Rainfall in the Sahel

Abstract

This issues paper is concerned with rainfall variations in ten sub-Saharan countries that can be classed as lying within the Sahelian region. The ten countries are Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Chad, Sudan, Ethiopia, Djibouti, and Somalia. The Sahel region of Africa, the semi-arid area to the south of the Sahara, has experienced a very pronounced climate anomaly over the last twenty years with widespread, below-normal rainfall. In the western half of the latitude band, every seasonal rainfall total since 1968 has been below normal. Given the marginal nature of the region in term as of its rainfall amounts and consequent agriculture and pastoralism, any deficit in the primary resource of water has immediate and potentially disastrous effects." (Farmer)