​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Weather

 

The Democratic Republic of Congo located on the equator, has a hot and humid equatorial climate in the center, and tropical in the north and south. The climatic variations at work in the country determine very diverse ecosystems and very rich biodiversity. Half of the territory, corresponding to the central basin, is covered with forests. The other half, close to the tropics, is dominated by savannas (plateaus and highlands). There are clearly two main seasons :

 

• The dry season (or winter season in the tropics) characterized by rare and lower rainfall. North of the equator, this season extends from December to May, and in the southern hemisphere, from May to September. It records the lowest temperatures. The sky is generally overcast and the vegetation suffers from lack of water.

 

• The rainy season (or tropical summer season), the rainfall is between 1000 and 1500 mm and extends from May to November and from September to May across the equator.

 

In Kinshasa, the climate is hot and rainy from October to May, pleasant from June to September. Generally in the Congo, it is hot to very hot all year round. Maximum temperatures are 30-35 degrees in rainy periods (with peaks at 40 degrees) and rarely fall below 20 degrees in the dry season.​