Rainy Season in West and Central Africa: The IFRC's Early Warning, Early Action System in Practice

The rainy season has begun in West and Central Africa and torrential rain has already caused damage in Benin, the Central African Republic and Ghana. In Gambia, a serious storm has hit four regions causing widespread destruction of houses.

While the floods and storms have been severe, they did not arrive without warning. According to the seasonal predictions by the African Centre for Meteorological Applications for Development (ACMAD) Benin, CAR and Ghana are among the countries that are at risk for severe flooding between July and September of this year. The IFRC has been working with ACMAD since last year and the IFRC's Dakar office receives weekly updates which warn of possibly risks.