The establishment of WASCAL as an international organization is an important step towards the goal to install WASCAL as a permanent research facility in West Africa which will serve as a regional climate service center. “Research projects are usually limited in time. As a consequence, researchers but also their findings and research infrastructure often leave the study region after finishing the project. With the establishment of WASCAL as a regional international organization we want to ensure access to research findings and infrastructure in West Africa in the long term”, explains Prof. Dr. Paul Vlek, Executive Director of WASCAL and Director at the Center for Development Research in Bonn. Moreover, by recognizing the WASCAL agreement, the participating West African countries will start to contribute financially to WASCAL’s budget from 2013 onwards. “In the future WASCAL will be a common resource for the West African States, funded by the participating countries and international donors”, Vlek states further.