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Africa

Dam building in Africa continues at a precipitous rate, to meet the large and growing gap between water and electricity supplies and demand. Per capita water storage capacity on the continent is 100 times lower than in Europe and North America, leading to lack of water security and greater vulnerability to water related disasters. Climate change is predicted to only exacerbate Africa's problems - intensifying the droughts and floods that ravage the continent. However, there is actually substantial water storage capacity already available that is relatively inexpensive to utilize, will make better use of existing infrastructure and can be environmentally beneficial—if properly designed. The Global Initiative is working on demonstrative projects to access storage available in natural infrastructure - floodplains and aquifers - in order to restore downstream livelihoods and ecosystems and build resilience to climate change.  

Ghana - Lower Volta

Akosombo Dam. Photo credit: Encarta.

The construction of Akosombo Dam in 1965 created the largest man-made reservoir in the world, resulting in devastating impacts to the livelihoods of the downstream communities and the ecosystem processes on which they depend. The Global Initiative is working to restore these livelihoods and ecosystems downstream of Akosombo and the nearby Kpong dam by restoring a more natural flow pattern on the Volta River.  Read More >>

Tiga Dam. Photo credit: DFID-JWL Project.

Nigeria - Hadejia Nguru

More than 10 million humans' subsistence and livelihoods are dependent on the environmental services provided within the Hadejia-Nguru basin, yet a series of problems plague the basin, in part due to the effects the Tiga and Challawa dams, which control 80% of the flows into the wetlands. The Global Initiative is working to restore the natural variability in flows that occurred before these dams were built, in order to improve the health of the aquatic ecosystems and the people whose lives depend on it. Read More >>

Manantali dam. Photo credit: Jared Alden. (www.jaredphotography.com)

Other Africa Components

The Global Initiative is developing reoperation projects around the African continent.  In the Senegal River Basin, NHI has formed a partnership to examine the extent to which reoptimization techniques can be applied the Manantali and Diama dams to provide environmental and livelihood benefits, without diminsihing the other benefits provided by the dams.  A potential West Africa-wide component will explore how reoptimization may improve food production, ecological benefits, water supply reliability, power production and system reliability, flood management, and human health in the West African States. Read More >>

What's New?

Check out NHI's "Rapid Evaluation Tool for Screening the Potential for Reoptimizing Hydropower Systems.”

Many of our partners contributed to the valuable report "Securing Water for Ecosystems and Human Well-being: the Importance of Environmental Flows."

ICOLD president says environmental responsibility is a top priority.

Project partner Jeff Opperman at TNC describes Why the Zambezi River Looks OK, But Isn't along with challenges to conservation and of people.

Dams in Africa - Declaration of Broken Promises - This 9 minute video gives the dam affected in their own voices and concludes with recommendations in line with the work promoted by NHI's Global Reoperation Initiative.

 
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