Residents of Nairobi, Kisumu, Kiambu, Nyeri, and Nakuru have been advised to prepare for showers over the next five days as the regional climate body warns of below-normal rainfall in some parts of the country.
The weather advisory covers the period from Saturday, January 25, to Wednesday, January 29. It outlines expectations for showers in at least 36 counties over the five days. However, high temperatures are also expected days.
The Kenya Meteorological Department forecasts that the Highlands East of the Rift Valley, including Nairobi, Nyandarua, Laikipia, Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Murang’a, Kiambu, Meru, Embu, and Tharaka, will receive showers in the afternoon and night.
The showers are expected over the five days, with temperatures forecast to hit a high of 28°C with lows of 08°C over the five days.
Kenya Meteorological Department Director David Gikungu speaking during a conference in Nairobi on February 28, 2024.
Photo
Kenya Meteorological Department
Many parts of the country will remain sunny and dry, with temperatures in some parts of Nyanza expected to reach 31°C over the next five days.
The Highlands West of the Rift Valley, Lake Victoria Basin, and the broader Rift Valley region—the counties of Kisumu, Kisii, Uasin Gishu, Nakuru, Kakamega, and Busia, among others—will experience scattered rains throughout the five days.
Coastal counties like Mombasa, Kilifi, and Kwale are set to remain mostly dry during the day, with occasional night cloudiness. Residents should brace for high daytime temperatures exceeding 35°C, particularly in some coastal, south-eastern, and northern regions.
In the south-eastern lowlands of Kitui, Makueni, Machakos, Kajiado, and Taita Taveta counties, as well as inland parts of Tana River County, Kenya Met predicts showers over the five days in the afternoon and night.
However, morning showers are to be expected from Monday to Wednesday. At the same time, nights are also expected to have high temperatures hitting 34 °C with lows of 15°C.
IGAD Forecast
Kenya is among countries expected to receive below-normal rainfall, according to the IGAD March to May 2025 seasonal forecast released by the IGAD Climate Prediction and Applications Centre.
According to IGAD forecasts, that below-average rainfall is expected in much of Somalia, eastern and northern Kenya, southern and northeastern Ethiopia, Djibouti, coastal Eritrea, western South Sudan, southern and western Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, and northwestern Tanzania.
For western Kenya, there is a high chance of more than 70 per cent that the seasonal rainfall will exceed 200 mm.
A picture of emaciated cows due to ravaging drought in Kenya
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