Common Alerting Protocol as cornerstone for digital MHEWS
Recent developments around the Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) reflect growing global momentum to standardise and strengthen early warning communication. CAP - a digital format for delivering consistent, multi-channel alerts - is central to platforms like the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies' (IFRC) Alert Hub, which helps communities act early by broadening access to official alerts published by government agencies.
The IFRC Alert Hub has now built a sizable database of CAP alerts, collecting approximately 5 million every quarter from World Meteorological Organization-recognised authorities. Researchers are analysing this data to evaluate coverage in disaster-prone areas, language inclusivity, clarity of recommended actions, and opportunities for public feedback. The results are being shared with alerting authorities and provide guidance for increasing the quality and impact of their alerts.
Country-level efforts underscore CAP's adaptability and impact. In Ghana, the Meteorological Agency scaled up CAP-based dissemination in 2024 across WhatsApp, Telegram, social media, and forecast platforms. More broadly, the scale up of CAP messaging has been enabled by the rollout of the ClimWeb package, supported by CREWS , and the Norwegian Refugee Council's Norwegian Capacity (NORCAP) which includes an upgraded CAP-enabled interface that delivers image rich, multilingual alerts in real time via radio, social media, and web dashboards. By the end of 2024, ClimWeb has been rolled out to 19 African nations providing professional, user-friendly online platforms that integrate CAP alerting and improve public visibility of CAP alerts issued by NMHS in Africa. Enabled by ClimWeb, between Feb 2024 and 31 July 2025, ANAM Togo (Met agency) has issued 47 CAP alerts and continues to do so and Guinea Bissau has issued 9 in June and July 2025 alone.
The IFRC's Global Disaster Preparedness Center supported CAP expansion in Togo, Burundi, Burkina Faso, and Eswatini, tailoring strategies to national priorities through workshops and MHEWS assessments. Using the IFRC's Public Awareness and Public Education messages for Disaster Risk Reduction, the development of contextualised sets of actionable messages for priority hazards was prioritised. The agreed upon sets of messages can be included in official CAP alerts and distributed across different media platforms. Together, these initiatives show that CAP is becoming a cornerstone for digital MHEWS - enabling faster, more inclusive alerts while supporting anticipatory action and local engagement.