Rains not here yet: Met Department

Fatima Karuweni

Zimbabwe’s Meteorological Services Department, (MSD) says the rainy season is not here yet, despite some light showers that were experienced in the capital, Harare on Wednesday, and thunderstorms in the northern districts of the country last week.

MSD head of forecasting James Ngoma told ZTN that the rainy season will start at the end of October. He advised farmers against planting, pointing out that moisture is still too low for crops to germinate.

“Farmers must prepare land but should not plant as rains received so far are below 10mm which cannot sustain germination of crops. At least 20mm of rain and above is required for planting,” Ngoma said.

“Winds (blowing) from South Africa have been contributing to the odd showers being experienced in the country and they are bringing in moisture and a lot of changes in temperatures in the past days,” he added.

The MSD has forecast that Zimbabwe will receive normal rains with a bias towards below normal rainfall in the 2019-20 season.