•"Afternoon and night showers and thunderstorms are expected over a few places occasionally spreading to several places,” Thiong’o said.
•The rains will support food crops already on the farms.
Image: CHETI PRAXIDES
Rainfall will crawl back to some parts of the country this week, marking the peak of Kenya’s coldest season.
The June-August frigid weather usually climaxes in July, although temperatures will remain warmer than usual this month.
The weatherman said many parts of the country will experience intermittent cold and cloudy conditions, but some will have rains.
“Rainfall is expected over some parts of the Highlands East and West of the Rift Valley, the Lake Victoria Basin, the Rift Valley, the Coast and North-western Kenya. The rest of the country is likely to be generally dry,” said Dr Kennedy Thiong’o, the deputy director of Kenya Meteorological Department, in charge of climate services.
He said various counties are expected to have rain toward the end of this week.
These are Kisii, Nyamira, Nandi, Kericho, Bomet, Kakamega, Vihiga, Bungoma, Siaya, Kisumu, Homabay, Busia, Migori, Narok, Baringo, Nakuru, Trans-Nzoia, Uasin-Gishu, Elgeyo-Marakwet and West-Pokot Counties.
“Sunny intervals are expected in the morning though a few areas may receive rains during the second half of the forecast period. Afternoon and night showers and thunderstorms are expected over few places occasionally spreading to several places,” Thiong’o said, about these counties.
Turkana and Samburu counties are also likely to have morning rains and afternoon/night showers and thunderstorms are expected over a few places during the second half of the forecast period.
In Nyandarua, Laikipia, Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Murang'a, Kiambu, Meru, Embu, Tharaka-Nithi and Nairobi Counties, mornings are likely to be cloudy, with light rains over a few places, giving way to sunny intervals.
"Afternoon and night showers are expected over a few places," Thiong'o said.
The rest of the country will have occasional cloudiness that is expected to give way to sunny intervals. Nights are likely to be partly cloudy.
The rains will support food crops already on the farms.
This may help alleviate hunger later in the year when the country is expected to go into a La Nina.
Last week, the Igad Regional Focus of the Global Report on Food Crises 2023 showed member states continued to grapple with a severe food crisis in 2022, with over 55 million people facing acute hunger and requiring urgent assistance.
Development member states comprising Ethiopia, Somalia, and South Sudan met in Nairobi on June 28 to find solutions to the food crises.
They reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen and accelerate national and regional efforts to address food insecurity.
The ministers said in a joint communiqué that this will be done while pursuing longer-term development efforts that enhance the resilience and livelihoods of vulnerable communities.
“We declare our joint commitment to regional and national capacity-building that translates strategic policy commitments into actionable results that promote sustainable food systems and the prevention of food and nutrition crises,” the communiqué said.
Igad member states include Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda.
The bloc covers 5.2 million square kilometres with 261.2 million people.
The eight countries are vulnerable to climate change and extreme events.
Studies have shown that change and variability in extreme rainfall and temperature are projected to adversely affect rain-fed food crop production in developing countries, especially in East Africa.
This is because food production mostly depends on seasonal rainfall patterns, distribution and amount for a good harvest.
The climatic factors include extreme rainfall events (flash floods/drought), cyclones, cold events, lightning; wind storms/dust storms and hailstorms/thunderstorms.
Non-climatic factors include market prices, rising demand for food, crop production inputs, area under harvest, yield variability, increasing competition over land, input prices not affordable and soil degradation.
The ministers said there was a need to encourage efforts to extend national-level progress in food systems strengthening to sub-national levels through an inclusive approach that prioritises the needs of those most vulnerable to and affected by food and nutrition crises.