North-eastern Africa warned to brace for weather whiplash with heat, floods, droughts, fires as El Nino builds up in Pacific Ocean
Experts said the El Nino, a natural warming cycle, should further heat a globe already warming from fossil fuel pollution and will likely turbocharge extreme weather across the planet. Meteorologists forecast it will rival – or exceed – a record El Nino that began in 1997 and helped trigger billions of dollars in damage from heat waves, floods, droughts, tornadoes and wildfires.
Kenya braces for depressed rainfall and warmer-than-average temperatures in June-July
According to ICPAC, the evolving 2026 climate conditions resemble those experienced during the strong El Niño years of 1997 and 2023, when several parts of the region, including western Kenya, recorded below-normal rainfall.
Tsiswa weather forest: Indigenous climate knowledge used in western Kenya said to provide accurate predictions than modern meteorology
Furthermore, the synergy between indigenous and scientific knowledge is already saving lives as ICPAC facilitates forums where satellite data and indigenous forecasts are discussed together, creating consensus-based outlooks broadcast through local radio networks in vernacular languages.
