Climate and average weather in Dire Dawa
In Dire Dawa, the weather is warm, showery, and mostly clear and remarkably steady, with daytime highs holding near warm levels all year. The wettest stretch peaks around April.
Over the course of the year, the temperature in Dire Dawa typically varies from 12°C to 27°C, and is rarely below 10°C or above 29°C. June is the hottest month of the year, while December is the coldest.
Based on the travel score, the best times of year to visit Dire Dawa for warm-weather activities are from early January to mid March and early October to late December.
- Hottest
- Jun
- 27°
- Coldest
- Dec
- 12°
- Wettest
- Apr
- 153 mm
- Driest
- Dec
- 20 mm
- Rain / yr
- 886 mm
- 126 wet days
- Daylight
- 11.4–12.6 h
- shortest–longest
- Elevation
- 1,204 m
- 9.6°N
- Clearest
- Dec
- 31% cloud
Dire Dawa weather by month, at a glance
The whole year in one picture — sky, rain, humidity, temperature and travel score. Click any band to jump to its full chart.
Each stripe is one measure across the whole year, stacked so a single day reads top to bottom. The sky band runs overcast grey on top down to clear blue at the base — more blue means sunnier — followed by the rainfall curve, the humidity band, a temperature strip that tints each stretch of the year by how warm its average high is, and the travel-score line at the foot. Scan straight down any date to read that day across every measure at once; the score climbs highest around early October to late December.
Temperature through the year
Daily average highs and lows in Dire Dawa, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.
Temperatures in Dire Dawa stay fairly even through the year, without a distinct hot or cool season. The warmest month is June, with an average high of 27°C and low of 17°C; the coolest is December, with an average low of 12°C and high of 23°C.
Days typically run about 10°C warmer than nights year-round.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg high (°C) | 24 | 25 | 26 | 26 | 27 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 24 | 23 |
| Avg low (°C) | 12 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 13 | 12 |
| Avg high (°C) | Avg low (°C) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 24 | 12 |
| Feb | 25 | 14 |
| Mar | 26 | 15 |
| Apr | 26 | 16 |
| May | 27 | 17 |
| Jun | 27 | 17 |
| Jul | 26 | 16 |
| Aug | 25 | 16 |
| Sep | 25 | 16 |
| Oct | 25 | 15 |
| Nov | 24 | 13 |
| Dec | 23 | 12 |
Average hourly temperature in Dire Dawa
A compact picture of the whole year, hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled average temperature. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.
Read left to right for the day of the year and top to bottom for the hour of the day; the color is the modeled temperature, cool blues through to hot reds on the same scale as the other charts. A vertical slice is a single day's swing — coolest just before dawn, warmest in the mid-afternoon — while a horizontal slice follows one hour across the seasons. The darker overlay marks night and the lighter one the twilight around sunrise and sunset. Colors run warmest on June afternoons, near 27°C, and coldest before dawn in December, near 12°C.
Dire Dawa weather by month
Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 24° / 12° | 24 | 4.3 | 11.5 | 8.3 |
| Feb | 25° / 14° | 30 | 4.2 | 11.7 | 8.0 |
| Mar | 26° / 15° | 95 | 10 | 11.9 | 6.9 |
| Apr | 26° / 16° | 153 | 14.3 | 12.2 | 6.0 |
| May | 27° / 17° | 95 | 11.5 | 12.4 | 6.4 |
| Jun | 27° / 17° | 30 | 8.4 | 12.5 | 6.9 |
| Jul | 26° / 16° | 92 | 18.9 | 12.5 | 5.6 |
| Aug | 25° / 16° | 127 | 22.4 | 12.3 | 5.2 |
| Sep | 25° / 16° | 110 | 17 | 12.1 | 5.9 |
| Oct | 25° / 15° | 74 | 8 | 11.8 | 7.4 |
| Nov | 24° / 13° | 36 | 4.3 | 11.6 | 8.4 |
| Dec | 23° / 12° | 20 | 3.1 | 11.5 | 8.5 |
Chance of rain
How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.
Dire Dawa gets about 886 mm of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is often wet, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.
The wetter season lasts 3.4 months, from around Jun 26 to Oct 6, peaking in August at about 76% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Dec 21.
