layers in the PRISM dashboard and per-country instances on custom subdomains; a forthcoming shift to COG-based tiling makes outputs more efficiently consumable. |
Integrations & Adapters
PRISM exposes and consumes data through open, standards-based interfaces rather than proprietary connectors, so it interoperates cleanly with other systems. Its per-country deployment model lets a national government run its own PRISM instance (local boundaries, languages) while drawing on shared data services, supporting local ownership while allowing reuse by other national systems. Because access is via OGC services (WMS, WCS, Features API) and open formats (COG, PMTiles), any standards-capable external system can consume the same data without custom connectors.
Maturity scales
Interoperability*
Level 3 / 5 — Standardized
Interoperability Evidence
Open, domain-standard geospatial protocols throughout: OGC WMS, WCS and OGC Features API endpoints; cloud-native open formats (COG for tiled visualization, Zarr for time-series); PMTiles for vector datasets. Cross-system precedent: ADAM integration via OGC Features API. Public code on GitHub. (Formal OpenAPI/Swagger developer portal in development.)
Adoption readiness**
Level 2 / 5 — Documented/Structured
Scalability, Performance & reliability
PRISM runs on AWS. Some map and data services run on ECS Fargate, so they can scale with demand instead of relying on one fixed server. Each country has its own frontend instance, so a problem in one country’s site doesn’t affect the others. All instances share the central HDC data services. The planned COG and Zarr backends will let clients fetch only the tiles or time slices they need, which reduces server load and bandwidth.
Computing & energy intensity
PRISM’s compute needs are modest. It serves and visualizes data and runs light ETL jobs, with no model training or large simulations. Some map services run on AWS ECS Fargate, so capacity can scale with demand. Cloud-optimized formats (COG and Zarr, being introduced, and PMTiles for vector boundaries) let users download only the area or time period they need, which reduces bandwidth for low-connectivity users.
Layer 4Measuring Climate Outcomes
Measurable outcomes it facilitates
- Improved early warning systems (lead time, coverage, accuracy)
- Climate data infrastructure, interoperability, or accessibility improved
Reach in numbers
7 countries equipped with national climate-monitoring systems (Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Mozambique, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania)
Key performance & impact indicators
| Category | Indicator Name | Definition / Unit of Measurement | Data Source | Baseline (if available) | Most Recent Value | Reporting Frequency / Evidence Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Technology Transfer & Capacity-building | Number of countries equipped with national climate monitoring systems | Countries with PRISM deployments | WFP | 0 | 7 | WFP reporting |
Deployment countries · 7
Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Mozambique, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tanzania
Adopting Organizations
Seven national meteorological and disaster-management agencies run PRISM
- Cambodia National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM)
- Sri Lanka Department of Meteorology (DOM)
- Mozambique National Meteorology Institute (INAM)
- Malawi Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services (DCCMS)
- Zimbabwe Meteorological Services Department (MSD)
- Zambia Meteorological Department (ZMD)
- Tanzania Meteorological Authority (TMA)
Evidence & Additional Resources · 9 sources
Live per-country deployments and public agency listings documenting real-world uptake.
Evidence Sources
Impact metrics currently from WFP internal programme reporting; publicly evidenced through the operational per-country instances listed below.
Evidence of Adoption
- Mozambique INAM (PRISM under Data & Tools) — https://inam.gov.mz/
- Sri Lanka DOM (PRISM under Climate) — https://meteo.gov.lk/
WFP also hosts official versions of the platform for each country:
- Cambodia — https://www.prism-kh.info/
- Sri Lanka — https://prism.lka.wfp.org/
- Mozambique — https://prism.moz.wfp.org/
- Malawi — https://prism.mwi.wfp.org/
- Zimbabwe — https://prism.zwe.wfp.org/
- Zambia — https://prism.zmb.wfp.org/
- Tanzania — https://prism.tza.wfp.org/
Independent validation
The product owner has identified the following types of external validation applicable to this solution:
- Government validation — real-world adoption, deployment, or formal endorsement by a national government authority — e.g. a ministry, designated national authority, or national meteorological service
The information above reflects the self-reported responses provided by the product owner as part of a structured compliance submission against the Framework for Identifying Digital Public Goods for Climate Action.
* Interoperability, Integration, and Adapters are evaluated in 5 levels:
Level 1 Isolated: Uses proprietary formats or hardcoded logic; requires custom "glue code" or manual conversion to work with external climate tools.
Level 2 Compatible: Data/software can be exported or integrated using common formats (e.g., CSV, JSON), but lacks automated synchronization or shared metadata.
Level 3 Standardized: Adheres to domain-specific standards (e.g., NetCDF/HDF5 for data, OGC APIs for software) but requires some configuration to link.
Level 4 Integrated: Uses machine-readable schemas and versioned APIs; external systems can "plug in" and pull climate variables without manual intervention.
Level 5 Ecosystem-Ready: Fully modular; follows "FAIR" principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) and supports automated cross-platform workflows (e.g., a climate model automatically pulling from your dataset).
** Adoption readiness perspective is assessed in 5 levels:
Level 1 Experimental/Raw: The solution exists as "source material" only. It requires significant manual effort, custom scripts, or compilation to become functional. There is no automated setup, and the user must "build" the environment from scratch.
Level 2 Documented/Structured: The solution is organized and includes instructions. Requirements and dependencies are clearly listed, but the setup process is still manual.
Level 3 Portable / Containerized: The solution is "packaged." It uses industry-standard wrappers (e.g., Docker, Parquet, or Standardized Schemas) that allow it to run or be read in any standard environment with a single command or import.
Level 4 Orchestrated / Cloud-Optimized: The solution is designed for modern infrastructure. It includes "Infrastructure as Code" (e.g., Terraform, Helm, or Crawlable Data Catalogs) that allows for automated deployment into cloud environments (AWS/Azure/GCP) with built-in scaling and management.
Level 5 Productized / Plug-and-Play: It offers a zero-friction experience, such as a managed API, a Serverless function, or a Public Data Marketplace listing. A user can gain value or insights within minutes without managing any underlying infrastructure.
