The Nigerian Environmental Study Action Team (NEST) has said that the unusual, recurring rainfall in the country in December 2025 and January 2026 resulted from a temporary weather anomaly.

NEST, in a webinar on Wednesday titled “What is Happening to the Weather in West Africa?” cited reports of rainfall in Asaba, the Delta State capital, Owerri, the Imo State capital, Eket in Akwa Ibom, and other parts of Nigeria.

It noted that even though rainfall may occur in some parts of Nigeria between December and January, “the frequency and extent seem new.”

The guest speaker at the webinar, Ifeoluwa Balogun, the director of the West African Science Service Centre on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use (WASCAL), noted that the recurring rainfalls in parts of Nigeria and some other West African countries in recent times—where it was expected to be dry—have been due to the interference of the northeasterly wind by the intertropical discontinuity wind (ITD).

‎The ITD, often called the wind boundary, is the shifting interface where the dry, dusty, cool northeasterly and the warm, moist southwesterly winds meet, dictating weather patterns in West Africa.

Mr Balogun stated that the ITD has prevented the northeasterly wind from reaching the western and South-Southern parts of the country, resulting in the unusual rainfall.

He said, “As we are recently experiencing recurring rainfalls in Nigeria and some other parts of West Africa, this is a result of the intercontinental discontinuity wind that interferes with the northeasterly wind.”

The expert added, “It’s just a weather anomaly and may not be classified as climate change. It will have to occur over time for it to be.”

‎He added that other causes of the weather anomaly include persistent moisture supply from the ocean and a weaker or later Harmattan push.

Noting the destruction of crops due to unexpected rainfall and flooding, the chairman of the NEST’s Board of Directors, Chinedum Nwajiuba, urged citizens to remain calm and unperturbed.

He said, “Despite some of the negative effects of the weather on agricultural produce and also the environment, I would like everyone to remain calm, as it’s only a temporary occurrence and not a permanent change.”