SAHEL
WEATHER AND CROP SITUATION 1998
Global Information
and Early Warning System on food and agriculture
Report No 4-
10 September 1998
HARVEST PROSPECTS GENERALLY
FAVOURABLE FOLLOWING MOSTLY ADEQUATE GROWING CONDITIONS IN AUGUST
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SUMMARY
Following widespread rains in July over most producing areas of Mali, Burkina
Faso, Niger and Chad, precipitation was generally regular and well distributed
in August, although decreasing during the last dekad of the month, notably in
Burkina Faso and western Niger. Precipitation remained also regular over Senegal
and The Gambia, thus improving growing conditions following late and reduced rains
in July. In Mauritania, decreased rains in late August have been compensated by
improved and widespread rains in early September. In Cape Verde, good rains were
registered on the main islands in mid or late August. In Guinea-Bissau, satellite
imagery indicates that abundant and widespread rains covered the entire country
in August and early September. The impact, however, of civil strife on farming
activities remains unclear. The latest Meteosat satellite image for the first
dekad of September indicates that clouds remained present over most producing
areas of the Sahel. Precipitation should have decreased in southern Mali and eastern
Chad but should have been widespread or even have increased in northern areas
of Senegal, Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Niger.
Reflecting generally good rainfall since late July, crops are developing satisfactorily
in most producing areas of Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad. Crop
prospects improved in Senegal and The Gambia but rains need to last until October
to cover the crop growing cycle, following the late start of the rainy season
and subsequent reduced rains.
Grasshoppers are reported in almost all countries. Treatments have been undertaken
in some areas. Grain-eating birds are also present in Mali and Senegal. The
Desert Locust situation remains calm. Only small numbers of locusts were reported
during August in southern Mauritania and in northern Mali. Good rains received
in August throughout the summer breeding areas of Mauritania, Mali, Niger and
Chad will improve breeding conditions. Consequently, locust numbers will increase
but remain at a low and non-threatening level.
ASSESSMENT
OF 1998 HARVEST PROSPECTS
Following successive localized poor harvests in several countries of
the Sahel and in view of weather anomalies in other regions due to El
Niņo and La Niņa phenomena, the 1998 crop season in the Sahel appears
particularly sensitive this year. Therefore, in collaboration with Club
du Sahel and FAO, the CILSS secretariat launched during a regional meeting
on food strategies in the Sahel in June, a special initiative to monitor
the 1998 crop season. In each country, a team has collected during August
data on the evolution of the season in order to prepare a report which
will be presented at a regional meeting from 21 to 25 September in Niamey,
at the Agrhymet Centre. This meeting will provide an opportunity to
get a first assessment of harvest prospects and discuss the preparation
of the usual FAO-GIEWS/CILSS-DIAPER crop assessment missions scheduled
in each country from mid-October. The final results of these missions
will be presented during a regional meeting organised by DIAPER in the
Sahel in mid-November and will then be discussed with representatives
from the international community during the annual meeting of the network
for Prevention of Food Crises in the Sahel in early December in Dakar.
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SITUATION
BY COUNTRY
BURKINA FASO 
CAPE-VERDE
CHAD
GAMBIA
GUINEA-BISSAU
MALI
MAURITANIA
NIGER
SENEGAL
SITUATION IN THE COASTAL
COUNTRIES
SOME
DEFINITIONS
In these reports, reference will be made to four different eco-climatic zones
based on the average annual precipitation and agricultural features, i.e. Sahelian
zone, Sudano-Sahelian zone, Sudanian zone and Guinean zone. They are shown in
the map and described below:
Sahelian zone: Where average annual precipitation ranges between
250 and 500 mm. This zone is at the limit of perennial vegetation. In parts
where precipitation is less than 350 mm, only pastures and occasional short-cycle
drought-resistant cereal crops are grown; all cropping in this zone is
subject to high risk.
Sudano-Sahelian zone: Where average annual precipitation ranges
from 500 to 900 mm. In those parts of this zone where precipitation is
less than 700 mm, mostly crops with a short growing cycle of 90 days are
generally cultivated predominantly sorghum and millet.
Sudanian zone: Where average annual precipitation ranges from
900 to 1 100 mm. In this zone, most cereal crops have a growing cycle of
120 days or more. Most cereals, notably maize, root and cash crops are
grown in this zone.
Guinean zone: Where average annual precipitation exceeds 1 100
mm. Guinea-Bissau and a small area of southern Burkina Faso belong to this
zone, more suited to root crop cultivation.
Reference will also be made to the Intertropical Convergence Zone
(ITCZ), also known by its trace on the earth's surface, called the
Intertropical Front. The ITCZ is a quasi-permanent zone between
two air masses separating the northern and southern hemisphere trade winds.
The ITCZ moves north and south of the equator and usually reaches its most
northerly position in July. Its position defines the northern limits of
possible precipitation in the Sahel; rain-bearing clouds are generally
situated 150-200 km south of the Intertropical Front.
