Thirty-day rainfall surpluses continue to grow across western Ethiopia and western South Sudan
1) Poorly distributed and significantly below average seasonal rainfall has resulted in deteriorating ground conditions since January. This has negatively impacted crops and livestock throughout many parts of southern Angola and northern Namibia.
2) Since the second dekad of March, little to no rainfall has been received across portions of eastern Angola, and western Zambia. Late season moisture deficits indicate an early departure of the southern Africa monsoon in the region. The poor rains have led to an expected maize crop reduction in parts of southern Zambia.
3) Since the beginning of February, pronounced dry spells and poorly distributed seasonal rainfall have negatively affected parts of the Caprivi Strip region, Zambia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa.
4) Poor March rainfall and deteriorating soil moisture across parts of Malawi, eastern Zambia, southern Tanzania and northern Mozambique is likely to adversely affect crops in the region.
5) After above-average precipitation was received in January, seasonal rainfall has ceased since mid-February leading to significant ground moisture deficits in northern Mozambique.
6) Despite an increase in rainfall since mid-April, the delayed onset of seasonal rainfall has led to unfavorable ground conditions for northeastern “Belg” producing areas of Ethiopia. The erratic nature of the seasonal rains has negatively impacted cropping activities, likely resulting in below-average crop yields.