Ghana's El Niño year: heat, dust, rain and a 2028 power test
A very strong El Niño is building in the Pacific. GMet's advisory maps what it could mean for Ghana's heat, food, health, water and power, month by month, into 2028.
Ghana is bracing for a strong El Niño weather pattern in 2027, which will bring hotter temperatures, reduced rainfall, and increased dust. According to the Ghana Meteorological Agency (GMet), El Niño is the warm phase of a natural cycle in the Pacific Ocean, causing shifts in thunderstorms, winds, and rainfall across the tropics. This includes the West African region, which will experience the effects of the El Niño.
During the dry season from late November, Ghana can expect below-normal rainfall and warmer-than-average temperatures, particularly in the north. The dry season is expected to become hotter and drier, with the risk of bushfires and dust increasing due to the drying vegetation. The harmattan, a dry and dusty wind, is not strongly influenced by El Niño, but the dry ground and vegetation going into it could worsen its intensity.
From February to April, northern Ghana is likely to experience unusually hot temperatures, although climate change is the main driver of recent West African heat, with El Niño contributing only about 0.2°C to the March–April 2024 Sahel heatwave. The next rainy season, which begins in late April, has the potential to be disappointing or excessive, and could lead to flooding in the northern parts of Ghana.
Written by urgent.news from 3News's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
