CLIMATIC VARIABILITY IN HUMID AFRICA ALONG THE GULF-OF-GUINEA .1. DETAILED ANALYSIS OF THE PHENOMENON IN COTE-DIVOIRE

The analysis presented here deals with annual precipitation as well as the number of rainy days observed in Cote d'Ivoire during the decades from 1950 to 1980. The study is based on a set of methods both for in terpolation and for cartographic representation as well as on statisti cal methods for the detection of breaks in the time series. The method s reveal a climatic variability in the country as a whole at the end o f the 60s and at the beginning of the 70s. Indeed, the results show th at there was a sharp decrease both in rainfall amounts and in the numb er of rainy days during the 60s and the 70s. Cote d'Ivoire, which belo ngs to humid Africa, was therefore affected by a climatic accident com parable to and in line with what was observed further north in the Sah elian region.