April is the wettest month by volume, with 153 mm over about 14 wet days; December is the driest, with 20 mm.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rain on a day (%) | 14 | 16 | 31 | 47 | 37 | 30 | 61 | 72 | 56 | 26 | 15 | 10 |
| Rain days | 4 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 12 | 8 | 19 | 22 | 17 | 8 | 4 | 3 |
| Rain on a day (%) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 14 | 4 |
| Feb | 16 | 4 |
| Mar | 31 | 10 |
| Apr | 47 | 14 |
| May | 37 | 12 |
| Jun | 30 | 8 |
| Jul | 61 | 19 |
| Aug | 72 | 22 |
| Sep | 56 | 17 |
| Oct | 26 | 8 |
| Nov | 15 | 4 |
| Dec | 10 | 3 |
Monthly rainfall
Over a full year, Dire Dawa collects about 886 mm of rain across 126 wet days — roughly 74 mm in an average month.
It doesn’t fall evenly. April is the wettest month with 153 mm, while December is the driest at just 20 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 44% of the year’s total.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rainfall (mm) | 24 | 30 | 95 | 153 | 95 | 30 | 92 | 127 | 110 | 74 | 36 | 20 |
| Rain days | 4 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 12 | 8 | 19 | 22 | 17 | 8 | 4 | 3 |
| Rainfall (mm) | Rain days | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 24 | 4 |
| Feb | 30 | 4 |
| Mar | 95 | 10 |
| Apr | 153 | 14 |
| May | 95 | 12 |
| Jun | 30 | 8 |
| Jul | 92 | 19 |
| Aug | 127 | 22 |
| Sep | 110 | 17 |
| Oct | 74 | 8 |
| Nov | 36 | 4 |
| Dec | 20 | 3 |
Clouds and sunshine
How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.
In Dire Dawa, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.
The clearer part of the year begins around October 26 and lasts for 4.2 months, ending around March 3. The clearest month is December, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 82% of the time on average.
The cloudier part of the year begins around March 4 and lasts for 3.7 months, ending around June 23. The cloudiest month is April, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 49% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clearer (%) | 75 | 73 | 63 | 51 | 58 | 69 | 73 | 77 | 78 | 70 | 79 | 82 |
| Cloudier (%) | 25 | 27 | 37 | 49 | 42 | 31 | 27 | 23 | 22 | 30 | 21 | 18 |
| Clearer (%) | Cloudier (%) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 75 | 25 |
| Feb | 73 | 27 |
| Mar | 63 | 37 |
| Apr | 51 | 49 |
| May | 58 | 42 |
| Jun | 69 | 31 |
| Jul | 73 | 27 |
| Aug | 77 | 23 |
| Sep | 78 | 22 |
| Oct | 70 | 30 |
| Nov | 79 | 21 |
| Dec | 82 | 18 |
Daylight, sunrise and sunset
Hours of daylight through the year, with sunrise and sunset times.
The gold band is daylight — sunrise runs along its lower edge, sunset along the upper — so it widens toward summer and pinches toward winter, with night the dark area above and below. The longest day, around June 12, brings about 12 h 36 min of light; the shortest, around January 1, only 11 h 24 min — a swing of roughly 1 h 12 min.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 11.5 | 11.7 | 11.9 | 12.2 | 12.4 | 12.5 | 12.5 | 12.3 | 12.1 | 11.8 | 11.6 | 11.5 |
| Sunrise (AM) | 6:37 | 6:37 | 6:24 | 6:06 | 5:56 | 5:56 | 6:03 | 6:07 | 6:05 | 6:04 | 6:11 | 6:25 |
| Sunset (PM) | 6:07 | 6:18 | 6:20 | 6:19 | 6:22 | 6:29 | 6:33 | 6:26 | 6:08 | 5:51 | 5:44 | 5:52 |
| Daylight (h) | Sunrise (AM) | Sunset (PM) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11.5 | 6:37 | 6:07 |
| Feb | 11.7 | 6:37 | 6:18 |
| Mar | 11.9 | 6:24 | 6:20 |
| Apr | 12.2 | 6:06 | 6:19 |
| May | 12.4 | 5:56 | 6:22 |
| Jun | 12.5 | 5:56 | 6:29 |
| Jul | 12.5 | 6:03 | 6:33 |
| Aug | 12.3 | 6:07 | 6:26 |
| Sep | 12.1 | 6:05 | 6:08 |
| Oct | 11.8 | 6:04 | 5:51 |
| Nov | 11.6 | 6:11 | 5:44 |
| Dec | 11.5 | 6:25 | 5:52 |
Sunny days
How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.
