• Military Menu                       

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Industry
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• WMD
• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Nigeria - Climate

As in most of West Africa, Nigeria's climate is characterized by strong latitudinal zones, becoming progressively drier as one moves north from the coast. Rainfall is the key climatic variable, and there is a marked alternation of wet and dry seasons in most areas. Two air masses control rainfall—moist northward-moving maritime air coming from the Atlantic Ocean and dry continental air coming south from the African landmass. Topographic relief plays a significant role in local climate only around the Jos Plateau and along the eastern border highlands. In the coastal and southeastern portions of Nigeria, the rainy season usually begins in February or March as moist Atlantic air, known as the southwest monsoon, invades the country. The beginning of the rains is usually marked by the incidence of high winds and heavy but scattered squalls.

The scattered quality of this rainfall is especially noticeable in the north in dry years, when rain may be abundant in some small areas while other contiguous places are completely dry. By April or early May in most years, the rainy season is under way throughout most of the area south of the Niger and Benue river valleys. Farther north, the rains do not usually commence before June or July. Through most of northern Nigeria, the peak of the rainy season occurs in August, when air from the Atlantic covers the entire country. In southern regions, this period marks the August dip in precipitation. Although rarely completely dry, this dip in rainfall, which is especially marked in the southwest, can be useful agriculturally because it allows a brief dry period for grain harvesting.

From September through November, the northeast trade winds generally bring a season of clear skies, moderate temperatures, and lower humidity for most of the country. From December through February, however, the northeast trade winds blow strongly and often bring with them a load of fine dust from the Sahara. These dust-laden winds, known locally as the harmattan, often appear as a dense fog and cover everything with a layer of fine particles. The harmattan is more common in the north but affects the entire country except for a narrow strip along the southwest coast. An occasional strong harmattan, however, can sweep as far south as Lagos, providing relief from high humidities in the capital and pushing clouds of dust out to sea.

Given this climatological cycle and the size of the country, there is a considerable range in total annual rainfall across Nigeria, both from south to north and, in some regions, from east to west. The greatest total precipitation is generally in the southeast, along the coast around Bonny (south of Port Harcourt) and east of Calabar, where mean annual rainfall is more than 4,000 millimeters. Most of the rest of the southeast receives between 2,000 and 3,000 millimeters of rain per year, and the southwest (lying farther north) receives lower total rainfall, generally between 1,250 and 2,500 millimeters per year. Mean annual precipitation at Lagos is about 1 ,900 millimeters; at Ibadan, only about 140 kilometers north of Lagos, mean annual rainfall drops to around 1,250 millimeters. Moving north from Ibadan, mean annual rainfall in the west is in the range of 1,200 to 1,300 millimeters.

North of Kaduna, through the northern Guinea savanna and then the Sudan savanna zones, the total rainfall and the length of the rainy season decline steadily. The Guinea savanna starts in the middle belt, or southern part of northern Nigeria. It is distinguished from the Sudan savanna because it has a number of trees whereas the Sudan has few trees. Rainy seasons decline correspondingly in length as one moves north, with Kano having an average rainy period of 120 to 130 days, and Katsina and Sokoto having rainy seasons 10 to 20 days shorter. Average annual rainfall in the north is in the range of 500 to 750 millimeters.

Temperatures throughout Nigeria are generally high; diurnal variations are more pronounced than seasonal ones. Highest temperatures occur during the dry season; rains moderate afternoon highs during the wet season. Average highs and lows for Lagos are 31°C and 23°C in January and 28°C and 23°C in June. Although average temperatures vary little from coastal to inland areas, inland areas, especially in the northeast, have greater extremes. There, temperatures reach as high as 44°C before the onset of the rains or drop as low as 6°C during an intrusion of cool air from the north from December to February.

Fuel wood is the main source of domestic energy in the country and is increasing despite the fact that wood extraction has known damaging effect on plant cover. Nigeria has the highest rate of deforestation in Africa, which is increasing due to factors like settlement expansion and logging. The remaining forests could disappear by 2020. The country must thus invest in forestry, encourage use of alternatives to wood and continue to protect the remaining forests.

Halting deforestation and the conservation of remaining natural forests, as well as reversing forest degradation is important. A failure to do so undermines the productive capacity of the land, as well as key ecosystems. The use of fuel wood and charcoal for fuel is also a major source of degradation of Nigeria’s forests. By some estimates, at the current rate of deforestation, there will be no significant forest remaining in a few years’ time, unless strong action is taken. It must, however, be recognized that charcoal provides essential fuel for many in Nigeria and its use cannot simply be reduced without providing alternatives. Efficient cookstoves are one way to reduce fuel demand, and alternative heating sources such as LPG could be provided.

Floods are becoming more frequent environmental challenge due to heavier and higher intensity rainfall. Other factors like poor watershed management, rapid urbanization, and blockages of drainage channels are worsening the incidences and impacts. Environmental pollution is also an environmental challenge and is linked to a reasonable extent to poor waste management particularly in the urban areas.