South Africa is being urged to prepare early for the 2026/27 summer, as a rapidly strengthening El Niño raises the risk of below-normal rainfall and above-normal temperatures. The South African Weather Service says the event could become exceptionally strong by late 2026 or early 2027, but it is also stressing that a strong El Niño does not automatically mean a drought. Farmers, disaster management authorities and communities are being encouraged to act on the available information now rather than wait for the impacts to become clear. We speak to the South African Weather Service about what the latest forecasts mean for the months ahead. We spoke to Dr. Christien Engelbrecht, Lead Scientist, and Long Range Forecaster at the South African Weather Service.