Dr Makarau
Innocent Ruwende Senior Reporter
Zimbabwe and the bulk of the Southern African Development Community (Sadc) region are likely to receive normal to above-normal rainfall for most of the period January to May 2018, weather experts have said.
According to a mid-season review outlook update for the 2017/ 2018 rainfall season in the Sadc region issued by the 21st Annual Southern Africa Regional Climate Outlook Forum (SARCOF-21), which met in Gaborone, Botswana from December 5 to 8, said there were increased chances of normal to above-normal rainfall in the region. The period between October and March is the main rainfall season for most of Southern Africa.
“However, the extreme western part of Angola, Namibia, south-western part of South Africa, extreme northwest of DRC and eastern Madagascar are more likely to receive normal to below-normal rainfall for some of the seasons,” said the weather experts.
Climate scientists from the Sadc National Meteorological and Hydrological Services and the Sadc Climate Services Centre formulated the update.
“Rainfall increases from southwest to northeast over contiguous Sadc during the January, February and March and February, March and April periods. During March, April and May, most of the region receives little rainfall except in north-western DRC, eastern Tanzania, eastern Madagascar and Mauritius,” they said.
According to the forecast over Madagascar, the rains increase from west to east, while the rains are more uniformly distributed in Mauritius during the January to February to March (JFM) period.
“In the March-April-May period, the rainfall is significantly reduced over contiguous Sadc and an east to west decrease is also evident over Madagascar and Mauritius.”
In its seasonal forecast, Zimbabwe’s Meteorological Services Department (MSD) said the country was expected to receive normal rains during the 2017 /2018 season, with the southern parts of the country expected to receive normal to below normal rains.
MSD director Dr Amos Makarau said there was a possibility that national dams, most of which were about 80 percent full, would overflow during the rainy season. This, he also warned, might result in water-borne diseases, especially in urban areas.
“We are concerned that most of our dams are almost full and any small amount of rain from December onwards may lead to flooding in some areas,” said Dr Makarau.
“We should concentrate on water harvesting so that we harness the water for irrigation.”