Benin

Cumulative rainfall over the past month was mixed across the country, being below average in the north while remaining near to slightly above average in the south. Consequently, crop conditions as of mid-May are favourable in southern areas, but a delayed start to the agricultural season is observed across northern departments (specifically Atakora, Alibori, and Borgou, where approximately 80% to 95% of the active crop area is affected by a greenness anomaly). Poor rangeland conditions are also observed in the three northern departments. These deficits might be primarily attributed to exceptionally low cumulative rainfall in April, which fell 50% to 75% below the long-term average. Nevertheless, because it is still early in the agricultural cycle, ample opportunity for recovery remains with the full onset of rains in June. This outlook is supported by the Copernicus C3S Multimodel seasonal rainfall forecast for June–August 2026, which projects near-average precipitation across most of the country. However, there might be other limiting factors of agricultural activities in the north, as according to IOM, insecurity spilling over from the Central Sahel (Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger) has triggered a resurgence of attacks by non-state armed groups in northern Benin, driving population displacement.