Climate of Ghana
The climate of Ghana is tropical.[1] The eastern coastal belt is warm and comparatively dry, the south-west corner of Ghana is hot and humid, and the north of Ghana is hot and dry.[2] Ghana is located on the Gulf of Guinea, only a few degrees north of the Equator, giving it a warm climate.[3]
Climate
[edit]The climate of Ghana is tropical and there are two main seasons: the wet and the dry seasons.[4] North Ghana experiences its rainy season from April to mid-October while South Ghana experiences its rainy season from March to mid-November.[4] The tropical climate of Ghana is relatively mild for its latitude.[4] The harmattan, a dry desert wind, blows in north-east Ghana from December to March, lowering the humidity and causing hotter days and cooler nights in northern part of Ghana.[4]
Average daily temperatures range from 30°C (86°F) during the day to 24°C (75°F) at night with a relative humidity between 77 percent and 85 percent.[5] In the southern part of Ghana, there is a bi-modal rainy season: April through June and September through November.[5] Squalls occur in the northern part of Ghana during March and April, followed by occasional rain until August and September, when the rainfall reaches its peak.[5] Rainfall ranges from 78 to 216 centimeters (31 to 85 inches) a year.[5]
| Climate data for Ghana | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 30.1 (86.2) |
31.2 (88.2) |
31.6 (88.9) |
31.0 (87.8) |
30.0 (86.0) |
28.3 (82.9) |
27.1 (80.8) |
26.8 (80.2) |
27.4 (81.3) |
28.6 (83.5) |
30.0 (86.0) |
29.5 (85.1) |
29.2 (84.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 24.5 (76.1) |
25.8 (78.4) |
26.2 (79.2) |
26.2 (79.2) |
25.4 (77.7) |
24.6 (76.3) |
23.5 (74.3) |
23.2 (73.8) |
23.6 (74.5) |
24.2 (75.6) |
24.3 (75.7) |
24.1 (75.4) |
24.6 (76.3) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 13.6 (0.54) |
40.3 (1.59) |
88.2 (3.47) |
115.7 (4.56) |
160.7 (6.33) |
210.4 (8.28) |
121.3 (4.78) |
88.9 (3.50) |
133.0 (5.24) |
128.1 (5.04) |
56.5 (2.22) |
24.6 (0.97) |
1,184.1 (46.62) |
| Average rainy days | 2 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 11 | 14 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 4 | 2 | 77 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 79 | 77 | 77 | 80 | 82 | 85 | 85 | 83 | 82 | 83 | 80 | 79 | 85 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 214 | 204 | 223 | 213 | 211 | 144 | 142 | 155 | 171 | 220 | 240 | 235 | 2,372 |
| Source: weatherbase.com[5] | |||||||||||||
Climate change in Ghana
[edit]
Climate change in Ghana is having significant impacts on the people of Ghana. Increasing temperatures and changes in rainfall, extreme weather, drought, wild fires, floods and sea-level rise[6] are expected to negatively affect the country's infrastructure, hydropower production, food security, and coastal and agricultural livelihoods such as farming and fisheries.[7][8][9] Ghana's economy will be impacted by climate change, due to its dependence on climate-sensitive sectors such as agriculture, energy, and forestry.
Climate change is expected worsen Ghana's water security problems, and this will have socioeconomic consequences.[10] Agriculture and access to safe and reliable drinking water will be impacted. Reduced water supply will have a negative impact on hydropower, which provides 54% of the country's electricity capacity. Additionally, Ghana will likely see a rise in diseases like malaria, dengue fever and cholera due to changes in water conditions.[11]
Climate change is expected to have different impacts across the country. The north of the country, which has a typically hot and dry climate, will become hotter and wetter, and increasing rainfall variability is expected to decrease crop yields, which could drive poverty and migration. The wetter south is predicted to experience a decrease in rainfall.[12]
Ghana signed the Paris Climate Agreement in 2016. Their existing 2015 Intended Nationally Determined Contribution[13] then became their Nationally Determined Contribution, which was reviewed in 2021.[14] Ghana aims to avoid 64 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, compared to a business-as-usual scenario for 2020-2030. The country has committed to net zero by 2060.[15]References
[edit]- ^ Igawa, Momoko; Kato, Makoto (2017-09-20). "A new species of hermit crab, Diogenes heteropsammicola (Crustacea, Decapoda, Anomura, Diogenidae), replaces a mutualistic sipunculan in a walking coral symbiosis". PLOS ONE. 12 (9): e0184311. Bibcode:2017PLoSO..1284311I. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0184311. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 5606932. PMID 28931020.
- ^ "Ghana high plains". photius.com. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
- ^ "Ghana: Geography Physical". photius.com. Retrieved 24 June 2013., "Ghana: Location and Size". photius.com. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
- ^ a b c d "UNDP Climate Change Country Profile: Ghana". ncsp.undp.org. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
- ^ a b c d e "Ghana Travel Weather Averages (Weatherbase)". Retrieved 1 June 2013.
- ^ "Ghana's coastline, swallowed by the sea". UNESCO. 2021-01-11. Retrieved 2023-03-16.
- ^ Tuebner, Robert (7 June 2023). "Ghana Climate Change Report" (PDF). USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
- ^ "Climate Risk Profile: Ghana". USAID. 31 January 2017. Retrieved 30 December 2022 – via climatelinks.org.
- ^ "World Bank Climate Change Knowledge Portal". climateknowledgeportal.worldbank.org. Retrieved 2024-07-12.
- ^ World Bank Group (2021). Climate Risk Profile: Ghana (PDF). World Bank Group.
- ^ Awuni, Stephen; Adarkwah, Francis; Ofori, Benjamin D.; Purwestri, Ratna Chrismiari; Bernal, Diana Carolina Huertas; Hajek, Miroslav (2023-05-01). "Managing the challenges of climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies in Ghana". Heliyon. 9 (5): e15491. Bibcode:2023Heliy...915491A. doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e15491. ISSN 2405-8440. PMC 10149250. PMID 37131451.
- ^ Desjonqueres,Chloe Genevieve Helene; Zhao,Hongxi; Kosmidou-Bradley,Walker Turnbull; Corral Rodas,Paul Andres. Ghana’s climate vulnerability profile (English). Washington, D.C. : World Bank Group. http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/099060524110782274
- ^ "NDC Registry (interim)". unfccc.int. Retrieved 24 November 2020.
- ^ Dave, Radhika; Saint-Laurent, Carole; Murray, Lara; Antunes Daldegan, Gabriel; Brouwer, Rens; de Mattos Scaramuzza, Carlos Alberto; Raes, Leander; Simonit, Silvio; Catapan, Marisete (2019-06-27). Second Bonn Challenge progress report: application of the Barometer in 2018. IUCN, International Union for Conservation of Nature. doi:10.2305/iucn.ch.2019.06.en. ISBN 978-2-8317-1980-1.
- ^ Climate Watch. "Ghana". www.climatewatchdata.org. Retrieved 2025-03-10.