Dire Dawa averages about 14 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 7 and 20 days.
The sunnier stretch runs 4.7 months, from around Oct 15 to Mar 6. The sunniest month is December, with roughly 19 sunny days (bright).
The greyest month is April, down near 8 sunny days — about 60% fewer than the December peak.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunny days | 17 | 15 | 12 | 8 | 11 | 15 | 14 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 17 | 20 |
| Sky | Bright | Bright | Mixed | Gloomy | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Mixed | Bright | Bright |
| Sunny days | Sky | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 17 | Bright |
| Feb | 15 | Bright |
| Mar | 12 | Mixed |
| Apr | 8 | Gloomy |
| May | 11 | Mixed |
| Jun | 15 | Mixed |
| Jul | 14 | Mixed |
| Aug | 12 | Mixed |
| Sep | 12 | Mixed |
| Oct | 14 | Mixed |
| Nov | 17 | Bright |
| Dec | 20 | Bright |
Humidity comfort
Share of days at each humidity comfort level, based on the dew point — the measure that tracks how muggy it actually feels.
Humidity comfort is graded by the dew point — the temperature at which the air would be fully saturated — because it tracks how muggy it actually feels far better than relative humidity does. A low dew point feels dry and crisp; a high one feels sticky and oppressive no matter the reading on a humidity gauge.
In Dire Dawa, how humid it feels changes noticeably over the year.
The more humid part of the year lasts 3.1 months, from around March 5 to June 7. The muggiest month is April, when the air feels humid, muggy or worse about 21% of the time.
The most comfortable stretch runs from around June 8 to March 4, and January is the most comfortable month — the air is dry or comfortable 100% of the time.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dry (%) | 86 | 80 | 61 | 36 | 28 | 42 | 35 | 26 | 39 | 70 | 84 | 90 |
| Comfortable (%) | 14 | 18 | 31 | 43 | 55 | 55 | 65 | 71 | 59 | 26 | 15 | 10 |
| Humid (%) | 0 | 2 | 8 | 21 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| Dry (%) | Comfortable (%) | Humid (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 86 | 14 | 0 |
| Feb | 80 | 18 | 2 |
| Mar | 61 | 31 | 8 |
| Apr | 36 | 43 | 21 |
| May | 28 | 55 | 17 |
| Jun | 42 | 55 | 3 |
| Jul | 35 | 65 | 0 |
| Aug | 26 | 71 | 2 |
| Sep | 39 | 59 | 2 |
| Oct | 70 | 26 | 4 |
| Nov | 84 | 15 | 1 |
| Dec | 90 | 10 | 0 |
Wind
Average wind speed through the year, banded into plain-language speed zones so a number reads as 'breezy' or 'calm' without knowing the scale.
This is the average sustained wind speed at the standard 10 metres above open ground — the steady flow a weather station reports, not the sharper gusts that come and go, which can run half again as fast. It's the number that says whether a place is generally breezy or calm.
Across the year, average wind speed in Dire Dawa is typically calm, near 7 km/h, and varies little with the seasons.
The windier part of the year lasts 4.2 months, from around May 17 to Sep 20. The windiest month is July, averaging about 10 km/h (calm).
The calmer part of the year runs from around Sep 21 to May 16, with December the calmest month at about 6 km/h.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wind speed (km/h) | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 |
| Feels | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm | calm |
| Wind speed (km/h) | Feels | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 6 | calm |
| Feb | 6 | calm |
| Mar | 6 | calm |
| Apr | 6 | calm |
| May | 7 | calm |
| Jun | 10 | calm |
| Jul | 10 | calm |
| Aug | 9 | calm |
| Sep | 8 | calm |
| Oct | 7 | calm |
| Nov | 6 | calm |
| Dec | 6 | calm |
Hazard calendar for Dire Dawa
When the seasonal hazards worth planning around — the rainy season, tropical-cyclone risk and dust haze — are active through the year.
