The climate in Benin

Climate zone: tropics

The climate in Benin is very warm, with an annual average of 33 degrees, but has few truly tropical and sticky months. It is warm to hot all year round, inviting bathing at average water temperatures of 27 degrees. The warmest and rainiest part of the country is Atakora. The coldest is Littoral. Due to less rain, the best time for traveling is from November to March. Most precipitation falls from May to October.

Temperature records of the last 74 years

The hottest temperature measured from 1949 to January 2023 was reported by the Kandi weather station. In February 2013, the record temperature of 44.9 °C was reported here. The hottest summer from July to September, based on all 5 weather stations in Benin , was recorded in 1949 with an average temperature of 26.4 °C. This average temperature will normally be measured every four to six hours, thus also including the nights. Normally, this value is 25.4 degrees Celsius.

The coldest day in these 74 years was reported by the Kandi weather station. Here the temperature dropped to 11.2 °C in January 2008. Kandi lies at an altitude of 292 meters above sea level. The coldest winter (January to March) was in 1989 with an average temperature of 27.1 °C. In Benin, it is usual to have about 1.4 degrees more at 28.5 °C for this three-month period.

The most precipitation fell in June 1962. With 26.7 mm per day, the Cotonou weather station recorded the highest monthly average of the last 74 years.

Long-term development of temperatures from 1960 - 2022

In contrast to single record values, long-term development cannot simply be brought about by all weather stations in the country. Both the number and the locations are constantly changing. An average value would give a distorted result. If several measuring stations in particularly cold mountain or coastal regions are added in one year, the average would decrease as a result of this alone. If a station fails during the summer or winter months, it does not provide any values and distorts the average again. The subsequent long-term development was therefore reduced to only 2 measuring points in order to have comparable data over as long a period as possible.

In the years 1960 to 2022, there were only these 2 weather stations in the whole country, which reported continuous temperature values (Cotonou, Save). From these weather reports, we have created a long-term development that shows the monthly average temperatures. The hottest month in this entire period was March 1998 at 30.7 °C. August 1978 was the coldest month with an average temperature of 23.8 °C.

The average annual temperature was about 27.0 °C in the years after 1960 and about 27.8 °C in the last years before 2022. So in less than 63 years, it has increased by about 0.8 °C. This trend only applies to the selected 2 weather stations in Benin. A considerably more comprehensive evaluation of global warming has been provided separately.

Data basis and methodology

The data from the individual measuring stations are based on the archives of the German Weather Service, individual values averaged and supplemented by own elements. In order to determine a representative national average, average values were first calculated for each part of the country, which were then summarized at the national level. Thus, if a disproportionate number of weather stations are located in a small area, their number does not affect the national average. There are 6 stations in Benin itself. In 2 cases, neighboring but nearby weather stations were also used to obtain more accurate values.