Shifting weather patterns in recent years have posed a growing challenge in predicting Fiji’s climate, impacting various aspects of daily life.

Senior Scientific Officer at Fiji Meteorological Services Arieta Baleisolomoni has highlighted this saying that unforeseen alterations in weather have disrupted water security, agriculture, and overall livelihoods.

The unexpected dry conditions experienced in March and April of this year serve as an example of such impacts.

Baleisolomoni has stressed the need for Fijians to grasp the evolving climate dynamics.

“Usually you tend to gather 75% of our annual rainfall during our wet season, but for the beginning of this year, during March and April, there was an absence of the Southeast trade winds that usually contribute to this rainfall that we normally experience, especially for the Central Division.”

Typically, after a La Niña event, there follows a leg event characterized by ongoing rainfall.

However, the recent changes have defied these expectations, leaving locals grappling with uncertainty.

Adding to the complexity, the Fiji Meteorological Services is closely monitoring the development of an impending El Niño event, which could usher in drier conditions later this year.

This shift, Baleisolomoni adds further highlights the challenge of accurately predicting Fiji’s weather, once characterized by distinct cold and hot seasons, but now subject to unpredictable alterations.