Suriname: Subnational Dekadal Rainfall Indicators and Forecasts

Dekadal rainfall measurements and anomalies for Suriname's subnational administrative units are provided by the World Food Programme using CHIRPS v2 and CHIRPS-GEFS data. The collection tracks 10-day, 1-month, and 3-month precipitation levels alongside long-term averages to identify climatic deviations. Records are updated six times per month, transitioning from initial forecasts to final validated observations.

Use Cases

• Assessing agricultural water availability using the 3-month rolling aggregation (r3h)
• Identifying extreme weather events by filtering for high rainfall anomaly percentages (rfq)
• Validating climate models against long-term average rainfall data (rfh_avg)

Strengths

• Standardized Pcode references for all subnational units
• Nine distinct rainfall indicators including rolling 3-month anomalies
• High-frequency update cycle (6 times per month)

Limitations

• Satellite-derived precipitation estimates may contain bias compared to ground-level rain gauges
• Temporal lag for 'final' status products which are only published mid-month for the prior month

Provenance

Source

World Food Programme (WFP)

Collection Method

Satellite imagery aggregation (CHIRPS v2 and CHIRPS-GEFS)

Freshness

Updated six times per month with forecasts and observations

Geography

Suriname