Attachments
Highlights
• Early season dryness from May onwards led drier than average conditions affected most of West Africa region, spanning across a wide region from south eastern Senegal - Guinea across eastern Mali, Burkina Faso , Niger and northern Nigeria regions as well as CAR.
• From July, the rainy season has been much favorable across most of West Africa. Sahel region has benefited from more favorable conditions and Easternmost areas are the wettest while Mano river countries remain below average seasonal rainfall.
• In some areas, over Western and Southern Guinea, Northern Sierra Leone, Northern Ghana, Northern Cote d’Ivoire, Central Cameroon and Nigeria Eastern areas neighbouring Central Cameroon was less rainy than usual this year. Guinea affected by early season dryness, July provide respite and continuing improvement until September, was extended over Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire and Ghana. However, over southern Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria extended to Central Cameroon deficits have been mostly light to moderate and conditions in Sierra Leone remain below average.
• A pattern of strongly above average vegetation emerged during September and October: this is particularly noticeable in the whole Sahel.
This development is due to a better than average overall rainfall season. It mostly results from increase and improvement in rainfall since late July, and wetter conditions in August and September led to a continuous, vigorous response from grasslands resulting in significantly above average vegetation levels.
• Cumulative Heavy rainfall during August and September has caused flooding affecting many areas in the region throughout Niger, Mali, Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Mauritania, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Gambia, Benin, Cabo Verde and CAR. This resulted fatalities, material damage, destruction of livelihood, population displacements and deteriorated access. The impact in 2020 is particularly severe, and the number of people affected is almost double from last year. Its reported, 2.1 million people affected (of which 195,000 in DRC and 46,000 in Rep. of Congo ), 86,000 people displaced, 412 people killed, 559 people injured and 189,000 houses destroyed/damaged (of which 6,000 in DRC ). These Include 7,956 damaged shelters in Burkina Faso and Nigeria.
• In West Africa crop prospects are generally favourable due to good seasonal rainfall except in areas affected by ongoing conflict. Harvesting of main season crops is complete in some areas and will complete across the Sahel in December. Along of the Gulf of Guinea despite the below average rainfall, conditions are favourable. In Niger, production of 2020 main season cereals is expected to be slightly above-average and Chad 2020 cereal production prospects are only near-average due to long dry periods in August as well as localized flooding in July and August in some areas. In Togo, overall 2020 cereal production is estimated to be slightly above-average as the rains were favourable for crop development. In Nigeria, despite impacts from conflict, flooding in the northwest and northcentral, 2020 cereal crop production is estimated at slightly above the previous five-year average due to above-average cumulative precipitation amounts. In Central African Republic, resurgence of violence by armed groups in the northwest and southeast is disrupting agricultural activities and is likely to result in a significant decrease in crop production despite favourable seasonal rainfall.