At the end of March and the beginning of April 2024 a region across the Sahel and West Africa experienced extreme heat, with maximum temperatures in the Sahel reaching more than 45°C and minimum temperatures of 32°C in Burkina Faso (Burkina Faso Meteorological Agency). Kayes in Mali recorded 48.5°C on 3 April.
From January 2024, large parts of Southern Africa experienced significantly below average rainfall, with Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Angola, Mozambique and Botswana receiving less than 20 percent of the typical rainfall expected for February, with devastating consequences for the population largely depending on rainfed agriculture.
Southern West Africa experienced unusually excessive humid heat early in the season.
After years of drought the short rainy season (October to December, OND) in the Horn of Africa brought exceptionally heavy rains, particularly in November, leading to severe flooding in the South of Ethiopia, Eastern Kenya and many regions in southern and central Somalia.
Madagascar, in particular the most populated region around the capital of Antananarivo experienced in 2023 its hottest October ever, breaking many high and low temperature records.