The Climate of
Benin
Year 2000 monument, Ouidah
Climate Map
Climate map of Benin
What is the climate of Benin like?
Benin is a West African country with a short coastline on the Gulf of Guinea. It is situated between Nigeria to the east and Togo to the west and extends between 6° and 12°N. It is very narrow from east to west. It shares the same climatic belts and sequence of weather around the year as Nigeria and adjacent countries. The coastal region has two rainy seasons, one peaking in May or June, the other in October, but in the north there is a single rainy season starting in May or June.
Northern Benin has a semiarid climate with average temperatures of around 27°C (80°F) which rises to 30°C (88°F) in March just before the rains come. There are two seasons: the dry season (October to April) and the rainy season (May to September). During the dry season the dust-laden harmattan wind blows from the northeast for three or four months. Temperatures can range above 40°C (104°F) or drop near to 10°C (50°F) on occasion. Although rainfall is highest in central and southern Benin, it remains high (1,000 millimeters or 40 inches) in most of northern Benin. The climate of Kandi is representative of the north of the country.
| Climate data for Kandi (1961–1990) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 33.6 (92.5) | 36.4 (97.5) | 38.4 (101.1) | 38.6 (101.5) | 36.2 (97.2) | 33.3 (91.9) | 30.9 (87.6) | 30.2 (86.4) | 31.1 (88.0) | 34.2 (93.6) | 35.3 (95.5) | 33.8 (92.8) | 34.3 (93.7) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 24.9 (76.8) | 27.8 (82.0) | 30.9 (87.6) | 32.1 (89.8) | 30.4 (86.7) | 28.1 (82.6) | 26.4 (79.5) | 26.0 (78.8) | 26.2 (79.2) | 27.8 (82.0) | 26.5 (79.7) | 24.8 (76.6) | 27.7 (81.9) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 16.1 (61.0) | 19.2 (66.6) | 23.4 (74.1) | 25.6 (78.1) | 24.6 (76.3) | 22.9 (73.2) | 21.9 (71.4) | 21.8 (71.2) | 21.4 (70.5) | 21.4 (70.5) | 17.7 (63.9) | 15.8 (60.4) | 21.0 (69.8) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 0.2 (0.01) | 2.9 (0.11) | 8.2 (0.32) | 40.5 (1.59) | 107.0 (4.21) | 152.7 (6.01) | 196.9 (7.75) | 271.9 (10.70) | 190.9 (7.52) | 34.1 (1.34) | 0.5 (0.02) | 0.6 (0.02) | 1,006.6 (39.63) |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
The climate of Southern Benin is very hot and moist with average temperatures around 27°C (80°F). Four seasons are well marked: the harmattan or long dry season, from December to March; the season of the great rains, from April to July; the short dry season, from July to August; and the "little rains," from September to November.
During nine months of the year the climate is tempered by a sea-breeze, which is felt as far inland as Abomey (60 miles). It generally begins in the morning, and in the summer it often increases to a stiff gale at sundown. The coast generally has southwesterly winds, the dry harmattan reaching right to the coast on only a few days. The climate of Cotonou, which is on the coast, is representative of the south of the country.
| Climate data for Cotonou (1961–1990) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | 30.8 (87.4) | 31.6 (88.9) | 31.9 (89.4) | 31.6 (88.9) | 31.0 (87.8) | 29.2 (84.6) | 28.0 (82.4) | 27.8 (82.0) | 28.4 (83.1) | 29.6 (85.3) | 30.9 (87.6) | 30.8 (87.4) | 30.1 (86.2) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 27.3 (81.1) | 28.5 (83.3) | 28.9 (84.0) | 28.6 (83.5) | 27.8 (82.0) | 26.5 (79.7) | 25.8 (78.4) | 25.6 (78.1) | 26.0 (78.8) | 26.7 (80.1) | 27.6 (81.7) | 27.3 (81.1) | 27.2 (81.0) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 23.8 (74.8) | 25.4 (77.7) | 25.9 (78.6) | 25.6 (78.1) | 24.6 (76.3) | 23.7 (74.7) | 23.7 (74.7) | 23.4 (74.1) | 23.6 (74.5) | 23.8 (74.8) | 24.3 (75.7) | 23.8 (74.8) | 24.3 (75.7) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 9.2 (0.36) | 36.8 (1.45) | 73.8 (2.91) | 137.0 (5.39) | 196.9 (7.75) | 356.0 (14.02) | 147.0 (5.79) | 64.9 (2.56) | 99.0 (3.90) | 126.7 (4.99) | 41.4 (1.63) | 19.6 (0.77) | 1,308.3 (51.52) |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
References
- E. A. Pearce, Charles Gordon Smith, (1990) The Hutchinson World Weather Guide, John Murray Press. ISBN 1859863426
- Timothy L. Gall, (ed.), (2003), Worldmark Encyclopedia of the Nations, Eleventh Edition, Thomson Gale
- Hugh Chisholm, (ed.), (1911), Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh edition, Cambridge University Press
The Climate of
Benin
In summary:
Benin has a hot, humid, tropical climate with two rainy seasons in the south, one peaking in May or June, the other in October, but in the north there is a single rainy season starting in May or June.
In the north there is a single long dry season between October and April. At this time the dust-laden harmattan wind blows from the northeast. From December to February the dry harmattan wind from the north affects most of country, except the coast.