Climate

Burkina Faso's latitude (between 9 N and 15 N) and continental position influence the country’s climate. It has a Sudanian Climate, which means there are only two seasons, wet and dry. The dry season gets longer the farther north you go. The seasonal cycles regulate human activities, and climatic variations significantly affect agricultural production.

Climatic Regions (Jeune Africue Atlases, burkina faso, 1998)

The season’s change is affected by the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), which determines the amount of rainfall. In between December and February the ITC is in the far south. From July to September it is in the north.

Position of Intertropical Convergance Zone
(Jeune Africue Atlases, burkina faso, 1998)

Burkina Faso's seasons are characterized by the changing from a dry season (lasting about eight months in the north and 5 or 6 months in the south) to a wet season (lasting from June to September in the north and from April to October in the south) During the winter dry season the continental trade wind (also known as Harmattan) sweeps across the country from the northeast. The wind dessicates the landscape as it accentuates the effects of the high temperatures of the season.

The main feature of the wet season is the monsoon, which is part of the southern trade winds. The rains are unevenly distributed in when and where they fall.

Mean Annual Rainfall. Before 1970 (left). 30 Year Period, 1966-1995 (right).
(Jeune Africue Atlases, burkina faso, 1998)

A survey of the country over the last 30 years shows that:

The temperature never falls below freezing
Mean monthly temperatures rarely rise above 35C

The climate crisis
The same survey showed that there was a lot of change in the isohyet maps during the survey (1966-1995) and before 1970. These changes were:

1. There are now humid pockets within dry areas.
2. There is less rainfall over the whole country.
3. The arid area extends further south.