Dire Dawa sees seasonal dust haze (June–July), heaviest in July.
Best time to visit Dire Dawa
To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Dire Dawa throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.
Around mid October, Dire Dawa is still near the start of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds not yet at full swing.
Inferred from the travel-score curve; month-by-month visitor numbers are a planned addition.
The travel score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 18°C and 28°C. Based on this score, the best times of year to visit Dire Dawa for general outdoor tourist activities run from early June to late June and again from early October to mid March, with a peak score in the third week of December.
The travel score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travel score (0–10) | 8.3 | 8.0 | 6.9 | 6.1 | 6.4 | 6.8 | 5.6 | 5.2 | 5.9 | 7.4 | 8.3 | 8.5 |
| Rating | ideal | ideal | good | good | good | good | good | fair | good | good | ideal | ideal |
| Travel score (0–10) | Rating | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 8.3 | ideal |
| Feb | 8.0 | ideal |
| Mar | 6.9 | good |
| Apr | 6.1 | good |
| May | 6.4 | good |
| Jun | 6.8 | good |
| Jul | 5.6 | good |
| Aug | 5.2 | fair |
| Sep | 5.9 | good |
| Oct | 7.4 | good |
| Nov | 8.3 | ideal |
| Dec | 8.5 | ideal |
The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 24°C and 34°C. Based on this score, the best times of year to visit Dire Dawa for hot-weather activities run from late April to early July and again from late September to mid April, with a peak score in the last week of February.
The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).
What to pack for Dire Dawa, by month
Month by month, what's worth putting in the bag — from the temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind. Tap a month for a quick packing note.
Dire Dawa packs about the same all year — highs hold near 27°C. Across the year the things worth having are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection.
In June, Dire Dawa sees daytime highs around 27°C and nights near 17°C. Pack light clothes. Worth having: rain gear and sun protection. About 8 days see rain.
UV index (midday) in Dire Dawa by month
Clear-sky midday UV index through the year, shaded by the WHO exposure levels — how much sun protection each month calls for.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Dire Dawa peaks around March 21 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 10 at about 10 (extreme).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 12 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 11 | 10 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 12 | Extreme |
| Feb | 14 | Extreme |
| Mar | 15 | Extreme |
| Apr | 15 | Extreme |
| May | 12 | Extreme |
| Jun | 12 | Extreme |
| Jul | 11 | Extreme |
| Aug | 13 | Extreme |
| Sep | 13 | Extreme |
| Oct | 13 | Extreme |
| Nov | 11 | Extreme |
| Dec | 10 | Extreme |
Average hourly UV index in Dire Dawa
Modeled clear-sky UV for every hour of every day — when in the day sun protection actually matters.
The whole year hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled clear-sky UV index — the midday peak scaled down as the sun sits lower in the sky. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.
UV falls off far faster than brightness as the sun drops, so even in March the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 8 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 6.5 hours reach 6 or more. Mornings and late afternoons stay comparatively gentle year round.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | 7.5 | 8 | 8 | 8.5 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8.5 | 8 | 8 | 7.5 | 7 |
| UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | 5.5 | 6 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 6 | 6 | 5.5 | 6.5 | 6 | 6 | 5.5 | 5 |
| UV ≥ 3 (h/day) | UV ≥ 6 (h/day) | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7.5 | 5.5 |
| Feb | 8 | 6 |
| Mar | 8 | 6.5 |
| Apr | 8.5 | 6.5 |
| May | 8 | 6 |
| Jun | 8 | 6 |
| Jul | 8 | 5.5 |
| Aug | 8.5 | 6.5 |
| Sep | 8 | 6 |
| Oct | 8 | 6 |
| Nov | 7.5 | 5.5 |
| Dec | 7 | 5 |
Air quality in Dire Dawa by month
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see which months the air is worst, not just the yearly average.
Air quality in Dire Dawa is worst in June — around 30 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.
Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 22 | 24 | 24 | 21 | 25 | 30 | 28 | 22 | 26 | 24 | 21 | 21 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 22 | Moderate |
| Feb | 24 | Moderate |
| Mar | 24 | Moderate |
| Apr | 21 | Moderate |
| May | 25 | Moderate |
| Jun | 30 | Moderate |
| Jul | 28 | Moderate |
| Aug | 22 | Moderate |
| Sep | 26 | Moderate |
| Oct | 24 | Moderate |
| Nov | 21 | Moderate |
| Dec | 21 | Moderate |
Growing season
Dire Dawa is frost-free year round — even the coldest nights rarely reach freezing, so there is no start or end to the growing season.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frost-free chance (%) | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 |
| Frost nights | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Frost-free chance (%) | Frost nights | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 100 | 0 |
| Feb | 100 | 0 |
| Mar | 100 | 0 |
| Apr | 100 | 0 |
| May | 100 | 0 |
| Jun | 100 | 0 |
| Jul | 100 | 0 |
| Aug | 100 | 0 |
| Sep | 100 | 0 |
| Oct | 100 | 0 |
| Nov | 100 | 0 |
| Dec | 100 | 0 |
Growing degree days
Growing degree days tally heat above 10°C: each day adds however many degrees its average temperature runs over that threshold, and cold days add nothing. Dire Dawa banks about 3,672 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around June.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | 247 | 261 | 331 | 329 | 358 | 352 | 338 | 330 | 323 | 306 | 260 | 239 |
| Growing degree days (°C·days) | |
|---|---|
| Jan | 247 |
| Feb | 261 |
| Mar | 331 |
| Apr | 329 |
| May | 358 |
| Jun | 352 |
| Jul | 338 |
| Aug | 330 |
| Sep | 323 |
| Oct | 306 |
| Nov | 260 |
| Dec | 239 |
Solar energy
Average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground, banded into brightness zones so the number means something at a glance.
Solar energy is how much sunlight actually reaches the ground each day, measured in kilowatt-hours per square metre (kWh/m²) — the combined effect of how long the sun is up, how high it climbs, and how much cloud gets in the way. It's the raw fuel a solar panel has to work with: for scale, 1 kWh/m² a day is dim and wintry, while 7+ is desert-bright.
Dire Dawa receives about 5.8 kWh/m² a day of solar energy — bright — and it stays remarkably steady, holding between 5.4 and 6.3 kWh/m² all year. For solar panels, output here is a flat line, not a seasonal wave.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | 5.8 | 6.2 | 6.0 | 5.8 | 5.8 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 5.7 | 5.7 | 5.9 | 5.9 | 5.7 |
| Level | Bright | Intense | Intense | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright | Bright |
| Solar energy (kWh/m²) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 5.8 | Bright |
| Feb | 6.2 | Intense |
| Mar | 6.0 | Intense |
| Apr | 5.8 | Bright |
| May | 5.8 | Bright |
| Jun | 5.5 | Bright |
| Jul | 5.5 | Bright |
| Aug | 5.7 | Bright |
| Sep | 5.7 | Bright |
| Oct | 5.9 | Bright |
| Nov | 5.9 | Bright |
| Dec | 5.7 | Bright |
Where is Dire Dawa?
Dire Dawa sits at 9.6°N, 41.9°E, 1,204 m above sea level, in Ethiopia. The nearest listed city is ‘Alemaya, 27 km away.
Topography around Dire Dawa
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Dire Dawa.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Dire Dawa has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 322 m around an average of 1,233 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,339 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,714 m.
The land around Dire Dawa is covered by shrubs (49%) and artificial surfaces (36%) within 3 km, shrubs (72%) within 16 km, and shrubs (44%) and grassland (22%) within 80 km.
Ethiopia travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 3
- Reconsider Travel
- Power plugs
- Type C / E / F / L
- 220 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 37% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $933
- 2025
- Happiness
- 4.0 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 14%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 8.5
- per 100k, 2012
- Road deaths
- 28.2
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Low
- World Bank
- English
- Low
- EF EPI 499
- Religion
Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.
Data sources
Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Dire Dawa (9.5931°, 41.8661°, elevation 1,204 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).