Preface
AGROCLIMATIC / CROP CONDITION ASSESSMENT FOR OCTOBER 2023
OVERVIEW
The weather systems that affected the country during the month were the southwest (SW) monsoon (terminated on 12 October 2023), northeast monsoon (onset on 20 October 2023), localized thunderstorms, Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), shearline, easterlies, low-pressure areas (LPAs), and the passage of Typhoon (TY) “JENNY” with international name “KOINU” which entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) on 29 September and exited on 05 October. TY JENNY did not make landfall but crossed the Luzon Strait, affecting areas over the extreme Northern Luzon. Moreover, the SW monsoon enhanced by JENNY brought occasional rains over some portions of the country. These caused minor damage to agriculture and infrastructures, with the most significant effects monitored in the Cagayan Valley and Western Visayas regions according to the situational report (SitRep #6) of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC). Rainfall assessment for the month of October as shown in the SPEI1 indicate that most parts of the country experienced near average conditions to relatively drier than the average rainfall conditions, with some areas that received way below average rainfall. An index showing the past 3-month accumulated rainfall (SPEI3) further suggests that a number of provinces in the eastern part of the country received way below average rainfall and only a few areas in central sections of Mindanao had near-normal to slightly wetter conditions. Nevertheless, NDVI suggests that only those in the harvested areas in Luzon indicate stressed crops, while the rest of the country are still with healthy vegetations.